Abstract
The following tid-bits are the result of much trial and error, much good advice, and much plain old experience. I hope the data will be helpful to you who hand-raise baby parrots.
First, I have three basic formulas each to be used at the appropriate time.
Formula #1 "Starter" I /2 cup boiling water
I tbsp. powdered milk
2 tbsp. Gerbers Baby Rice Cereal I tbsp. creamed corn (baby food)
Mix ingredients together and feed at the proper temperature. (Test it on your wrist - if it burns you it is too hot.) This formula is quite thin and is the first meal I feed any young bird. The ingredients are nourishing but also easy on the bird's digestive system. If all is well after three feedings l advance the bird to Formula 2.
Formula #2 "Graduated" 3/4 cup Baby Rice Cereal
l /2 cup High Protein Cereal
I tbsp. each - cornmeal, grits, cream of rice, cream of wheat, wheat germ, oatmeal
1 tsp. Super Preen
2 drops of liquid vitamins (in the water)
enough boiling boiling water to make a mixture of medium consistency 113 jar of baby food (fruit, vegetables, or chicken)
Allow the mixture to cool to feeding temperature. Add water to thin if necessary.
If this more complex formula should disagree with the chick the wheat is the most likely culprit. Feed Formula 2 for at least eight feedings while keeping an eye on the chicks crop and stools. Chicken is a good meat to use because it is low in fat and hypo-allergenic.
Formula #3 "Regular"
This is the same as Formula 2 except the rice is replaced by high-protein cereal. Twice a week I use Cycle I puppy chow instead of chicken for a different type of protein. Once a day I add "Calcium-Phosphorus with Trace Minerals" from Nutritional Life to aid the chick's bone and nerve development.
Grits: To duplicate the parent bird's feeding of some hard grains I occasionally use Quaker White Grits in the formula. The grits are mixed in just prior to feeding. This makes a rather rough-textured food that seems to stimulate the crop and help avoid "crop sloughing" a complication probably caused by too much too soft food. This rough formula is made a little thinner than normal so the raw grits won't absorb all of the water in the crop and cause a compacted crop. I sometimes use chunky style peanut butter also for its rough texture.
Gatorade: Once a week I use Gatorade in place of part of the water in the formula. Use just enough water to make a very thick mixture. Then add enough Gatorade to bring the mix to the proper consistency. Do not boil Gatorade lest it lose its electrolytes which are very beneficial to many internal functions. Electrolytes are such that a chick uses only what it needs and eliminates the rest.
Since I've included Gatorade and Super Preem in my diets I've noticed a marked improvement in the sheen of my bird's feathers. Every two weeks I even use Gatorade in place of water with my breeder birds. They love it but it sometimes makes their stools rather loose.
Tea: The caffeine in tea serves as a strong stimulant that is sometimes necessary. A case in point is Friday, a very strong baby cockatiel abandoned by his parents. When I found him he was cold, stiff, starved, and barely breathing. I instantly put him on the heating pad and prepared a mixture of strong tea and baby rice cereal. Luckily the baby still had the will to live. I got a few drops of tea/rice in him and his respirations went from ten to twenty per minute, he opened his eyes and tried to stand. With his renewed vigor I was able to give him 7 cc's of Formula 1. Eventually the stimulant wore off and the chick was still too weak to eat. The tea/rice routine was used for two days during which the baby received enough Formula 1 to regain him his strength. Without the "kick" of the caffeine I don't think I could have pulled Friday through.
Loose Stools: There is a difference between loose stools and diarrhea. Certain fruits and liquids can cause loose stools. If the condition actually develops into diarrhea I use three parts water to one part Donnegel (banana flavor) and feed it for six to eight hours then use plain water for eighteen hours. This routine is repeated every twenty four hours until the stool is almost normal. Don't overtreat lest the medication give the bird constipation which is harder on the bird than the diarrhea. Remember, if a little is good a little more is not.
Bacterial Diarrhea: A proper balance of bacteria is perfectly normal, indeed, essential to life. An imbalance can cause problems. The only sane way to combat this problem is to have a veterinarian do cultures and sensitivity tests to determine which antibiotic to treat with. A bird treated with antibiotics should be fed natural, plain yogurt which will replenish many good bacteria that the medicine killed. Hand-fed baby birds always have rather loose wet stools so the above remedies don't apply to them.
The Feeding Syringe: I use a 60 cc cather-tip irrigating syringe. They are plastic and disposable but I can get weeks of use out of each one. When the rubber plunger dries out use a light vegetable oil on it to make it slide easier. You can buy these syringes at any surgical supply company and at some pharmacies. Each baby I'm feeding has its own syringe to help prevent the spread of disease.
These syringes are marked in cc's so I know exactly how much food a baby takes each feeding and each day. There is no guesswork. When the chicks go on their crash diet I know immediately. If the bird becomes sick and "goes off his feed" I can measure it in cc's.
To use the syringe, put the warm food in a coffee mug; place the syringe tip in and draw the plunger back to about 30 cc's or whatever position fits your hand best. Clean off the tip, check the food temperature on your wrist (each time you draw up food) and put the syringe tip in the side of the bird's beak and squeeze. Once the chick figure out the syringe means food, he will take it readily. You may want to steady the bird's head and body with your free hand and you'll naturally adapt your feeding style to each bird's idiosyncracies, When the bird is full he will quit eating, spit out the food or even walk away. No amount of my words will really explain the mechanics of feeding. You must just use my guidelines and gain experience.