Behaviour problem

Question
Hi Chrys
Yes i agree totally and i am happy enough to keep them off seed but my breeder has said that he wants his birds on seed so i do wat he wants with his birds.With mine i am happy to continue feeding formula to them and give them vege's.I was thinking about putting vege's and fruit into their feed containers in their cage rather than seed.What do u think?Also could you suggest something else in place of seed as well as for variety.I am thinking about putting egg and biscuit in a feed container dry for them also.Please let me wat you think.Its very hard to ignore their little cries and i feel just like i did wen i was taking my kids off the breast.he he.I feel mean and horrid especially wen they see me or hear me and they come running to me crying and bobbing.
Thanks again
have a great day
stacie
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Hi again Chrys
Yes i do handle them very much but like you said i dont get too attached to them.Im just wondering tho one of the females is to the same level as the others but just a little trouble cracking the sunflower.Would you know why this is as all the others are now cracking all seeds.I also am having trouble getting them off the 2 formula feeds a day.They just dont seem to want to give those 2 up.I am happy to keep giving them to them but the ones i am selling will have to stop having it.They are sold but i am waiting to get them off the formula.
Have a great day
stacie
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Hi Chrys
Yes i agree totally with you because what i have been doing is letting Rocky out for some quality time with me by himself and then when he goes back into his cage i then let baby out by himself for some quality time and this seems to be working.Rocky and Baby we are keeping as ours.Unfortunately they are both males.They love their veges and i am now giving them these 2-3 times a day.They have peas,carrot,pumpkin,sweet potato,corn,beans,some spinach,zucchini and small amounts of fruit.They also have milk arrowrrot biscuits as a treat.Very rarely i wet some multigrain bread with a small amount of honey on it as a treat and they just love it.I hope i am doing the right thing with my little friends because i have become very attached to them and do not want to hurt them in any way.I dont spend near as much quality time with the other babies because as you said i do intend to sell these guys and dont want them too attached to me.But of course it works the other way round also.I dont want to get too attached to them either.I am a softie at hard and will be hard to let them go.Thanks for all your help.
Have a great day
stacie
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Rocky is approximately 12 weeks old.He is fed Vetafarm formula twice a day.He has vegetables once a day and has a variety.He is very healthy.Shows no signs of Illness.He is with just about all day except for a couple of rest periods a day that i make him have in his cage.He is having parrot pellets with a small amount of seed.I talk to him and cuddle him while he is with me.I feel that he is jealous of the other 2 birds as if i get him out by himself he  seems to be fine.I tried this only yesterday for the first time.He was a lot more loving and didnt bite me once.
hope u can help
have a great day
stacie
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Hi Chrys
I have been chatting to another breeder of Indian Ringnecks but she is currently on vacation.I have been hand raising Indian Ringneck sna dcurrently have them all but weaned.They are doing really well and we love them to death.I have one male in particular who seems to be the first hatched as he is the most progressed.He has just recently started biting and biting very hard.He seems to bite strangers more so than any of us.I have been on the net and gotten quite a few techniques to stop him doin this but they dont seem to be workin too well.Normally he doesnt bite me as i am the one who has fed him all the way but he did give me a good latch on today for the first time.He bit my daughters for the first time also last night which he has never done b4 either.We have had him since he was around 2 weeks old and have handled him very regular.He is having 2-3 formula feeds a day now and is eating seed,vegetables and pellets quite well.he is also become quite nasty towards the other 2 birds.One is also a male and i did expect that a bit but he is quite cranky towards the female today also.He actually chases them to be nasty.He is becoming quite naughty can you please help me with this problem.
Regards stacie
thank you for your help
Have a great day
-----Answer-----
Hi, Stacie.  Thanks for posting!

How old is this youngster?  When you say you've handled him very regular, how often is this?  Is this bird showing any signs of illness?  Seed isn't really good to wean a baby to...seed is high in fat and lot in nutrition.  Exactly how much veggies and pellets is this bird eating a day?  Are you feeding the weaning food warm, cold, or room temperature?  What brand of handfeeding formula are you using?

Answers to these questions will help me try to determine what might be going on.

Thanks.

Chrys
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Hi again, Stacie.

You may have hit it on the head!  From what you've stated, I'd say this bird is jealous of the other birds.  It seems this baby has already bonded with you and doesn't like the attention you pay to the other babies.  This may be the only way you can deal with this bird on a daily basis, i.e., handle s/he separately from the other babies in order to avoid behavior problems.  Behavior problems are often hard to fix once they exist, so it's best to avoid having them to begin with.

When a baby parrot is weaning, they need all the variety of food you can provide.  They also need to have this variety more than 1 time per day...I recommend you feed a variety of foods 2-3 times per day when you are not handfeeding.  Also, you might want to consider having this bird spend a little more time in it's cage every day.  A baby parrot needs more than a couple rest periods per day to nap, play by itself, preen itself, etc.  If your plans are to eventually sell these babies, then this becomes even more important, as you really don't want this baby to bond with you so tightly that it can't live with other humans.

Come back with any questions.

Chrys
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Hi again, Stacie.

Sounds like you have them on a good diet so far!  Keep up with the variety.  The more the better.  With the younger babies, even though you will get attached to them and vice versa, it's important for them to imprint on humans, so you should be handling them a lot.  You want them to be very tame so you can sell them.  They can be weaned at 8 weeks and sold at about 10 weeks (keep them 2 weeks to ensure they have weaned OK).  

Good luck!

Chrys
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Hi again, Stacie.

Some babies' beaks take a little longer than others to harden enough to crack open seeds.  I have sun conures who are 6 years old who can't crack open almond seeds!  So, it also just depends on the bird.

Please....don't get them started on seeds, especially sunflower seeds.  Seed is high in fat and low in nutrition and not good for their health.  Leave seed as a reward or occasional treat.  

Babies never want to stop being handfed!  You just have to take away a feeding at a time and supplement other foods for that feeding.  The bedtime one is the hardest, but if they have enough other foods to eat, you know they are fed well.  They may cry/beg for handfeeding, but you just have to bite your lip and ignore their little cries...hard to do, I know, but you just have to do it.

Chrys

Answer
Hi, Stacie.

I guess you need to do what the breeder wants with his birds, but try to explain to him about the health problems associated with feeding only seed.

I feed my parrots a basic soft food mix that consists of cooked brown rice, shredded/diced veggies, ramen noodles, shredded zucchini/squash/sweet potato.  I never make this the same way twice!  I add various things on different days to make it interesting for them.  I also provide different types of fruit, multi/whole grain breads/dry sugarless cereals, cooked beans, corn bread, kale/mustard greens/collard greens occasionally, etc.  There's no end to the variety of nutritious, healthy foods you can provide.  You don't need to provide all these foods every day...the point of feeding healthy is to provide a balanced, nutritious, healthy diet each week.  You should also provide pelleted food 24/7.  Pellets contain vitamins and minerals birds need.  

I know it's hard to ignore their cries, but you have to for their benefit.  It's like a toddler crying for his/her pacifier after it's been taken away!

Chrys