How To Hand Feed Birds
September 23, 2011 Bird Suet Feeder
This is a breeder method. This method is designed to feed many birds in a short period of time that require feeding every 2- 4 hours or they would starve. PLEASE watch the video responses for alternative methods if you are trying to save a bird in your backyard. I personally would use a spoon method although you take the chance of contamination and infection. There is no guaranteed way to replace a parent.
Comments (25)
Hummingbirds are fun, entertaining, full of energy and it’s easy to attract hummingbirds.
I have been hand raising birds for years and never used the breeder feeding method . , i have used everything from spoons , toothpicks and potato peelers , but do prefer the syringe just because it is cleaner– the safest though not speediest method is to let the bird eat and swallow naturally , in all the years I have been hand feeding I have NEVER lost a bird from crop burn , static crop , or asphyxiation,, I think because crop injection and breeder method are bad and unnatural.
I recently started rearing grey’s but the 1 i have now is a very bad eater. can take upto 20mins sometimes,(which is difficult when we’re having to keep the food warm) i’ve decided i’ll try the syringe feed him and see how i get on with that. so thanks for the tips was very helpful.
I recommend that you go to a pet store first and see it first hand. If you have a slow eater there is a reason and you may end up aerating your bird.
That wouldn’t be worth saving 5 minutes.
I think your talking about the tube yes? I just can’t imagine a bird having to go through that.
I’m not wild about this method also but it was a request . I does allow the bird to swallow if you slow it down. I prefer the methods you mentioned. mainly because this method can crop burn pretty easily. People tend to get to confident and cut steps out by not checking temp.s for example.
Keeping food warm is a problem that is easy to solve , with the “double broiler method . use a stainless bowl floated in a larger bowl of water slightly warmer than you want , because the formula will cool a bit when transferred to the syringe or spoon, if it cools too much just drop the syringe into the bowl of water.
Hey there im goign to get a CAG in about 3 weeks and he will be about 7 weeks old i have never hand fed and i need some advice about the temp and how often and what kind of formula to give him. when will i start to wean him off of it like at what age? and since hes so young do i need to have a heated blanket under him when hes not out of his cage? also i know if you handle kittens to much they will die is it the same with baby birds? i want to spend as much time with him as possible but need to
know the limit. as you can see i am not very bird smart. so please any help you could give or a site you could suggext would be very much appreciated. thank you
I volunteered 2 seasons at a wildlife rehab center feeding baby birds of many sizes. Guidelines were that if we weren’t sure, to go with tepid. Zebra finches & other small birds are hard cause you do need to make sure you have a small enough syringe. That was more of an issue than temperature, since by the time we got them still, the food on the tip of the syringe had cooled enough!
If you have time, I prefer to just dab some food in their beak & let them swallow instead of feeding this fast.
Go to someone in person and have them teach you in person.
I agree.
WTF 1.32 and 1.43. Calm the hell down when you feed them give them time and slow down! Have patience or dont even bother!
what are you supose to feed baby morning doves please let me know okay
I recommend you go to the pet store and get baby bird feed.
lovely to watch, thank you 5/5
in my experience you have to keep the formula as close to 104 degrees. If cools off the baby won’t touch it. If you microwave it, be sure to STIR IT before feeding. Measure the temp with digital thermonitor.
Yeah, slow down…
Cockatoos are crazy, fyi. They are pretty difficult to feed. As are macaws.
I used to feed dozens of birds and it’s like a science.
You learn how to make the feed consistency perfect & how to not waste as much. It cools quickly and sometimes it takes a while to get the right temp.
You want it to be between 104-107 degrees fahrenheit. Clean the syringe and make new feed between each bird. You don’t want crop infections. Also, make sure you change the tank between feeding.
nice birds
how much do u give a baby ring neck
Probably one of the best informative video on hand feeding. Thank you!!!
alright slow down on the feeding
This is very informative
Do they have to be fed so quickly though? Im afraid of choking the bird. That quaker barely swallowed the formula fast enough..it got all over him.
@kalliereann NO NO NO, The formula must be fed between 100-105 degrees. If you feed it any hotter you will burn the crop, any colder and the bird can’t digest properly, which causes sour crop (formula spoiling while still in the birds stomach). PLEASE contact a PROFESSIONAL before you ever attempt to handfeed ANY bird, handfeeding is a life and death situation EVERY TIME!
Thanks! This video will do just fine, because I have a baby mourning dove and I’m not sure of which side to put the syringe in because I don’t want to drown it! Please tell me! Hurry please!
How much would i feed a 3 week old C.A.G. going to do about 2- 3 feedings a day 6 a.m., 3 p.m. them again before i go to bed around maybe 9
Hi! I’ve got a problem: Wednesday one of my female budgies died. She was brooding five eggs, and now I’m incubating them. I wanted to ask you some advices about handfeeding, especially for the very first days. I heard that it isn’t necessary to feed them the first day, ’cause they still have nutritional elements from the egg. Is it true?
I know it’s gonna be difficult, but I hope that the eggs will hatch, I was very affectionated to their mother. Sorry for my English.. Thank you, and good video!