Urgent health issue with our owl fledgling

[Sally]

Most hand feeding formulas recommend that you don't change formulas, that you stay with one formula through weaning. Formula One is marketed that it can be the sole hand feeding formula at the very beginning, but most breeders use it as a supplement. Personally, I don't feel that any of the formulas need supplementation, since they are supposed to be complete feeds. However, I know a successful breeder who swore by adding Formula One to hand feeding formula.

My favorite formula is Lafeber's, others love Kaytee, but don't switch to either of them now.

[ac12]

How are you feeding the chick? If you are crop feeding with a pipete, and the pipete in down his throat, you should be getting the food almost directly in or directly into his crop. I am concerned that you might be getting food in his mouth that might be getting into the air passage to his lungs. The outside of the tip of the pipete needs to be fairly clean of food, so that this does not happen.

[a_gouldian]

Thanks for everyone's help and concern. Our Owl Fledgling passed away last night in his sleep. We are devastated and were very attached to the little guy. We spent a lot of time with him yesterday all day and evening and he seemed to be doing well when he went to sleep. Too upset to speculate on what happened now and I think it will be a long time, if ever, we attempt hand feeding again.

[Shannylee]

a_gouldian, I am so very sorry for your loss. Heartbreaking

[cindy]

so sorry....please keep in mind it may not have been handfeeding but an underlying condition the bird had either something passed by the mother to the egg before it was laid or some other internal issue and you kept it going.

[a_gouldian]

a_gouldian, I am so very sorry for your loss. Heartbreaking

Thanks Sharon

[a_gouldian]

so sorry....please keep in mind it may not have been handfeeding but an underlying condition the bird had either something passed by the mother to the egg before it was laid or some other internal issue and you kept it going.

Thanks Cindy. We had thought about that. This chick was from the pairs first clutch, which only had three eggs. Two of the chicks died in the shell and never hatched. I wasn't the one who looked at the eggs but my partner told me that they were pretty developed.

[cindy]

give your owls a chance sometime a little privacy, a third try works...rest the pair on their own for now... nourish them well and try again in a few months. If you need to transfer eggs do so with a clean plastic spoon, avoid handling them.

[a_gouldian]

give your owls a chance sometime a little privacy, a third try works...rest the pair on their own for now... nourish them well and try again in a few months. If you need to transfer eggs do so with a clean plastic spoon, avoid handling them.

We were planning on splitting up the Owls to give them a breeding break and put them in separate cages so they can still see and talk to each other. When we put them back together we will put them in one of the smaller breeding cages by themselves and that may work out better. They just finished laying their third clutch (which we transferred to the Society box) so it's a good time for a breeding break. If the owl eggs hatch and are taken care of until fledgling by the Societies, we have the option of putting them with the Owl parents if the Societies do not continue feeding them once they fledge. We will not be in a position to do any hand feeding so that will not be an option.

Our Red-billed Fire Finches appear to be sitting on eggs now. We are not going to do a nest check of any type, so we will see what happens. We are providing them with mini meal worms and will pick up some freeze dried blood worms today to see if they like those as well.

[Babs _Owner]

a_gouldian

Oh honey. I am so sorry. Check out the really great threads on handfeeding the forum has. I believe your owls have eggs you are fostering to societies and Cindy made mention they may not follow through all the way. Good time to research things before they hatch. You may be needed again by those new little ones. ;)

[Sally]

Oh, I am so sorry to hear this! I have gone through this with hand feds myself, losing them after weeks of bonding and feeding, and it is just heartbreaking. As others have said, it could be that there was some underlying issue with this baby, and he was actually doomed from the start. The fact that he did not want to wean makes me think there was something else going on that was out of your control.

As far as the other Owl eggs with the Societies, yes Owl babies do often beg with one wing raised up, but so do Strawberry babies, and I had two Societies who raised 4 Berry babies all the way to weaning. By the time they do the raised wing bit, the Societies will have been feeding them already, already committed to them. Just keep an eye on them.

[a_gouldian]

a_gouldian

Oh honey. I am so sorry. Check out the really great threads on handfeeding the forum has. I believe your owls have eggs you are fostering to societies and Cindy made mention they may not follow through all the way. Good time to research things before they hatch. You may be needed again by those new little ones. ;)

Thanks Babs. We have a little time. With this clutch we can only help out, if needed, once they fledge. I did take note of Cindy's and Sally's post. We also have no idea how well the Societies will do with the chicks since we haven't gone through a successful foster attempt with them and we haven't given them a chance to raise their own clutch. It's all a learning process. We will have to do some research on what happens if they fledge but the Societies lose interest during the weaning process.

[a_gouldian]

Oh, I am so sorry to hear this! I have gone through this with hand feds myself, losing them after weeks of bonding and feeding, and it is just heartbreaking. As others have said, it could be that there was some underlying issue with this baby, and he was actually doomed from the start. The fact that he did not want to wean makes me think there was something else going on that was out of your control.

As far as the other Owl eggs with the Societies, yes Owl babies do often beg with one wing raised up, but so do Strawberry babies, and I had two Societies who raised 4 Berry babies all the way to weaning. By the time they do the raised wing bit, the Societies will have been feeding them already, already committed to them. Just keep an eye on them.

Thanks Sally.

[cindy]

Chestnut Breasted Mannikins wing beg too.... one pair of societies fed through to wean one pair stopped when the youngster fledged.... As Sally mentioned keep an eye on your fosters. Had a pair of zebras raise an owl baby..they stopped feeding upon the owl baby fledging.

[a_gouldian]

Chestnut Breasted Mannikins wing beg too.... one pair of societies fed through to wean one pair stopped when the youngster fledged.... As Sally mentioned keep an eye on your fosters. Had a pair of zebras raise an owl baby..they stopped feeding upon the owl baby fledging.

Thanks. We will watch if it gets to the that point. It will be 9-14 days before the eggs hatch. If they do fledge but are not weaned we could manage to do hand feeding at that point.