I have two baby cockatiels and I want to hand feed them but my parents say no, they say leave them with the parents till they are 3 months old but I want them to be tamed. Is it okay to leave them till 3 months after they have been weaned and then put them in a nother cage away from the parents. Will they act normal???
Hi,
One method that works well is co-parenting. This is when you handle the chicks while they are still in the nest. You can start this about the time the eyes open. You can take on chick out at a time, and handle and talk to it for a few minutes before returning it to the nest. You should not handle a chick if it has just been fed. If the parents get too upset, you may not be able to handle them. But generally if you only take one out at a time, they get used to it. You should try to get a chick out when both parents leave the nestbox. If you wait until they are weaned, and they have never been handled, they will be wild and much harder to try and tame them. Handling but letting the parents feed them is the best compromise and is a common practice. It is much healthier for the chicks than hand feeding, and better for them to be socialized and learn to trust people as they are growing.
Thank you for asking Lafeber,
Brenda
