[Ella]

Tomorrow I will be getting my MB conure, and the breeder recently yikes informed me that the baby wasn't yet weaned fully.

The bird is 8 weeks old, so pretty much fully hand raised, but still learning to crack seeds.
The breeder said it would only take about 7-10 days, maybe more or less, to get him/her on to seed.

I have watched heaps of videos on you-tube and read a lot of info.

But I just wanted to know how often you would have to feed a conure at that age.

Also, any tips would be greatly appreciated because I'm relatively new to this kind of thing. I'm not inexperienced or anything, and I've seen it done many times and had a few goes myself, but never on my own bird.

Thanks :thumbsup:

 

[Guest]

The breeder will be able to tell you how often to feed the little guy.

I would think once in the morning and once before bed would be ok, but I'm not sure. It would be best to check with the breeder as he will know exactly how many feedings the Conure is on.

Remember that the temperature of the food is extremely important! Too hot and it will burn the crop, too cold and it will not be digested and could cause sour crop.

Good luck! Keep us posted!

 

[Solace.]

Ask the breeder most definitely. I'm sure they'll tell you all about how the formula should be when made up, temperature and all that stuff, you just need to ask to be told.

I have an 11 week old Indian Ringneck who's on 2 hand-feedings a day right now, I got him when he was 8 weeks old and he was on 3 hand-feedings a day, he's only just recently gone down to 2 hand-feedings a day.

 

[Jenny]

If the breeder thinks the little one will wean in 7-10 days, my guess is it's only on one feeding a day, and I would definitely ask the breeder to show you exactly how he feeds the little one, so you can follow the same method. If you do it too differently, the conure might decide it's too different and refuse it. Don't be too surprised if the little one weans in a few days and loses some weight, as opposed to the 7-10; birds are known to stress wean, which means when they have too much stress of going to a new home, they will wean themselves quickly as a survival mechanism. Midge did that to me, I brought her home on one feed, she ate once, and that was that

Do you have a scale you can use? Really, I think that would be your most useful tool of all, so you can monitor the weight of your little one and keep an eye on it. Weight Loss during weaning is the biggest problem with the little guys, and it'll let you really monitor your birds health. I would weigh him every other day or so, until he maintains a steady weight. Then you can go to once a week, then once a month... :thumbsup: Since it's a MBC, you can use something as small as a postage or food scale, and it won't be expensive to buy at all if you don't already have one in the house

 

[Ella]

If the breeder thinks the little one will wean in 7-10 days, my guess is it's only on one feeding a day, and I would definitely ask the breeder to show you exactly how he feeds the little one, so you can follow the same method. If you do it too differently, the conure might decide it's too different and refuse it. Don't be too surprised if the little one weans in a few days and loses some weight, as opposed to the 7-10; birds are known to stress wean, which means when they have too much stress of going to a new home, they will wean themselves quickly as a survival mechanism. Midge did that to me, I brought her home on one feed, she ate once, and that was that

Do you have a scale you can use? Really, I think that would be your most useful tool of all, so you can monitor the weight of your little one and keep an eye on it. Weight Loss during weaning is the biggest problem with the little guys, and it'll let you really monitor your birds health. I would weigh him every other day or so, until he maintains a steady weight. Then you can go to once a week, then once a month... :thumbsup: Since it's a MBC, you can use something as small as a postage or food scale, and it won't be expensive to buy at all if you don't already have one in the house

Yep, I have a scale I can use.
Unfortunately I can't see how the breeder feeds the bird, he lives a 10 hour drive away :lol:
But he has told me that the bird takes food well, and is starting to try out new food which should make my job a whole lot easier, thank goodness

I'm kinda worried, because I just read an article that said if you wean them too fast, they will have bad behaviour problems, and to slow, and they'll be too dependent on humans and clingy.

I'm really scared I'll get it wrong!

Can anyone put my mind at rest about this?

Thanks :thumbsup:

Oh and just thought I'd let you know, THE BIRD COMES TONIGHT!! :yahoo: I'm so excited!

 

[Jenny]

oooh, congrats! Really, the little one will tell you when he's ready. Conures are usually pretty good about weaning off, especially GCC, so i would think the MBC would be similar. ours start refusing food when they're ready, just keep offering and see what he/she takes. It may only be a taste, but as long as their weight is on track, they're fine. They will lose a little weight when they wean (baby fat! ) but as long as it's less than 5% i wouldn't really worry too much! :thumbsup:

 

[Ella]

oooh, congrats! Really, the little one will tell you when he's ready. Conures are usually pretty good about weaning off, especially GCC, so i would think the MBC would be similar. ours start refusing food when they're ready, just keep offering and see what he/she takes. It may only be a taste, but as long as their weight is on track, they're fine. They will lose a little weight when they wean (baby fat! ) but as long as it's less than 5% i wouldn't really worry too much! :thumbsup:

Thank you. I've seen photos and all his/her baby fat is so cute! I don't want him/her to lose it LOL :lol:

Thanks

 

[Solace.]

They all wean at their own pace, the idea is to give amount of formula said, and then soon enough when weaning starts they'll start rejecting it and then you can give less and less and then start offering mushed pellets, veggies etc.

Be sure to post photos when s/he gets home!

 

[Sensfan]

How can clingy be a bad thing... I like clingy :biggrin5:

 

[The Brute Squad]

As far as conures go they mostly are clingy. I call them lap birds. Conures love to be on your shoulder if they are "independent", or on your hand if they are clingy. This trait is the main reason we love conures at our house. Feathered cats they are! We have 4 now and love it when they are all on you at the same time.

 

[skthurley]

LOL yes, conure are very clingy. Kiwi typically is with me whenever I have her out of the cage. She always wants to be on me or near me

 

[Ella]

Well, thanks guys for all the help.

I got Ziggy 3 weeks ago and she weaned a few days after I got her.
She's very clingy, and I love that about her! Nope, clingy is definitely not a bad thing!

It went smoothly and she feeds himself seeds veges and fruit now.

 

[Jenny]

That's great news, Ella! :thumbsup: I agree, clingy is good! So long as there's no biting or screaming involved :lol: