FINCHforum

Last Monday I toasted a couple of baby finches in a brooder thing at about 110 degrees and they died pretty quickly. Then on Wednesday there was another one tossed out of the nest and since I've been keeping the lid open and the temp down to about 95 the bird is taking longer to die, and actually seems to be getting stronger. It swallows the tube when I feed it making it a bit hard to see how much food is in there, but I learned to pull it back enough to see if the craw (craw or crop or does it matter?) is filling up. Someone told me you have to go down the right side of their throat and if it gets on the other side they will suffocate, but I've seen it appear to wrap around and he survived. Is that what to try to avoid? The bird sure doesn't know when it's had enough. It'll keep begging even with a full craw. What temp should the fluid be when fed?

Start with this thread
http://www.finchforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=12441

It's looking like the food gets to both sides of the craw all the time now. Hopefully that's okay.

ac12 wrote:Start with this thread
http://www.finchforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=12441

Fortunately I did months ago which is where I learned about LeFeber's so I ordered some. I was practicing with some other type that's not rice based and it never would mix into a nice smooth formula. The LeFeber's in contrast mixes great. I don't see how anyone could raise a bird using that other stuff....I forget what it was...

hi
i think yhe food is supposed to be on boyh sides of the throat,at least all the finches i have bred ,they all had the food boyh sides

ken

nopEda wrote:Last Monday I toasted a couple of baby finches in a brooder thing at about 110 degrees and they died pretty quickly. Then on Wednesday there was another one tossed out of the nest and since I've been keeping the lid open and the temp down to about 95 the bird is taking longer to die, and actually seems to be getting stronger. It swallows the tube when I feed it making it a bit hard to see how much food is in there, but I learned to pull it back enough to see if the craw (craw or crop or does it matter?) is filling up. Someone told me you have to go down the right side of their throat and if it gets on the other side they will suffocate, but I've seen it appear to wrap around and he survived. Is that what to try to avoid? The bird sure doesn't know when it's had enough. It'll keep begging even with a full craw. What temp should the fluid be when fed?

r u killing babies or did i read this wrong???

The babies were killed accidentally, not on purpose. The brooder got too hot. These type things happen to all of us, and I think nopEda was really feeling guilty. Just like when I aspirate a baby, I want to kick myself for doing it, and I get on a guilt trip. I think you just misunderstood the post.

Sally wrote:The babies were killed accidentally, not on purpose. The brooder got too hot. These type things happen to all of us, and I think nopEda was really feeling guilty. Just like when I aspirate a baby, I want to kick myself for doing it, and I get on a guilt trip.

oh ok, i do apologize..........it just sounded bad.......poor babies...............

Its a mistake which nopEda has learnt form and mistakes happen to the best at times. Sounds like your doing a top job. Crops do fill to both sides. If I remember my biology correctly chicks are suppose to have two crops and one fills and digests to the second and at some stage they are left with only one. Its been a long time since doing bird anatomy and hand rearing so I'm trying to dig deep and remember.

Sally wrote:The babies were killed accidentally, not on purpose. The brooder got too hot. These type things happen to all of us, and I think nopEda was really feeling guilty. Just like when I aspirate a baby, I want to kick myself for doing it, and I get on a guilt trip. I think you just misunderstood the post.

Brooders can also malfunction and shut off also....a friend's shut down in the middle of the night, it shorted out during an electrical storm. He lost a whole clutch of hookbills with in a day of this, they got chilled, crops could not empty, we tried to save them....yes terrible things can happen and sometimes not by our doing, we just try to learn from the experience.

So sorry for your losses nopEda, best of luck in the future.

dan78 wrote:Its a mistake which nopEda has learnt form and mistakes happen to the best at times. Sounds like your doing a top job. Crops do fill to both sides. If I remember my biology correctly chicks are suppose to have two crops and one fills and digests to the second and at some stage they are left with only one. Its been a long time since doing bird anatomy and hand rearing so I'm trying to dig deep and remember.

That makes sense... It looks like if fills the right side first, and sometimes moves over and fills the left as well. That's probably too much. I've learned that it's best to hold the bird. It so far will always swallow the end of the tube down into its crop, and I pull it back a bit. Then I can see the formula enter the crop and I'm getting better at regulating it. The bird always wants more even when full so it's not really a help with knowing when it has had enough.

Sounds like to me you have a greedy little baby, what your doing is working so just keep it up and soon you'll have a little fledgling which you have to wean so good luck and all the best.