First baby of the year here!

**Russell** · 03-14-07, 03:17 PM

Ok, so it's not a snake baby...and technically rats and mice are born here all the time...but...

first baby cockatiel of the year! Out of first time parents no less! Knowing mom and dad are both pearls and mom is a pastelface, with dad being whiteface. A baby with yellow fuzz tells me this one will be a pastelface pearl. But for now, little one is just a fuzzy yellow strange looking creature... many people call this ugly, I call it cute as can be! Note the egg tooth on this one! Daddy was so aggressive about staying in the nest box I literally had to wall him off to one side for these photos. So he sat there hissing at me and letting me know I was lucky to get away with these shots without losing a couple fingers and my nose...LOL! So here they are, enjoy the photos. I took several more, but these three turned out the best.

**HanneysCorns** · 03-14-07, 03:38 PM

I've never seen a baby bird just out of the egg. I'm so happy you posted these. Yup, I can see why some folks call them ugly...

, but to me, there can be nothing more beautiful than a baby 'anything'.

So how long till they get head fluff, or do actual feathers come in? Do fathers regularly guard the nest along with the mothers? How many days of 'impatience' does it take from laying to hatching?

See what you started...thanks for posting. Hope you'll post more in a few days if Dad will let you.

Ruth

**Nanci** · 03-14-07, 03:52 PM

He's adorable! I hand-raised my daughter's Senegal. He used to ride around in my pocket all day. I love baby birds.

Nanci

**nwheat** · 03-14-07, 04:48 PM

Oh, that is too cute! Such a fluffy little thing!

**Carol** · 03-14-07, 05:00 PM

Originally Posted by Russell

So he sat there hissing at me and letting me know I was lucky to get away with these shots without losing a couple fingers and my nose...LOL!

LOL. My male cockatiel treats all men and dark haired women that way. If you aren't a blonde or red headed lady, you better cover your ears and your nose. He is sweet as pie to me though! He's been my baby since I was 12 years old. Yep, the bird is OLD.

Thanks for sharing, it is quite amusing to see what they look like freshly hatched! Congrats Russel!

**Russell** · 03-14-07, 05:07 PM

Originally Posted by HanneysCorns

I've never seen a baby bird just out of the egg. I'm so happy you posted these. Yup, I can see why some folks call them ugly...

, but to me, there can be nothing more beautiful than a baby 'anything'.

So how long till they get head fluff, or do actual feathers come in? Do fathers regularly guard the nest along with the mothers? How many days of 'impatience' does it take from laying to hatching?

See what you started...thanks for posting. Hope you'll post more in a few days if Dad will let you.

Ruth

what fluff they have now is all they'll get for this baby fluff. Over time the pin feathers will develop and grow in as the baby ages and gets bigger. That bald area on the head gets covered with feathers. In some cockatiels they always have a bald spot there. Generally in the red eyed morphs such as albino and Lutino. The rest usually grow in with feathers over that patch in time.

Not all fathers sit in the nest with the hens. Usually they take turns being on the nest. My old pair both divide the eggs between them and sit incubating eggs side by side. Both of them old birds are the most devoted. My second oldest pair tends to take turns. This young pair, wow, that male is on the nest and yes, VERY defensive. Not all males are so defensive. I used to have a pair where the male had no qualms about attacking you once the nesting phase started. So you had to be creative in getting food and water to that pair! Otherwise he'd draw blood! I much prefer the attitude of the second oldest pair. The hen will sway a bit on her nest but will actually settle down and let me scratch her head. And usually quietly move aside so I can peak in on the action. The old pair not bein handfed, are nervous and just leave their nest without question. So I'll try to remember to get more photos of developing cockatiels in this thread.

Eggs take about 18 -21 days to hatch

**Taceas** · 03-15-07, 05:17 AM

Do you handfeed the babies to ensure their friendliness? Or do you let the parents do the work?

Sometimes I miss our cockatiel, Sydney. She died in 2000 from an apparent cardiac arrest. She was a white and grey one, no yellow/red at all. =(

**EeekSnakes** · 03-15-07, 08:59 AM

Very interesting. I'm not a bird fan, thanks to an old friend a long time ago. She had a bird ( dunno what kind) and I was over there for coffee.. She let the bird fly free for a bit... The silly thing kept dive bombing my head, pecking the odd time, and literally scaring the crap out of me.

That said, I love looking at them from a distance. There are some very gorgeous birds out there. Do you have some pics of the adults? I'm curious as to what this little guy will look like.

**MohrSnakes** · 03-15-07, 09:25 AM

I don't have much to say about birds but that is cool and thanks for posting.

**Russell** · 03-15-07, 02:12 PM

Originally Posted by Taceas

Do you handfeed the babies to ensure their friendliness? Or do you let the parents do the work?

Sometimes I miss our cockatiel, Sydney. She died in 2000 from an apparent cardiac arrest. She was a white and grey one, no yellow/red at all. =(

I pull them at the age of two weeks or up to 17 days at the latest. This is usually when the pinfeathers are starting to break at the tips exposing feathers. I do it more on looks than I do by calender date it seems. Guess it's cause after you've done it long enough, you know what to look for. Kind of like knowing when mice are old enough to wean. You just...know...LOL!

But yeah, the first few days I pretty much leave them alone, after I've pulled them for handfeeding. They need to learn that hey, this guy is bringing us food. Once they start looking more forward to me at feeding time, I then start to handle them for a few minutes, and over time I increase this play time. By the time they are five weeks of age, they are spending a lot of time with me. Sometimes just laying around their brooding box in whatever room I'm in so they are exposed to me and household sounds. Once they hit that crawling around and flying stage, which is usually around four to five weeks, they get to be fun. They want to "play" with everything. By the time they are six weeks old they very much look forward to play time and are well started on eating some food for themselves. I usually wean around eight weeks. I allow them to tell me when it's time. Sometimes a baby weans early, some won't give up till ten weeks!

I have to feed them three times daily and have to keep a constant watch on their crops to see if they are emptying out properly. It's so easy to lose a chick! But it's a rewarding hobby that I enjoy. I get a kick out of bonding with the babies and funny to have them want to so badly come to you and put their heads down for a head scratch. I find the less babies I have to work with, the more fun it is, and the more tame the babies that result. So I'm trying to keep the numbers down a bit. Trying is the key word here...!!!

This shall be fun.