New Baby Help

[chucky]

Hi Iam going to be bring home a 4 week old Green cheek conure on thursday and i plan on taking him/her to the vet first thing before i even take him/her home. And what i need help with is the bird looked great from ALL the visual things you look for when buying a new bird. Eating/playing/posture/nasal/etc etc. well when i get to the vet what should i have them pay special attention to if anything?I know theres some common problems and id hate to run into one but id rather know sooner than later.And how long of a quarantine time do you recommend?On the vet part im hard on money now but i callled and i can cover the intial exam.THANX ALL, ALEX

[Tinna]

Are you an experienced hand feeder? Because if you're not you SHOULD NOT bring home a 4 week old GCC! Buying an unweaned baby is a farce unless you're experienced because the complications resulting from fumbling through it without knowing how to feed it, what tempature it should be fed at how to check the crop all that important stuff and the hourly hand feedings are extremely time consuming.

[chucky]

He/She is Fully weaned and is on a Zupreem diet now i wouldnt take on that challenge and would have informed you all in my post had he/she been unweaned THX PLZ HELP SOMEONE hatch date 4/30/07 so a bit older than i posted..

[Tinna]

Alright then, we get some people here who make the mistake of buying unweaned babies unprepared and I just wanted to be sure. I don't know about a bird being weaned at four weeks but it's a conure and I've never owned a baby one. Someone probably knows more about that. As for what to look for when you take your bird in for the inital visit your vet should spot most of the potential problems. When you have a little more money wise I would suggest a blood test to screen out other potential problems before the 30 day grace period is up just to make sure that you didn't get a lemon baby. I know that sounds mean but it sometimes happens and it may be neither party's fault but it will save you $$$ on vet bills.

[chucky]

Ok thx I will try to get the blood test done asap how much do those set you back estimate the visit should be around $45 and i understand what you mean by lemon baby and i know the breeder means %200 well but like you said sometimes it's outta our hands as people so THX and anyone else that can add anything plz do. ALEX

[Tinna]

it depends on how comprehensive it is, a gender test is just under 20$ if you get it done by sending it out to that Avian Test center in Florida the name escapes me, anything more than that I would guess at least 40-50$ It takes a while for everyone else to respond they don't hover on the board obsessively like me I don't think XD. I say just wait like until after you set down to dinner tonight there should be a few more posts on here from Monica or maybe Jim if they know anything to add.

[jriley]

I know my first visit with Molly was about $160. That included the exam, a fecal gram stain (very important), blood tests, the initial polyoma vaccine, and a foraging video (so deduct $40 for the video LOL). At the very least, get the fecal test done because it shows any active bacterial infections. If you are using a certified avian vet, they will know what to look for and can advise you as to quarantine.

With a hatch date of 4/30, I'm pretty surprised that this bird is fully weaned. Molly, my umbrella cockatoo, while a much bigger bird, is still on two feedings a day and is over four months old. I hope you have done some research about weaning for that species. I took a quick look at Aves International, who I trust, and they say 10-11 weeks is the average weaning time for green cheeks. Please find a way to make sure the baby is eating well and you might want to be prepared with some handfeeding formula or weaning pellets for some regression feedings after the stress of coming to a new home. At the very least, you can soak some zupreem in warm water and offer on a spoon if he/she doesn't eat after you get him/her home.

Don't be offended if we harp on this point as we don't know you yet and don't know what your bird experience is. I've always had birds and had never had an unweaned baby before Molly and I really didn't know what I was getting into. It's working out okay, particularly since I'm a teacher and off for the summer anyway, but it would have been a nightmare if I were working full-time right now. As it is, we've had to pretty much forget taking any kind of trips this summer since it costs $36 a night to board an unweaned baby at my vet. If your new baby isn't able to feed itself enough to meet its needs, it can end up stunted or worse and there will be mental/personality consequences too.

Julie

[Monica]

I doubt a green cheek conure would be weaned unless he was forced wean... I'm sorry, but here is a pic of a handfed budgie at 25 days of age (just under 4 weeks) and still being fed...



Cockatiels don't normally wean until they are 8-12 weeks of age, sometimes older. It depends on if they are parent raised or handraised, as parent raised chicks tend to wean sooner.

Here are some articles I suggest reading
Abundant Weaning & Fledging
Abundance Weaning of Parrots
Winged Wisdom Pet Bird magazine ezine - Bountiful Weaning produces quality pet birds and parrots
Abundance Weaning
http://www.parrottalk.com/weaning.htm

Here's a website that lists the average weaning age of Green Cheek Conures at 10 weeks of age (meaning they wean about the same as tiels do, if not a tad later)
New Page 2

Another site that says 8 weeks
Kaytee » Companion Animals » Birds » Green Cheeked Conure


Even if your conure is 8 weeks now, IMO it's best not to bring home a bird until it's been able to eat solid foods on its own without assitance feeding (i.e. handfeeding formula) and has been able to maintain a steady weight for two weeks. If you don't wait this amount of time, there is a greater chance that the chick will regress and want to be handfed formula.

Blood panels usually run $200-$300 (if not more) although it depends on what tests are done as well as the pricing in your area.

[tielmama]

Notice that chucky put the wrong age down the first time. chucky says the hatch date was 4-30-07, so the baby is about 8 weeks old. Still maybe too young, but a LOT better than 4 weeks!!!! I looked up one site which said they were almost weaned at 6 weeks. rockportroost was the site. You should see how cute the pictures of the babies as they grow are!!

[chucky]

Hi, all thx for all your help riley your post was the exact details im lookin for and yes im going to ask the breeder if there will be or if there currently is any feeding problems.When i went and picked my baby i was watching them all playing in a pen with a handfull of tiels and i did see between us handling them my baby drinking water and doin his thang others were way less active and looked rather shy.I'll have a 72hr health guarantee so i will be trying to get blood work done and prolly fecal gram stain i hope all goes well im really anxious and want the best for my bird. thx for your help everyone