Baby Lovebirds - Hand-feed??

[wutsnxt]

I have 3 baby lovebirds, the oldest is 11 days. I was going to hand-feed so they would be tame and loving, but have just read that they will be just as tame if handled regularly, that way I won't take the risk of feeding wrong. Is this true and when can I start handling them?

I have budgies that keep breeding and those I know about, but am new to lovebirds.
Any advise would be appreciated!!

Amanda

[TooDusty]

I would say that they would definitely not be as tame as if you hand fed them but if you don't know how to hand feed then don't try it until a vet or really experienced breeder/hand feeder has shown you how. Good luck!

[expressmailtome]

I feel the same way. Lovebirds are very spunky. They need a lot of hands-on time to keep them as tame as possible.

Matt

[jperkins]

I respectfully disagree. Although I am only familiar with breeding cockatiels, parakeets, and finches, I think you can let the babies stay with the parents and they will be just as friendly. As long as you interact with them enough, you should be fine and they should be just perfect little tame birds! :)
Good Luck! :D

[wutsnxt]

Thank you for your responses!!

[Razzle]

I think how you handle them and how often you do will have a bigger impact than if you hand feed or not. For example, don't teach them that it's "cute" to nip at your fingers when they are naked little babies and they won't be as likely to bite when they are adults... Just common sense. Hand fed babies probably tend to be tamer BECAUSE they are handled more.

[wutsnxt]

That makes sense. The oldest is 15 days today. When should I start handling them and for how long each time out? I took the oldest out yesterday, its eyes are like half opened. I thought since you would normally be hand-feeding now then it should be ok to take them out and handle them, right?
Amanda

[Razzle]

I've never bred/raised any kind of bird, but I would think (aside from that you should follow advice from someone who DOES know what they are talking about...,) that it would at least partly depend on whether the parents freak out if you take the babies out to handle them. You can start talking to them before they hatch, though, unless, again, that makes the parents freak out for whatever reason... That should help them respond to a human voice.

[jperkins]

Originally Posted by Razzle

I think how you handle them and how often you do will have a bigger impact than if you hand feed or not.

Agreed completely!