Hand feeding / weaning

[Conure & Macaw Mom]

My Severe Macaw is a little over 4 months old & is on 1 (40 cc) feeding per day. Well tonight, he stopped after only 20 cc's. I tried to give him his other 20 and he didn't want it. I gave him a min & tried again. He yelled at me and walked off. Is this meaning he's weaning or what? I had been visiting him for over a month & then the breeder let me bring him a week ago today. She showed me how to hand feed & I did it before I took him home to make sure I could & was doing it right. But I don't know if 20 cc's is enough. I'm assuming if thats all he wanted then its fine but wanted to make sure. Help if you can. Thanks, Crystal

[Hootie'sMom]

Since there hasn't been any "experts" that have replied to this, I will give it a shot. I have handfed many babies, no Macaws, but I did feed out my Yellow Nape from 5 wks on. It sounds as if your baby is trying to wean itself. Keep offering that nighttime feeding until he completely refuses a few nights in a row. If he only wants 20 cc that should be fine, that's pretty much what my YNA did, and she stayed at 20 cc for about a week and then started refusing to be fed. Just make sure he's not losing too much weight.

[Conure & Macaw Mom]

Thanks so much! He took the 20 a couple nights, then 15 night before last, then last night he took about 30 so who knows. I got a scale that reads in grams & weighed him just now. He was 275grams I think. The scale isn't digital, they didn't have any of those. The scales goes, 200gms ||| 300gms ||| 400gms, etc. He was at the mark before 300gms so I'm assuming thats 275 grams. That is if the marks are 25 each which would make since to me. Is that a good weight for a 4 1/2 month old Severe Macaw? Crystal

[B&G's Working Mom]

Is that a good weight for a 4 1/2 month old Severe Macaw? Crystal[/QUOTE]
Hi, I have hand fed four B&G and my one Yellow Head. I also have hand fed wild birds that were blown from the nest. I am NOT an expert, just a little experienced.
A baby weight is not as important as if it consistantly gains weight.
Is your baby rummaging in fresh food? Is he/she mouthing it?
Have you taken him in for a well baby check up?

[Conure & Macaw Mom]

Romeo eats a fruit & veggie jambalaya, which he loves the little pig. I got this food from the bird show. Here is their website. vieuxcarrepetproducts.com We're still working on the fresh foods are a good thing. He doesn't seem to agree. He does love pasta & fresh fruit though. Most anything else he don't eat he just rips it up. He will taste whatever I taste though. So I have been trying everything hoping he will like it. Most of the stuff I have to hold for him cuase he's to lazy to hold it himself. He will hold things if I tell him he has to cause I'm not going to. I have to take him to a different vet cause I didn't like the first one. They didn't do anything & told me he was fine. I think they were just in a hurry to go home. I'm also gonna get a digital scale. I just have a cheap one right now. Crystal

[Cosmo]

Hi! I'm new here, but I am also hand feeding a 4 month old Severe Macaw - talk about coincidence! My little guy is taking in 50cc's a day, and I honestly don't think that is enough because he is so thin. I am going to check out the food you recommended. Cosmo (my bird) is having trouble cracking pellets and nuts. He can get the nuts open, but is so clumsy that he drops them. I was just reading up on weaning. It did say that birds can back themselves off of the formula, but that Macaws need feeding 2ce a day. My bird was hatched 8/21/06, what is your hatch date?

Here is the link: http://www.cagenbird.com/weaning.htm
It says that a Severe should weigh 320 grams at peak weight.

I am eager to follow your experience, since it sounds like you are ahead of me. My little bird is very clumsy too. Often I find him sitting at the bottom of a cage or falling off some perch. Does yours do this too?

