Handfeeding / weaning a conure

[Sucre]

I'm not inexperienced with hand feeding, just experiencing some differences with my 6 week old conure than I experienced with parrotlets and lovebirds.

I am feeding 3 times daily, using Kaytee formula. A few days ago, I started mixing in some Missing Link supplement with the Kaytee. (This is what I've always done, but all of my other birds were acquired when down to 2 feedings a day.) Up until I started adding the Missing Link to the formula (2 parts Kaytee, 1 part Missing Link) she was taking approximately 15 ccs 3 times daily. Now, she's taking about 12 cc 3 times daily, sometimes less than that at last feeding of the day. Her poop looks great, she isn't losing weight, she's gaining steadily. She eats a tiny bit of millet but not a lot. I am offering seed, but haven't seen her eating any yet. I did chop up some broccoli very fine yesterday and although I didn't see her eating it, it went somewhere.

My thoughts are that the Missing Link is making it more filling, because I just don't think she's eating enough seed / millet to make the difference. My other birds didn't really cut back on their feeding amounts until they were eating seed / millet more, so I'm just a bit concerned. Her crop is emptying between feedings. She seems to enjoy the formula more with the Missing Link added in - i.e. she eats faster.

She seems FINE. She's active and loves her play time after she eats - which could be another reason she cuts it short. She plays constantly with the toys in her cage. She is now getting on her perch and having conversations with our 5 month old conure in the cage next door. I just moved her from her baby cage to a large cage due to her activity level. She's awake more, sleeping less, and not constantly squawking to be fed every time she hears my voice.

Should I take the Missing Link away? I think it's great stuff, and sprinkle it over all of the birds food once a week for the extra vitamins. Or, does it sound like it's time to drop to 2 feedings a day? Will that get her to go for the seed and millet more? (I'm getting this visual of me hand feeding a 10 year old bird.) I don't want to cut her back too fast, I actually enjoy hand feeding her.

All the others that I have hand fed were already on millet and seed when I got them. I guess that is what is confusing me.

[Macaw Lover]

If this were a Macaw I could give you the guidelines for the amount of food based on the age of the baby and I finished feeding Jody when I got her at 4 months of age but that was back in the bad old days when you believed the breeder saying how great it was to do that but not having a clue of what could have happened when things go bad.

So, I won't give any advise except you should talk to a respected breeder and find out at what age they would be cutting down on their foods like that. I commend you for introducing the broccoli as so many people believe just feeding pellets is the ultimate. Not in my book.

[spiritbird]

Cedar Dave is the one that could help you.

[Sucre]

Renee, all my birds get fresh fruit and veggies every day. I thought the broccoli could be finely chopped enough for Lucy to eat. I tried putting pears in with her broccoli today and she didn't seem too impressed. It's funny, because all of my others love pears.

I have sent a pm to CedarDave and asked him to help out with my questions.

[Cedardave]

i would try cutting back to 2 feeding a day of about 9 mls each..not sure what that is in ccs.Feed in the morning and again at bedtime.Provide soft foods like cantelope and we use cooked rice with sweet potato and broccolli cooked in to keep the vitamins in.Avoid to much seed at this stage..their cardiovascular systems arent well equiped to deal with high amounts of oil.Im not familiar with the missing link product, however if they like it add to the rest in moderation.Keep us posted.

[spiritbird]

Just some knowledge from nursing cc's and ml are the same. So let's say 10 cc is 10 ml.

[Cedardave]

Now I know...thanks

[Sucre]

Well, within days of making this post, Lucy made up my mind for me. She stopped taking the formula altogether. I started crushing the Roudybush pellets the bigger ones eat, and she took to it just fine. She's also wiping out the fruit and veggies daily, and rooming with the 2 older conures now. Things sure change fast with these little ones!

She's my problem child, so much personality packed into such a little bird, and you can just see the "teenager" in her eyes. She's flying all over the place now, never went through an awkward flying stage - she just does it effortlessly.

[spiritbird]

Sounds like a GCC.