Is my Ringneck ready to wean?

[jtv7471]

I just purchased a 7 week old ringneck. I was told he was weaned and eating seed with an occasianal hand feeding "to keep him tame". I didn't think anything of this until i got him home. now I've been trying to feed him practically everything, he like banannas, i think because they are so soft. But he wont eat seeds, he at one or 2 peices of millet this morning.

I have some exact hand feeding formula and will feed him in a few minutes, but is 7 weeks too young to wean and if not, whats the best way to go about starting this process?

[xx_sheena_xx]

it depends on each bird to when they will wean
i have had some wean at 6 weeks and another at 12 weeks

i would continue to feed it the formula, once or twice a day depending on how much fruit and vegtables it eats

good luck

[julie]

first thing that comes to mind when you say "you were told he is eating seed" what kind of seed was he eating. some breeders use budgie seed (millet) to start weaning, so sunflower may be unusual for him and he hasnt learnt to crack the seeds yet.
I would hand feed and leave some foods that he would be interested in picking up and playing with in for him. They generally like to chuck things around at first and have a play with it until they eventually get to getting it into their mouths and tasting it.
When hand feeding make sure it isnt too hot or too cold as this will cause problems. You could also give him a treat occasionally and get him some stewed apples and other fruits, I use baby food from the supermarket and they absolutely love it.

[pinkdevil]

Beside what has been said, I find that birds tend to want something more when you have it. You could try picking up the seed and dropping it back into the dish and scratching around in the seed dish, (similar to a mother chicken picking up and dropping food on the ground for her chicks). I do this and the chicks watch and have to investigate what I am doing.
Maybe soaked or sprouted seed could encourage him to try seeds as well.

[jtv7471]

Thanks for the replies! He has been picking at millet a little, but I'm hand-feeding him still. I've just been going off the container of exact for the temp (between 100-110 deg F). He has also been eating some banana and apple pieces. He also likes cucumber! Hopefully he starts eating seeds or pellets soon, im keeping 2 different types of pellets in his cage along with fresh fruit/vegies and millet. He's bound to find something that he likes eventually!

[pinkdevil]

If you want to help get him used to the taste of pellets, you could try adding them with the baby mash. I soak a few pellets until soft and mash them in with the formula etc. Over time I place a small dish with soaked pellets in the cage for them to nibble on. But I only leave it there for an hour or so as it could spoil if left longer. Sometimes I do this first thing in the morning before any other food is given. Other times I offer them the pellet mash instead of the formula first, just depends on the day.

[ringneck]

Wow! I gotta try that! I am trying to convert a pair of African ringnecks I have on pellets but they are stubborn. I have mixed it into their seeds and daily add them with the fruits and veggies...lol..i gotta try that though...i bet i can get them converted before six months..wish me luck!

IMRAN-C