IndianRingNeck.com

Hi my name is Lucretia from South Carolina. My husband and I just bought a Lutino IRN last Saturday. He/She has now been with us for 1 week today and I've learned more about birds this past week than I have any other subject in my life. I have several questions that I have not been able to find answers to so far.

I found "sunny/sonny" last week at a local pet store and fell in love with him/her. Went home, conducted some research on my newfound love and bought one. We visited another local pet store that had IRNs. Both pet stores claim that their babies were hatched on 4/19/05 but both were EXTREMELY different in appearance. Does anyone have any pictures of their IRN at 5 1/2 weeks? He/she is still somewhat clumsy but out of the bunch it was the only one that could already perch and it was the most outgoing. I am just not convinced that this baby was hatched on 4/19 - one of the stores is definitely wrong about their hatch dates.

The other thing that I am curious about is its whining. I can't decide if it's going through some sort of separation anxiety or if that is just part of its personality. I feel so sorry for it and it's such a pitiful sound. I am trying to wean it and I am reducing its handfeeding to once a day. Currently it's eating seed/pellet mixture, peas, carrots, green beans, grapes, and peanuts.

Another subject for debate is its origin. Are ringnecks parrots or parakeets? I've heard them referred to as both. Can anyone provide me a definitve answer?

Thank you for your help!!!

Lucretia

Hello, if you go to my website, i have pics of my IRN Harley up until about 5 weeks old, http://www.angelfire.com/crazy4/chopper_harley/Harley Congrats on ur new baby!!! My Harley isnt home yet, but i am going to go pick him up on saturday (6wks old) Baby birds make some funny sounds, so it could be he just wants attention. Like i know that baby african greys sound like geese for a while when they are babies (i call them little honkers at that stage) Hope i helped! btw if you have any more questions, ask, if i dont know the answer, i know some experts i can ask for you. my e-mail addy is Leo_babe5604@yahoo.com keep me updated on ur lil bundle of joy, our babies are about the same age, and we could learn more about ths beautiful bird together.

Hello Lucetia

They probably have the birth date wrong. A 5 ½ week old ringneck is very clumsy with a few pin feathers. Your baby sounds much to old, especially if he/she is eating solid foods by now. It’s important to be sure he is eating solid foods before you start to cut the hand feeding sessions down. If your baby ringneck is right on target it should start to lose a bit of weight for flight. Just be sure the crop is full with sold food. How can you tell? Gently hold the parrot and feel its upper chest/lower neck. If your ringneck eats seeds, remove all other solids such as vegetables and fruits for that one day. Then wait for the ringneck to eat. If the crop feels like sand when you squeeze it gently, then you can start to cut the feedings down.

Also, baby ringnecks whine a lot! It’s normal and will stop after he is fully weaned. Just be sure to interact with your baby and comfort it during this stressful time.

Ringnecks are indeed parrots. They all have hooked beaks and two toes in the front and two toes in the back. So to answer your question, ringnecks are parrots; however, I like to think of them as a mix between an amazon and gray.

Good questions!

I.C.