Some of my zebra finches escaped, I feel terrible. :( They left behind 3 babies. They have not fledged yet, but they have all their feathers. So far I've had them for a day and a night.
I'm at least trying to keep them alive, instead of just leaving them. Here's what I'm doing, please tell me if I'm doing it okay or if I'm completely wrong (I have NO experience with this sort of thing!).
I feed them once every 4 hours. I'm using Avione Hand Rearing Formula.
They are in a shoe box with the lid open a crack. there is paper towel and a tea towel on the bottom, and they are in a plastic container with tissues and feathers. I put a shot glass of water in there for humidity or whatever, not sure if it's working.
After phoning 7 pet stores, a pharmacy, a vet and an electrical store, I had no luck finding a heat pad so I put the shoe box on my electric blanket with the setting on low.
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2007-08-06 11:55:03 · 4 answers · asked by chocoboryo 6 in Pets ➔ Birds
Mixed 1 part with 4 parts boiling water, then after a few minutes test it on my wrist (I don't have a thermometer... I should buy one). I'm not really sure exactly how hot it should be so I guess.
I bought 1 cc Tuberculin syringes, they don't have anything attached to them, couldn't find anything like that.
I'm too scared that I'll drown the poor things by squirting a ton in their mouth and getting it wrong, so I do a bit at a time, they grab the nozzle and swallow it sort of, and I squirt it in.
What I'm really not sure is when to stop feeding them? What does a suitably full crop look like? At the moment I'm just guessing and really don't know. >_>
Then I clean up any spilt mixture so that it doesn't harden on their beaks or face.
I didn't feed them during the night. I stopped at about 9 or 10pm and started again at 6am. Is that okay?
2007-08-06 11:55:59 · update #1
I hand raised a Zebra finch chick about the same age in similar circumstances 5 years ago, I still have him and he is an absolute delight. He has the personality of any hand raised parrot and loves to have his head and neck scratched.
As others have said, you are doing fine. I had raised numerous species of parrots before this finch but I was also very nervous due to his small size. Mine also "swallowed" the pipette which was really alarming and frightening at first but is apparently normal for them.
I used the same criteria for the crop as I did with parrots. Feed to the point of a slightly firm bulge but not to where it feels hard or tight. It's always better to err on the side of feeding slightly less but more frequently then to over extend the crop. The crop will shrink as they near fledgling age.
If your three turn out like mine did you will have some very special zebra finches. You really get a unique view of their true personality when they are hand fed. Good luck with them.
2007-08-06 13:00:40 · answer #1 · answered by Thea 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I've handraised baby birds, and it sounds like your doing an excellent job so far. You have done some research, I can tell. :)
As far as the shot glass with water in it, I really dont think its necessary since I've never used one and they all did just fine..
As far as knowing when the crops are full, I've just always fed them until they stop holding their mouths open for food.
When they do that...gently feel of the crop with your finger, and then feel of it again later when its empty and before long you will catch on to what the full crop is like.
Learning on your on with out someone there to show you, will be a little bit of a guessing game anyway as far as that goes.
Your doing fine by not feeding at night. The parents would not be feeding them at night in the wild. As a matter of fact you could stop feeding them shortly after dusk and then start again at dawn.
**ADDED: (of course you will need to simulate dark and daylight hours with artificial lighting if you have them inside.If the lights are on they will eat right on through the night but thats just not necessary)**
In other words...put them in a dark room at dusk..and lighted room when you wake up.
Sounds like your doing great though. Its alot of hard work I know..but youll be happy you did it! Good luck!
2007-08-06 19:20:50 · answer #2 · answered by ♥ Jasmine ♥ 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
WoW! For somebody who isn't sure what to do, you are doing an excellent job! I hand fed babies for quite a while and when you see their crop start to look like a semi-inflated balloon, then that's where you stop. Excellent job, if you were stopping too soon the babies wouldn't be surviving! I'm happy for you! Keep up the good work!!!!!
2007-08-06 19:38:24 · answer #3 · answered by Lisa 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
It sounds like you are doing just fine to me.
You might try K-mart for a heating pad. They used to carry them in the cosmetics/first aid section.
2007-08-06 19:42:32 · answer #4 · answered by John P 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