[Mike B]

Originally Posted by Cosmo

Hi! I'm new here, but I am also hand feeding a 4 month old Severe Macaw - talk about coincidence! My little guy is taking in 50cc's a day, and I honestly don't think that is enough because he is so thin. I am going to check out the food you recommended. Cosmo (my bird) is having trouble cracking pellets and nuts. He can get the nuts open, but is so clumsy that he drops them. I was just reading up on weaning. It did say that birds can back themselves off of the formula, but that Macaws need feeding 2ce a day. My bird was hatched 8/21/06, what is your hatch date?

Here is the link: http://www.cagenbird.com/weaning.htm
It says that a Severe should weigh 320 grams at peak weight.

I am eager to follow your experience, since it sounds like you are ahead of me. My little bird is very clumsy too. Often I find him sitting at the bottom of a cage or falling off some perch. Does yours do this too?

Welcome, I wouldn't give him whole nuts to crack, or pellets either. Their beaks are to soft still at this point. Give him nuts that are already shelled. Are you offering frsh veggies as well? Give me his age in days, and his weight in grams, and I'll check "The Large Macaw" book for averages for ya.

Mike

[Cosmo]

Hello and thank you! I've been trying fresh fruits and veggies - I even have the bird skewer that I leave loaded during the day... he could care less. I even tried baking the stuff into birdie bread. I've only had him for 3 days now... so I am learning about him! Today I decided to give a softer diet a try. I did give him formula this morning to get him going. Then, when I got home, I tried a soft diet of wet, mashed monkey biscuit and mashed pellets. He did eat a good bit of that (at least one of the monkey biscuits). I swear it was the first thing I've seen him actually ingest! He was very hopped up on eating. He even decided to try gliding off of his play perch into my lap when I was eating dinner! I topped him off with a night time formula feeding and put him to bed. I am more hopeful with the soft diet. Tomorrow I don't have to run off to work, so I am going to offer him the softened food before giving him any formula.

I was really getting worried about him, because his keel is very sharp. I will feel a little better when I get some weight on him! He was hatched 8/21/06 - so that makes him 122 days old now.

I did have one stupid question. At what age do birds become more interested in toys? Mine will pick at his cage toys a bit, but he seems scared of floor toys. He really just wants to follow me around and be held all the time. Last night, he fell asleep on my husband (lying on the couch) with his head on the pillow and a wing over his face. It was comical.

Thanks for your help! I would love any more information you might have.

[CALVINS MOM]

Crystal - Many times a change in environment will cause a bird to wean more quickly. I don't know the reason for it, but it happens. On the flip side, a change in environment can cause a weaned baby to regress back to feeding. Keep weighing him every morning. Try giving him a feeding every other evening until you are sure he does not want it. Are you making sure that the formula stays at the correct temperature?

We give all of our babies pellets and soft fruits to munch on from the time they are just feathering. In fact, Don's (Greyburd) baby B&G Macaw, who is only about 10 or 11 weeks old, is eating pellets and peas on his own now (in addition to 3 feedings a day). Shelled nuts are also good. Mike, not to debate you, but I truly feel that four months old is more than old enough to offer pellets and other foods. At four months, birds at the store are long into cracking nuts and eating solid food.

[Mike B]

I'm sorry they didn't have a weight chart for a Severe. Sorry about that. On his soft foods warm them to 100 degrees. This will be close to formula temps. On the Monkey bisquits I wouldn't give them. They are way to high in Vit. D for a bird. Over the last few years the Vit D content has risen for monkeys needs. Can you put a bowl of frsh food next to his water bowl? Keep fresh veggies in it. You'll have to swap out every 2-3 hours so no cooties grow. When you try to give him some frsh food, and formula. Give him some formula, and then try some fresh food. Keep switching back, and forth. Make sure your formula stay at temp though. Do not reuse unused formula for the next feeding.

As for the toys sounds about right. He's noticed them, and that's good.

Kathie, oh no, debate I just like that beak to get a lil harder that's all. That baby B&G is a cutie. Don's got a winner there. I'm pretty sure you hear that alot though about those babies.

Mike