![]() This can also be done to maximize the amount of babies you are able to have from each clutch, therefore you are able to produce almost the same amount of babies in one clutch which would usually take a few clutches per breeding season to accomplish. Hens will continue to lay fertile eggs to cover the loss in an attempt to have a clutch of about 2-4 as their instincts instruct. A Zebra Finch can lay up to 8-10 eggs if you continuously remove all but 1-2 of their eggs at a time. Another option would be to stimulate and remove “extra eggs” to be hand-raised. ![]() ![]() This will give them a much greater chance at survival and provide a small chance at socialization with other birds. If you are only looking to hand-raise Finches to have hand-tame pets for yourself or to sell, at least wait until the babies have fledged. A good way to help encourage parents to feed their babies is to provide them with some hard-boiled egg. If by the time they will need their next feeding (1 hour) you do not notice the parents trying to get back into the nest to feed or be with the baby it is probably a safe bet that you will need to raise them yourself. Always try to place the baby back in the nest before you “rescue” it. Often times a seemingly “tossed” baby has simply just fallen out of the nest due to a nest being too small or too many babies pushing each other around are inside. I have seen eggs sit at room temperature for a day or so before being rescued and still hatch to be healthy birds. Even if they are left alone by their parents for an extended period of time, they may still be saved. (This is especially common with very fertile pairs on vitamin supplements who have 5-6 in each clutch or more.) If eggs/babies are truly abandoned, I will remove them and place them in the brooder to be hand raised. They will also toss babies out of the nest if they don’t feel they have enough resources to support them all. Parents will abandon their babies/eggs as a result of the slightest bit of stress or if they are young and inexperienced. That is the responsibility of every breeder.Īs with everything else in life things do not always go as planned. The only time I will remove eggs or babies is if they have been abandoned or neglected, and that is the only time I would recommend “stepping in” to save the lives of the offspring. If your goal is to provide your birds with the best care possible, then it is vital to allow them to complete the parenting process as they are naturally inclined to (this includes the weaning process). Pairs who regularly have their babies removed, picked up by human hands, or peeked at will often times stop laying altogether or start to toss/abandon their young. It’s not only traumatic for the baby (especially after the imprinting process has begun) but it is just as traumatic for the parents. This ensures their health and development as well as their ability to bond well with you and other human beings in the future.įirst, I must say it to the point where it’s ingrained in every reader’s mind ~ you should never remove baby Finches or any other baby animal from their parents’ care. When to Hand-raise & When to Leave Them BeĪs the Lafeber’s formula label reads, “Hand-feeding pet birds requires love, patience, and proper nutrition.” The way to successfully raise Finches by hand is to devote as much time as possible to the endeavor to both increasing your survival rate through multiple feedings and to socializing and hand-training your babies.
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