Questions about handling baby zebras

vgonzalez · Post by **vgonzalez** » Mon Feb 05, 2007 4:30 pm

Hello,

I have a pair of zebras that have babies. I think i can hear atleast one baby chirping.

My questions are:

1. How do i find out how many babies are in the nest? They are in an enclosed nest that is hanging in the cage. It's too dark to look in and due to the nesting materials, I can't see much. What is the best way to find out?

2. The nest is hanging about 3 feet above the cage floor. Should it be placed lower for when the babies are ready to come out?

thanks!

Vivi

Luke Harrison1992 · Post by **Luke Harrison1992** » Mon Feb 05, 2007 4:35 pm

Q1. Just leave it then you can guess how many there are and then it will be fun.
Q2. Just leave it the babies have softer more flexible bones than adults + what do you think happens in the wild LOL

tammieb · Post by **tammieb** » Mon Feb 05, 2007 8:32 pm

If you are dying to see inside, and I know you are, use a small mirror and a pen light. One of those little dental mirrors works great for this!

Try not to disturb the parents too often, Zebs are usually good about nest checks but you never know.

When the chicks are close to fledging, you can place a multi-branched perch beneath the nest to give them something to hop onto, that way they won't have to free fall all the way to the floor of the cage. But don't worry if they do... they bounce pretty well.

It wouldn't hurt to have several branches spaced 8-10 inches apart all the way to the floor so they can get back to the nest easily. If you have a wire grate you might want to cover it with newspaper til the chicks are larger. Some people do, some don't.

I did this for my chicks and they would spend a day or two just hopping from the nest to that first perch and back... over and over to build up confidence and then they moved on to the next one. Before long they were getting around like pros. Of course every clutch seems to have a daredevil that jumps from the nest and never looks back.