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Keeping lovebirds, Caring for lovebird chick like any other birds, obliges the owner to observe a number of conditions for their healthy existence. When dealing with chicks, you need to be aware that you will have to pay twice as much attention to them as to adult parrots, since they require special care.
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To get healthy offspring, you need to prepare the birds for breeding. It is very important to do this correctly, observing a number of conditions to ensure the emergence of the strongest and healthiest chicks possible.
Preparing birds for breeding
Lovebird parrots can breed at the age of at least one year from birth, given that a month must have passed since their last molt. Parrots must be well-fed, healthy and active. It is better not to allow birds that are underweight or obese to breed, as this can have a negative impact on the offspring and complicate the nesting process.
Preparing for reproduction is a simple but important procedure. The pair should be prepared within two weeks. At this time, you need to increase daylight hours, using artificial lighting, feed them sprouted grains and more cottage cheese and eggs than before.
The birds’ behavior will change noticeably by the end of the second preparatory week. This is normal. Their singing will become louder, the birds themselves will be more active than before, they will begin to look for secluded corners in the cage, preparing for the appearance of a new object in their cage – a nest. Upon completion of preparation, a pair of parrots should be given a nest box.
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Nest building
Lovebirds begin to build nests. During this period, they may have problems, since during the process of domestication, most of them partially lost their construction skills.
Based on this, birds can be divided into three groups:
1. Birds that enjoy construction. They do not encounter any significant problems during the process; they cope with their task quickly and just as quickly begin laying.
2. Those parrots who incorrectly fill the nest box with branches, and, in the end, it turns out that there is no longer enough space for them.
3. And the last type are birds that lay down a number of branches that is too small for comfortable and proper laying.
If a couple cannot cope with construction, they should be helped.
Hatching chicks
After the female has laid all her eggs, it is important to ensure that the humidity is maintained. If the room is too dry, it is necessary to drip water into the corners of the nest several times a day, thereby increasing the humidity level. If you leave the level below 50-60%, the little offspring will not be able to break the egg shell and hatch. Such offspring may be significantly weaker than those of their brothers who had enough moisture.
Anyone interested in breeding these birds is probably interested in how long it takes for lovebird chicks to hatch. This occurs three weeks after the female begins to incubate them.
You cannot touch the eggs yourself; the bird itself will provide them with the desired position and maintain the optimal temperature. You shouldn’t disturb or distract parrots either.
Feeding lovebird chicks
The question of how to feed a Caring for lovebird chick is very important, since a newly hatched chick is completely helpless and is unable to help itself. There is almost no plumage on the small bodies of newborn birds; their eyes and ears are closed. The female knows how to feed lovebird chicks and begins to do so a few hours after they hatch. The first food for babies is goiter milk; after a few days, the female is forced to switch them to incompletely digested food. At this time, the father takes on some of the responsibilities. It feeds the chicks from its beak.
When feeding offspring, owners should pay special attention to the cleanliness of the cage and nest. And also monitor feeding by adding a boiled chicken egg, millet porridge with whole grains, millet and wheat to the birds’ diet.
If the female lovebird refuses her responsibilities and does not pay due attention to the offspring, the chicks can be moved to another female who is ready to pay attention to them.
Feeding newborns continues for fifty days.
Chick development
The eyes of the chicks open on the tenth day after their birth. A month after hatching, the fluff is replaced by full plumage, similar to what is present on the bodies of adult individuals. Parrots have to leave the nest on the fortieth day from birth, but for another two weeks they continue to eat the food they receive from their parents.
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Care Caring for lovebird chick
Careful care of lovebird chicks is necessary. Especially if there are a lot of small parrots hatched. In this case, they will fill the nest with dirt and natural waste much faster. The owners will need to replace the dirty nesting box, unsuitable for their future life, with a new and clean one. To do this, you need to think about this problem in advance and prepare. If there is no spare nesting box, then you should clean, without using water, the one in which the chicks are now. Disinfection can be carried out by burning it over an open flame, then filling the home with fresh sawdust. You can wait a bit with disinfection if there are not very many chicks.
Separation from parents
Lovebird chicks become independent and gain strength approximately 15 days after they fly out of the nest. Starting from this time, the birds are cared for like adult parrots, observing the same conditions of detention, and providing the now adult individuals with a comfortable existence.
Also check: What Is The Friendliest Type Of Lovebird?
Also check: Red Macaw Health And Guide
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