# First ever chick, does he look ok?



## Denny (Dec 16, 2016)

Hello people. This morning my first chick of 4 eggs has hatched. Im super excited but wonder if he looks dehydrated. 

I checked him at about 10 this morning as both parents had popped out of the box. (theyre not tame but ive been trying to get them used to box checks) i noticed that he had a dark line through his gut and he does seem more red than pink to me. I let him be in the hopes that after a few feeds from the parents the problem would resolve, however I did disturb mum at about 17.00 to check him again and he looked the same. 

Also I think his eyes look huge compared to his head. I took him out to give him a couple drops of boiled water via a paintbrush which i think he took some of though I'm not sure how much. I also weighed him. He came in at 6 grams though he did have some food in his crop so I know its not the most accurate reading. I put him straight back in with mum and dad after that and they have been back to him, though i dont think theyve fed him yet. 

Can you guys give me your opinions on how he looks, and some advice as to wether or not I did the right thing.

Thanks guys
Denny

(the picture is from this morning, i did take some video too but cant seem to send it. If he's still here in the morning I'll try to get some more. Heres hoping!)


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

He looks good to me although it's hard to be sure from the picture. The food in his crop should look smooth, sort of like mashed potatoes - you don't want to see whole seeds in there. 

The dark line across the belly should disappear quickly, but if it doesn't then providing a little supplemental water is a good idea. If your parent birds are eating soft, moist foods that will help keep the baby hydrated when they pass it along to him. 

Chicks do have enormous eyes, that's perfectly normal. It's like they start out with the eye being almost adult size, and the rest of the body grows into it.


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## Denny (Dec 16, 2016)

Thank you for getting back to me!

I have struggled to get the parents to take any soft foods. Ive tried things like soft carrots and broccoli, boiled and scrambled eggs, peppers, strawberries and other berries among other things, but have yet to see them try any of it. Ive also tried egg food mix too, but they wont even look at it.

Is there anything youve found a cockatiel cant say no to?

Thank you
Denny


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## ParrotletsRock (Oct 8, 2013)

Domthey eat pellets? You can soften them in a bit of water, or try soaking your seed overnight to add moisture.. just be sure you change it often so no bacteria grows.


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## Denny (Dec 16, 2016)

Theyre on a seed mix at the minute, i tried to get them on the kaytees rainbow a while ago and they just turned their noses and picked out just the seeds everytime.
Ill try soaking them and see if that works


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

It's difficult to get birds to accept a new food, so if possible it's best to train them in advance to eat soft foods so it's not something that's completely alien to them. Try soaking or cooking some seeds and grains and see whether they'll eat that. It'll be softer and moister than dry seed, but they might not accept it. It took several weeks for my birds to accept seed that wasn't hard and dry.

You could also offer them some chunks of a good-quality whole grain bread and see if they'll take it. This is my guys' favorite baby food. The nutritional value is pretty similar to seed mix, but it's softer and easier to digest.

Cockatiels usually don't like fruit so you don't need to offer that. But it's desirable to get them eating vegetables if possible. Try hanging up some leafy greens so it looks sort of like a plant is growing there, and see if they'll nibble on it.


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## Denny (Dec 16, 2016)

Will do! 

Thank you for all the advice guys, I'll keep people posted.

I had tried veg and soft foods in the past ( i dont think where i got them from had ever introduced them to any while weaning) but had hoped that when they started breeding and laying they would give them a go.


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## Amatiq (Jan 7, 2016)

You can soak or sprout the seeds and offer those. When I'm trying to teach a bird to eat new food, I try sprinkling it on white paper on the ground with some of a favorite food, like millet or black oil sunflower seeds. Sprinkling seed over scrambled or boiled eggs cut up helps them catch onto that.
Most of my birds I've transitioned learned to eat greens by clipping them on the side of the cage.


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## Denny (Dec 16, 2016)

Ok, so I didn't want to disturb them long enough to get a picture but hes still here this morning, so hopefully all will be ok! Fingers crossed.


