Caring for a Baby African Grey Parrot
A baby African Grey parrot can be a source of infinite joy for its owner if it is properly cared for. Unfortunately, if you’re a first time bird owner, it’s best to stay away from buying a baby African Grey. These birds require a lot of care and attention. If you’re not familiar with the behavior of African Grey parrots, you will have a tough time handling the babies.
Usually, African Grey baby parrots are cared for by their parents well beyond the time they start flying. Baby African Greys are usually not sold to new owners before this point of time, which is about 12 weeks. However, if your baby African Grey was born at home to your pet African Grey, you’ve got some serious information to brush up on before attempting to rear them all by yourself.
Characteristics of a Baby African Grey Parrot
Baby African Greys are not grey when they’re born. They’re pink when they hatch. They develop their trademark grey color, black beaks and red tails only when they start growing feathers. Usually when you buy a baby African Grey from a pet shop, it’s safe to assume that it’s at least 12 weeks old but it is best if you can buy your parrot from the breeder. That’s about the perfect time to wean baby African Greys from their mothers.
Some special needs of baby African Greys are:
- Day old chicks are really tiny, weigh less than 18 grams and require extreme care in handling
- Tiny African Grey Babies need special formula, care and a warm place to inhabit
- They’re very cute when they’re born. However, they tend to look weird for the first three weeks
- They need to be trained from an early age. At least from when they are 12 weeks old
Things to know before you decide on buying a baby African Grey parrot
Buying a baby African Grey is an important decision that one cannot afford to take lightly. It’s a commitment that can sometimes last a lifetime. Since African Greys are birds with very long life spans, you need to consider the fact that they will be around much longer than you. It’s almost like choosing a pet for life.
Since African Grey babies bond intensely with their owner, it’s not easy to give them away either. They can develop cognitive and speech skills that can match 5 year old human children at times. So you can understand how difficult it would be to give them away. African Greys tend to hurt themselves or become overly stressed if they’re separated from their owners.
If you’re buying a baby African Grey parrot, you’ll mostly get one that’s at least 4 months old. If your African Greys have hatched at home, you need to feed them special formulas, put them in brooders and generally care for them really well if you expect them to survive beyond the first few week
Yyou can read up about taking care of your baby African Grey. Since these birds require a lot of attention, love and care, it’s safe to read up a lot before actually deciding to buy them. But if you’ve done your homework and decided that a baby African Grey Parrot is what you want, you can be sure of a fun filled lifetime bird owning experience.
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