# I got a surprise too :)



## charisse12 (Mar 2, 2012)

First baby of 4 eggs.










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## srtiels (May 1, 2009)

Congraulations....it looks like it may be a lutino.


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## JaimeS (Nov 28, 2011)

Aww, adorable!


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## xoxsarahxox (Dec 13, 2010)

Very cute! Congrats


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## charisse12 (Mar 2, 2012)

Thanks! I know people say not to breed like to like but both parents are lutinos. These were all rescue birds and I didn't know the sex except for the one cinnamon female. Ends up we had a female lutino too.

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## roxy culver (May 27, 2010)

> I know people say not to breed like to like but both parents are lutinos.


This is a recommendation but sometimes, as in your case, our birds don't give us a choice. Congrats!


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## Dreamcatchers (Apr 17, 2011)

Congrats on your surprises.


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## charisse12 (Mar 2, 2012)

Thanks! I was wondering what everyone's approach is on when to take the babies from the parents so that they would be tamed. I read on another thread right around 3 weeks then feed them 3 times a day? Could I leave the babies til they were weaned but handle them a few weeks from now so they get exposure to humans? I don't want to aggravate the parents and they end up not taking care of the babies. I don't plan on handling them anytime soon but I do check on them daily with mom non too happy, lol.

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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

How tame are the parents? In general you can check the nestbox daily without causing abandonment problems, as long as you avoid startling the parents while they're in the nest. Tapping on the box and speaking before you open the lid is sufficient warning. The parents may start jumping around trying to attack you, so it's best to check the nest when the parents are out (not always possible in the early days) or to quickly scoop the parent out of the way so the babies and eggs don't get trampled.

Pulling the babies for handfeeding isn't the only option. Many people tame the babies with handling alone. The babies aren't really aware of their surroundings until their eyes open so there's no point starting before then. But once their eyes open they are VERY aware that you aren't their parent, and they'll scream at you like this in the beginning: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcMKZtr4NeM&feature=g-upl

They'll get over the "I hate you" phase much faster if you handfeed them, but you can go for co-parenting instead of pulling if you like. This means taking the babies out of the nest once or twice a day for handfeeding, then putting them back in the nest and letting the parents do the rest. Try to avoid letting the parents see an empty nestbox though because this upsets them.


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## charisse12 (Mar 2, 2012)

Thanks for the info! The parents aren't tamed at all. They were rescues and now reside in our outside aviary. I want to avoid the babies not being tamed so that I may find wonderful homes for them.

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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

They say that untame parents are less likely to attack you when you put your hand in the nest. Tame parents aren't afraid of you so they have no hesitation about trying to chomp your fingers.


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## charisse12 (Mar 2, 2012)

Baby #2 hatched sometime today!










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## charisse12 (Mar 2, 2012)

What is the appropriate age to adopt the babies out? I still haven't decided if I'm goin to have a go at hand rearing after 3 weeks with the parents or leaving them be. 

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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

The babies won't be ready for new homes until they're fully weaned, which usually occurs at the age of 8 to 10 weeks. It's even better if you wait until they're 12 weeks old because they aren't likely to regress at that point.


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## charisse12 (Mar 2, 2012)

Here's a little video of chick #1

http://static.photobucket.com/playe...ucket.com/albums/tt9/charisse12/VIDEO0118.mp4

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## delawaregirl (Dec 2, 2011)

I love baby pictues.  Couldn't get the video to play.


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