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## Denny (Dec 16, 2016)

This afternoon he looks so much better, his skin is nice and pink rather than red, and his guts look happy now too. 

Ive also managed to get my birds eating some soaked seeds and am trying them with hung greenery.

Thankyou for your advice everyone and wish me luck for my other three!

One more question. I have read that you can mark chicks with a dab of food colouring or marker pen. Is this safe for the chicks? I wouldnt want the parents to abbandon or try to over preen them to get it off


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

It sounds like your babies are planning to hatch on different days so it won't be necessary to mark them. Babies grow VERY fast, and there will be a very noticeable size difference. 

I've never marked babies, but I suspect that some of my parent birds would be OK with it and others wouldn't. Shodu will try to remove small scabs and some of my other parents won't, so if one of her babies gets a minor wound I move it to a different nestbox where the adults won't try to perform surgery.


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## Denny (Dec 16, 2016)

So chick number 1 is still looking okay, though he's not seeming to be putting much weight on. he hatched on 17th and weighed 6 grams. On the 18th he was weighing in at 7, the 19th he was 9, and he's coming in at 9 again today.

Am I right in thinking that he should be somewhere between 12 and 18 grams about now? 

He has had food in his crop at every weighing so I know he's gonna be coming in at a bit less. Should I try checking more regularly to see if his crop is emptying properly?

One of his clutch mates hatched on 19th and is weighing in at 5 grams today, but did not seem dehydrated like the first guy.

I am not too convinced about the other two eggs, I wasn't able to see any movements in them this morning. (one of them seems to be dis-coloured inside) could this be a clue to some bacterial infection that may be affecting the chicks also?

Thank you again for your help guys, and for affording a newbie some patience


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

The first baby should be gaining weight faster. Check to make sure he's being fed frequently and is digesting it well. I wonder if the parents are not providing enough water, new hatchlings need a high proportion of liquids to digest their food well.


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## Denny (Dec 16, 2016)

Do you think this could be a case for supplemental feedings with a thin formula?

Is there a time where the birds crop is more likely to be empty to allow me to give him a bit of supplemental water? I've yet to find them without food in their crops, I think the parents are keeping them pretty much topped up.

I've re-checked the eggs today, I've seen movement in one of them, but the discoloured one I'm pretty sure is gone, should I remove it to avoid contamination to the other egg?

for the nest few months before my maternity leave I am working part time (mon through to wed 7:30 till 2:30) is there any kind of schedule I could keep to to allow me to help raise the chicks via handfeeding if needed or when older, or is it just too long a period? (unfortunately theres no-where I can keep the chicks at work to allow me to feed them there)


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## Denny (Dec 16, 2016)

Here are a couple pics of the babies. Yellow is first hatch, white face is second. Unfortunately both the other eggs were dis today


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## Denny (Dec 16, 2016)

Here is the white face


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## Denny (Dec 16, 2016)

Should the yellows crop be more translucent than that? May it be a sign of yeast?


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

They look fine to me, although I don't remember how old they are. Are they gaining weight steadily?


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## ParrotletsRock (Oct 8, 2013)

Nice healthy looking bubs.


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## Denny (Dec 16, 2016)

the yellow is 4 days now and weighs 10g (he was 6 on day 0)

the white is 2 days and weighs 7g (he was 4 on day 0)


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

They should be gaining more weight. I assume that these are the weights with food in the crop? It's difficult to feed tiny hatchlings, but if you have the skill you could try assist feeding them some liquid.


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## Denny (Dec 16, 2016)

It is with food in their crops. Ive started giving them some boiled water. Im gonna try them 3 times a day and see how they go on I think.

Ive not syringe fed before, but was shown how to spoon feed by a breeder a while back. So for now with them still being so small, ive just been using a tiny paintbrush along the side of the beak to get some water in them. They seem to be getting bit more used to it now


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## Vesta Turan (May 19, 2016)

Sorry! Havent been on in a while. Forgot how the forum works and didnt realize there where two more pages! My comment is slightly off topic so I removed it.


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