need some info on incubating cockatoo eggs.

[KattyKillFish]

a friend of mine wants to give me some of her cockatoo eggs. her birds lay alot of eggs and she wants to give mt four of them. not sure how long they take to hatch, and what to feed the helpless little ones. i am really looking forward to having cockatoos, i've kept other parrots but never hatched any myself. i'm sure you end up with a bird that is bonded to you strongly.

anyhow, any advice and info is welcome. i understand it is a difficult 24-hr job and i am willing to take care of the babies, but still want to be fully prepared.

 

[monarc23]

what species of cockatoo?

 

[monarc23]

Umbrella cockatoos are 27-29 days

moluccan cockatoos are 28-30 days

Goffins are 24-26

rose breasted are 20-23


and so on and so forth, if I were you i'd contact a rescue organization first and let them tell you why you should probably reconsider

maybe adopt one instead of doing that. They are no where near like chickens or quails, esp if you're lucky and hatch all four...

either way that does sound cool but you're going to need a lot of research first finding out what species you're dealing with, and learn how to tube feed them. These birds live for a LOONNNG time and so many are neglected and feather pick and just live a horrible life. Please be sure you have the room, the time and the money.

If it was me i'd rescue one before I'd incubate them, I plan to someday theres so many in need of homes.

 

[KattyKillFish]

there isn't any rescue center or pet shop of any kind here. the cockatoos in question are the greater sulfur-crested. i've got an old cage that was given to me for my parakeets, but the cage is about 3 feet x 3 feet and 5 feet tall. it is in good condition and there is very little rust. it has an open top as well.

I've babysat alot of parrots, mostly my uncles macaw who was a rescued bird. i grew up with the bird and he is a really great guy.

anyhow, i've ordered some baby formula for cockatoos along with a 100cc syringe minus the needle.

there aren't alot of bird-keepers in my area and there isn't a road system connecting to any other cities as i live in a very rural community.

yhank you guys for your advice btw, you guys are very helpful

 

[monarc23]

Quote:
If you do it i think you should only consider incubating one egg at a time and if it doesnt develop get another one. One parrot is enough of a challenge that' dbe like you taking on 4 human babies at once (that stay babies their whole lives).

 

[KattyKillFish]

i agree %100... i would rather have one than two!

 

[monarc23]

Quote:
GOOD you scared me

as long as you're decidated to that one chick i see nothing wrong with it but when I read something about 4 that really scared the dickens outta me.

 

[gabrielle1976]

They are awsome animals and a real hoot ...
That being said they can live for more then 75 years though alot of them die to poor diet , houseing and handleing . They are VERY VERY loud , VERY VERY messy , need huge amounts of attention and space and can inflect nasty painfull bites. Hand feeding baby parrots if you know what you are doing can be done with reletve ease but if you dont know what youre doing it can be on the mild side stresfull for you and the baby and on the worst side fatal to them .
I think if you ahve the space maybe 2 would be better then one for one reason only, they could help keep eatch other company. The <<<aproprate >>size cage for them could easly cost 1000 , most pepople house them in cages WAY to small.
If you Had an extra room to make into a play room for supervised play at least sevral hours a day it would be best. But you need to bird proof everything. stoves , sinks , tolets, outlest, cords , on and on and on ..If you plan on doing this I recomend you start reading now and keep reading on about them.
Good luck