Page 208 - Hand rearing birds second

194 Hand-Rearing Birds

change feed often until they are eating independently. As chicks ingest more pellets and water,
fecal output appearance will also change and may be watery. This is normal as long as some solids
are processed. Medical treatment or illness may necessitate modifications to the rearing process.
Plastic paint roller trays provide a sloped, nonslip, and shallow surface that functions perfectly
as a water element in a small enclosure once the chick can easily walk in and out of the tray. Offer
food in the tray and remove and replace the food and water every hour (Figure 11.4). Provide plas-
tic bus trays as feed pans once the chick outgrows the paint tray. Transition birds to feed from pans
that visually resemble the feeder type that will be offered in permanent housing. Wild released
birds should forage from troughs and be given a large, clean water source to bathe in. Do not allow
birds to bathe in food trays. Plastic gutters or narrow plastic planters can be used as troughs.
Provide plastic children’s pools or another large, shallow water source for the birds to bathe in
separately from food. By 60 days, chicks should live outside in an adult sized enclosure unless pre-
vented by predator activity or weather. Provide juveniles with supplemental heat in temperatures
below 55 °F (13 °C). Many zoos house adult flamingos indoors when temperatures are 32 °F (0 °C)
or below. Chilean flamingos can tolerate slightly cooler temperatures and are moved to indoor
holding at temperatures below 20 °F (−6.5 °C) or if conditions are icy, to prevent falls (Nelson and
Lynch 2018).

­ Expected­Weight­Gain

It is typical for chicks to lose weight for the first 3 days. On day 4, a small weight gain may occur
and it takes until day 6 to reach hatch weight following the guidelines outlined in this chapter.
Anticipate ~7–10% weight gain per day (Figure 11.5). Weight gains may be smaller the day after a
feeding is dropped. Usually, the chick will consume additional pellets to make up the deficit in the
hand‐rearing diet. Keeping the weight gains consistent at 10% or less per day will help to avoid leg

Figure­11.4­ Flamingo chicks self-feeding from plastic trays.