Posted by John on 12/11/2008, 3:51 am, in reply to "handfeeding greys"
Hi, handfeeding is not a difficult task if you know how to do it; but if you don't it is very dangerous. At four weeks old, the grey should not be that difficult to handfeed, here are some tips. First off, you will need an empty aquarium or something similar to keep the bird in, place wood shavings on the bottom and attach a thermometer and a heat lamp. Keep the temperature between 75-80 degrees F. As for feeding, the crop should always be full during the day but it should be allowed to completely empty overnight. A four week old grey should be fed about 15-20mL of formula per feeding. If you want to be accurate, weigh the bird, divide its weight by 10 and that should be the amount in mL you should feed. When feeding, keep the temperature of the food between 105-110. Greys prefer their food hot but it should not exceed 110 or you will burn the crop. Lower than 105 and your grey will not eat. Use two fingers to gently rub the sides of the beak while inserting the syringe into the beak. Pump a small amount and see how the bird reacts. If it bobs its head up and down, pump fast. If it sneezes or coughs, stop. Then try again, pumping gradually until you are certain the bird is swallowing the food and not inhaling. Your goal is to pump the food fast; beginners are usually afraid to do this thinking they might make the bird aspirate. However, pumping slowly will cause the bird to take breaths in between and aspiration is much more likely to occur. clean the bird with a warm damp cloth. Here's another tip, assuming you prepare the hand feeding formula in a cup, place that cup in a bowl of boiling water to keep it warm. Food left out will get cold real quick and the bird won't eat it. Please feel free to e-mail me should you have any further questions.
--Previous Message--
: I have bought a grey a few days ago
: of about 4 weeks. I am very
: concerned that he will not make
: it, because I am inexpierienced
: and do not know all the signs (if
: he's hungry, cold etc.) which I
: have to look out for. Please give
: me advice what to look for and
: what to do, because there aren't
: any books on greys available in
: our book shop.
:
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