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Re:18oct question mother attacks fledglings

Hi Brenda, I have removed the nest, al 6 babies died,, the mother dies not seem to feed them after she had those 3, I asked about previously,,, even quite a big one of the later 6 did not survive. I will only put breeding box then back after a year, like you said. I have put hose 3 babies seperate, they eat but does not seem energetic, just clustering together,,, the 2 of 3 that was attacked by mother has puffed up feathers,,, the one’s head became balder after mother’s attack,,, they have loose stools, but eat well, but does not seem that they can get a lot of the seed husks off. The petshop gave me leftover meds,,, “Medpet DOXYBIOTIC-S says 1 must give heaped teasspoon,,, 5g to50ml of water,,, for 7 days,,, I’m afraid as the bird, of the owner who bought this meds, died, so a lot still left,,, the guy at petshop says to feed them brown bread softened in water, squessed till water runs clear,,, Can I do that? ,,, and should I proceed with antibiotics? I’m using bactroban as per his advice on the little bald head,,, as it was a bit red. Shouldnt I only try bread if they might be mall fed due to only eating seed, I tried boiled egg, but they don’t eat it. I read about Psittacosis,,, how do I know the bald head is not due to that and will the cages next to these 3 be infected, if Psittacosis?

Your help will be appreciated
Thx Pat

Hi Pat,

I’m sorry about the chicks that died. Unfortunately, that is the typical outcome when a pairs nests again before weaning their current clutch. In the wild, the parents are occupied with teaching the chicks to eat and then find food and survive. Then the season changes and breeding season ends and the pair moves on until the next year. In captivity, we provide such a great environment for them that they don’t get the signal to stop breeding.

I would not give them medicine unless a vet prescribes it. Each medicine is for a specific disorder and giving the wrong medicine can cause the bird to die or get sick. Psittacosis would not cause feather loss. It would have to come from the parents, and chicks would die fairly quickly from it. The most likely thing would be a bacterial infection. The best thing to do is take the birds to an Avian Vet. As for feeding, try making some soft scrambled eggs. Also cook some brown rice and add mixed veggies and serve it to them warm. Spray millet is also good to entice them to eat. You can go ahead and introduce some pellets, which is what they should eventually eat as the main diet instead of seeds. You can try soaking some pellets in warm water and making a mash. You can offer some multi grain bread but I would not add water or this could cause issues with them swallowing it. Hopefully they will eat some of these foods and start doing better.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda