I've had my IRN for 3wks now....(he's 8 wks old)
He was being hand fed, and I slowly introduced him to vege/fruit/soaked pellets and seed.
He still makes his begging noise, but is flat out refusing to be hand fed (I was using a syringe) anymore. And he won't even take anything from my hand (although he still wants my company all of the time).
The problem with this is that he has recently discovered flight, and I have noticed that his keel bone has become quite prominant.
Is he starving himself????looked in his seed dish and couldn't see that any of them have been cracked....and I can't see him eating much of anything else.
should I force feed him? or give it some time?
My baby doesn't want to be fed
Moderator: Mods
Hi Sooty,
I have exactly the same problem when I first got my 8-9 week old IRN home 2 weeks ago. I was told he could eat on his own but it is not uncommon to see them begging at this young age.
What I can suggest is to weigh the bird. This is the best way to judge whether he is losing weight, and also give me peace of mind. Also, try to take the weight at the same time of the day, for example, every early morning or evening when you come back from work. I also hang fruit for the bird as it is easier to see whether they are eating or not. You may also need to try a wider variety of food in case he is a fussy eater.
But, don't wait too long if you think he is starving himself. Get him to the vet to see what help they can offer.
Hope the above helps.
Regards
Doremon
I have exactly the same problem when I first got my 8-9 week old IRN home 2 weeks ago. I was told he could eat on his own but it is not uncommon to see them begging at this young age.
What I can suggest is to weigh the bird. This is the best way to judge whether he is losing weight, and also give me peace of mind. Also, try to take the weight at the same time of the day, for example, every early morning or evening when you come back from work. I also hang fruit for the bird as it is easier to see whether they are eating or not. You may also need to try a wider variety of food in case he is a fussy eater.
But, don't wait too long if you think he is starving himself. Get him to the vet to see what help they can offer.
Hope the above helps.
Regards
Doremon
Weaning Ringnecks
Hi Doremon
Sooty was right! Keep a log to see how much weight your little one is losing. If your Ringneck stops eating take him to the vet.
Here is some knowledge that I have learned through experience which might help. While hand feeding Ringnecks I noticed they start to demand very little food as they mature into fledglings. I almost felt I had to force them during the 8-9 week period as well. But I later found out that they cut back on feedings because they have to become light enough to fly. Ringnecks that are 8-9 weeks are nice a fat. They are too heavy to fly. So they cut back on food intake.
Also, unlike Lovebirds and Parakeets it’s very hard to tell if your Ringneck is weaned. Parakeets and Lovebirds are pigs once they lean how to eat seeds. I can feel the crops and they are often packed with seeds. Ringnecks are not like that. Their appetite is small and they almost never fill their crop as much as lovebirds or parakeets do.
You can encourage your Ringneck to eat by warming up soft foods such as pumpkin, squash, and zucchini. This soft WARM food almost always encourages weaning Ringnecks to eat.
Rather then focus on large feedings like they were fed as chicks, give them smaller and more frequent feedings. Every 30 minutes give them one spoonful of hand feeding formula. This works wonders. Often, if you handfeed them before offering them solid food, they will eat the solid foods or at least play with it.
Hope this helps and keep us updated!
Happy Holidays
I.C.
Sooty was right! Keep a log to see how much weight your little one is losing. If your Ringneck stops eating take him to the vet.
Here is some knowledge that I have learned through experience which might help. While hand feeding Ringnecks I noticed they start to demand very little food as they mature into fledglings. I almost felt I had to force them during the 8-9 week period as well. But I later found out that they cut back on feedings because they have to become light enough to fly. Ringnecks that are 8-9 weeks are nice a fat. They are too heavy to fly. So they cut back on food intake.
Also, unlike Lovebirds and Parakeets it’s very hard to tell if your Ringneck is weaned. Parakeets and Lovebirds are pigs once they lean how to eat seeds. I can feel the crops and they are often packed with seeds. Ringnecks are not like that. Their appetite is small and they almost never fill their crop as much as lovebirds or parakeets do.
You can encourage your Ringneck to eat by warming up soft foods such as pumpkin, squash, and zucchini. This soft WARM food almost always encourages weaning Ringnecks to eat.
Rather then focus on large feedings like they were fed as chicks, give them smaller and more frequent feedings. Every 30 minutes give them one spoonful of hand feeding formula. This works wonders. Often, if you handfeed them before offering them solid food, they will eat the solid foods or at least play with it.
Hope this helps and keep us updated!
Happy Holidays
I.C.
