cockatiel babes

Question
Hello,

 I have a pare of cockatiels ( the male is a normal gray and the female is a pearl cokatiel ) They have three babe cokatiels in the nest box in witch they both look like they are doing a great job in the care of them. They were born on 10/14/07 , I can see one of them is smaller than the other two, is this normal? I can see some bird poop on the side of the nest box is it okay to take the babes out an clean the box? What tipe of food will they need to have at this time? Im new at this an very exited with my three new babes.

Thank You,


Answer
I'd wait until the chicks were at least a week to ten days old before moving them. Try to wipe the side of the box off with a towel and plain water (no cleaner).
 Sometimes a chick will fail to thrive, other times it will catch up.  You should meet with your avian vet or other experienced baby bird caregiver to learn how to supplement feedings if necessary.  It's very, very important to learn this - otherwise it could suffer aspiration pneumonia, among other complications that are not good.
  Feeding the parents is most important right now.  Hopefully they're already eating a good pelleted diet with about 20% seed added now and then (no sunflower seeds and only a thumbnail size piece of millet once or twice a week).  Be sure there's plenty of fresh cuttlebone and lots of fresh dark green vegetables every day and be sure to remove them after a couple hours or the chances of bacteria could threaten the babies.
   
 Find out more about proper feeding here

 www.4AnimalCare.org (click on the bird tab)

Good luck with your new family!