How to Hand feed baby Parrots

We will cover the basics of Hand feeding with this post. The rewards of Hand Feeding are great watching your new pet parrot grow up and bond with you.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Syringe
• Exact Hand Feeding Formula
• Cup
• Fork
• Paper towels
• Brooder
• Cage

1. Charts you can go by as directed on the Label of the Formula
   
   AGE FORMULA WATER
   Hatch - 2 1 part 6 parts
   2-5 days 1 part 2-3 parts
   5-2 weaning 1 part 1 1/3-2 parts

2. Either boil on the stove or microwave hot water unless your tap is hot enough. Put a scoop of hand feeding formula in a cup slowly add hot water about (120 F)

3. Mix until the formula is well mixed with the water wait about 1 minute before feeding.
   Cool Mixture to (105 F) or between (102 F and 110 F)The mixture should be the consistency of a thick pudding. For a smoother consistency stir vigorously until desired consistency is achieved.

4. You can use a spoon or a syringe the choice is up to you I like a syringe the "O" Ring type. Feed the formula to the chick once you get the feeding response which is an up and down bobbing of the head. Never over feed you want the crop to be nicely rounded never over feed you don't want the formula up in the neck area this could cause the chick to aspirate.

5. Make sure you clean your supplies and sanitize them. You don't want formula to harden on the supplies because it makes it very hard to get cleaned up. I hope these steps are beneficial and you enjoyed the reading.

Tips & Warnings

• Always take your time when hand feeding a baby parrot. If you are not sure how make sure you visit your local breeder or vet and they should be willing to show you the technique. When I started I worked with a breeder one on one.
• Never Reuse the formula! If the formula cools too much before your done your bird will reject it and you should never microwave the formula at this point. If you have Questions Please ask your Vet or an experienced Breeder.

Resources

• Babby Parrot Book

[sfaulkner]

on 10/12/2009 Jules,

You are correct hand feeding isn't for someone to just jump into...

Thanks for the baby spoon tip!

[jules-cvt]

on 10/12/2009 I would like to mention that it is very easy to aspirate a young bird. In all honesty, hand feeding is not for the ill-educated or novice person to attempt.

A nifty tool I use when mixing formula is a spoon that is make for human infants. It has a coating over the spoon that is sensitive to temperatures that are too warm for an infant and the spoon will loose the color of the coating (say a red spoon will turn white), alerting you that the temperature is too warm. These spoons have been very accurate for me over the years of my using them. They can be bought at nearly any place that sells infant supplies like bottles, etc.

[Mindee94]

on 6/19/2009 Excellent information! Perfect for the new parrot owner or for a person debating the responsibility. Thanks! ~Mindee~