Help please..feeding issues

[Bubba Gump]

Hi All, I need some help and advice with my sky blue lacewing ringneck. He is approx 9 weeks old and I bought him from a breeder. I dont find the breeder very helpful as everytime i call him to ask for advice he doesnt really give me any but just tells me to bring my little bird back to him. I dont wish to do this and anyway he is too far away. My little one doesnt have a proper name yet so we call him Bubba and then it became Bubba Gump..
My worries are these..
He/she is only eating one feed of formula per day but is constantly begging for food. He refuses most food until the evening. He wont eat anything at all before I go to work and eats none of the fresh food, arrowroot biscuits and seed that I leave for him. By the time i return from work of an evening he/she is starving and practically eats my arm off..that is for the first 3-4 spoons and then he/she wont eat anything but keeps begging..The temp of the formula is between 38-41 degrees and I use 3-4 Nilstat drops per feed as the breeder told me to do. Help, I dont want him to be hungry but he wont eat??!!
My second issue is that if i have he/she out of the cage, he/she is always wanting to sit on my head. I dont allow this because i have heard it is not a good idea and apart from that its not great for me, especially if he/she poops..
Any way I would welcome any advice as I am very worried about my little baby bird..

[birdiemommy]

Gosh, where to start. This is one of the reasons people dislike breeders that sell nweaned babies.
Have you tried millet pieces? Many babies like them and will nibble on them. I saw you are giving fresh food, but you didn't mention what foods. My babies that I handfed ate the frozen mixed veggies, it was one of the very first things they began eating. I cooked them very lightly just enough to soften them a bit. You might also try wetting the biscuit, or pellets if you feed them a bit with warm juice or water. Only do this while you are home, so you can remove them after an hour or so, so it doesn't spoil. At nine weeks only eating once a day doesn't sound enough to me. Is there a good bird store you can call, or another breeder you can call for advice?

[kbordeau]

You can also try warm oatmeal, cornbread,& mashed sweet potatos. Try hanging some vegies inside the cage for it to play with. The more fun a bird can have with food the more likely it is to try some. I find the more color I find the birds eat moe of it.

[Greycloud]

I posted under your Feeding issues in the Bird Discussion forum.

[Bubba Gump]

hey, tried to get millet pieces and found no supplier who knew what they were.. In Austrialia they are called pellets. THings have improved somewhat in the past day. Bubba has basically cut out the morning feed and is beginning to try some fresh food and will pick up the odd see or pellet. Unfortunately he only moves them around in his beak and them lets them drop. Im sure this will improve because 2 days ago this was not happening. He is playing with some birdy toys I purchased so he cant be too unhappy and is eating plenty of formula at night now. Thanks for all the advice guys :)

[Monica]

Millet is not the same as pellets. Most birds are very tempted by millet...

http://img.alibaba.com/photo/50971241/Millet_Spray.jpg


Are you feeding him the same foods as the breeder had him on?