Please help - Cockateil Chicks

Question
Hi there,
I am at my wits end and hope that you may be able to offer some information for me. I have 'googled' until I am no longer able to think straight!!
My problem is:
I have a cockateil, that has laid 4 eggs. 3 have hatched - one about a week old now, to 2 day old and newborn. I egg has yet to hatch.
The male cockateil somehow got out of the aviary - so I have moved her and her babies to a large inside hutch-type cage - putting shavings & babies inside warm cardboard box.
She is not having much to do with the chicks and I am starting to panic! I have gone in to check them and they are cold - apart from the 8 day old one - who is 'bobbing' around.
She doesn't seem at all interested in going near them, so I have taken the two new babies and placed them in a warm box inside my heater cupboard (nice & dark & not too warm for them). I have left the older chick & egg inside the box in her cage.
Should I have just left the babies altogether and let 'nature' do its' own thing? I am just so worried that she will not go to them.
If the babies are still alive in the morning, I will endeavour to handrear them - to give them a chance. Or if I see her feeding the older chick, I will put them back?
Please can someone offer me some advice. I just can't bear to sit back and not do something.
Thank you for any information.
Regards to you all,
Cherie.


Answer
Hello Cherie and thank you for posting.
The female may not take care of the babies because of them being moved.  This is a very traumatic thing for her.
The best bedding to use is black and white newspaper, plain white paper, or a brown shopping bag.  Not shavings or corn cob bedding.  A bird, especially a baby can ingest these and it could cause serious problems.
To help keep the babies warm, a towel will help.  You can also put a heating pad, set on the lowest setting under the box (only under about half of the box to allow the babies to be able to get out of the heat if they get too warm).
Hand-rearing the babies is a great idea.  This will get them used to being handled by humans.
Be prepared to pull the older baby and hand feed it too, in case the mother doesn't take care of it.

Here is a site that also might help you:

 http://www.angelfire.com/falcon/birdinfo/parrots_page1.html

Please keep me updated on how these babies are doing.

This site will explain how to hand feed the babies, along with other useful information.


Good luck and God Bless.
Dianna