So after watching my mom feed Alex enough times, I finally felt comfortable in trying to do it myself. I asked my mom to show me how to do it, and after walking me through it, I tried it myself.

I was afraid to go too fast, because I thought Alex might choke, so I ended up going a lot slower than my mom does it. I was successful though, and managed to feed him with the syringe.

Alex is one heck of a messy eater though. No matter how careful you might be in making sure the food gets in his mouth, some ends up dripping down the front of him. So we always have to wipe his beak and chest after we finish, and for whatever reason, he seems to think of that as the worst thing in the world (we don't hurt him doing it. He's just a bit of a crybaby).

So now I'm taking over feeding time. Funny enough, whether my mom feeds him or I do, he'll cry even when he expresses that he's full. Probably because I usually put him in the cage afterwards, and he just wants to stay out... All the time. Thing is, when he's out, Lucy has to be out too, or else Lucy will start screaming, and sometimes I just don't have enough energy to keep up with two birds (especially not in the morning). So I usually have to take a few minutes to calm little crybaby Alex down again, before putting him back.

When I put him back after feeding time, I put him right in front of the food bowl, because he likes to eat after he's been syringe fed (no idea why). It's kinda funny, because he'll literally bury his face in the pellets before getting one out. He's quite capable of eating them, as well as seeds and other solid foods.

Weaning is taking longer than originally expected, but that's ok. We finally got him down to two feedings per day. Ironically, the breeder told us to originally syringe feed him twice a day, but I think the stress of moving from one place to another set him back. We ended up feeding him four times a day at first. We're finally back down to two, and I'm hoping to get him weaned pretty soon. I don't want to force wean though, because that'll cause some behavior problems in the long run.

But little Alex is doing fine. I just have a feeling he might be crying more when he sees me enter the room. That'll be fun. I'm looking forward to when he finally is weaned.

Sounds like you have mastered the hand feeding! I don't know if I could. Milo was only six weeks old when I got him, and in retrospect I wish I would have hand fed him for a while. He used to do that crying quite a lot. But, he outgrew it and now is a big strong boy (well maybe not so big- he weighs 82 grams and is now eight months old. Just can't seem to get any more weight on him.). I am so glad you got Lucy back too- sounds like she has been a help with Alex. Do they both get along well? I always love hearing about your birds. You sound like a great mom to them both.

Your doing an amazing job... its not always an easy job to feed this way.... Could you try a spoon maybe now?
I use a plastic spoon its the next step after the syringe....
All my birds will eat off a spoon if I need them too its quite handy on times....

Well done you and your mum.... so lovely to hear a happy story... good luck

I switch to a spoon too after the babies fledge. I don't use the traditional bent spoon, where you basically pour the food into the baby. I use a regular spoon and hold it level, and let the babies do the work of taking it off the spoon. It's sort of a compromise between handfeeding and self feeding.

If he still wants the syringe, a change in technique might help reduce the spillage. I hold the syringe in my right hand, and cup my left hand over the baby's back with my thumb and index finger around the neck to help steady the head so it doesn't bob around quite so much. You don't want to hold too tight of course, but it's OK to control the head movements a little bit.

Yes, they're getting along just fine, Paula. Actually, I saw them preening one another a couple days ago... Well, Lucy was looking to be preened. I'm not sure if Alex was trying to preen her, or play with her crest.

I sure hope Alex will outgrow the crying. Ever since we got him down to two feedings, his crying has gotten LOUDER and more persistent. I heard that the babies will self wean, but I don't think Alex wants to wean. Given his background, it makes sense that he's a little more needy than the average tiel baby.

I tried using a spoon. He tried to eat from it the same way he eats from the syringe: bobbing up and down at the tip. If it were a hand feeding spoon, it would probably work well that way. But instead, it's just a regular human-food spoon. I might eventually get him to eat off of it.

I'll have to try holding his head. Since he doesn't stay still, I usually have to hold him in place, anyways. I'm giving it to him at a slight angle, so if I accidentally push too hard, it won't get into his lungs, but instead shoot out the side of his mouth.

It's a good thing I did it that way today though, because I did not expect the syringe to be as easy to push today (it was kinda hard to push yesterday). I made such a mess on the counter, it made Alex look like a pretty clean eater.

Babies tend to do that, since grabbing onto something hard (either a parent's beak or a syringe) is what always got them food in the past. Try to move the spoon so his beak goes into a deep pile of formula instead of grabbing the edge of the spoon. It'll take some time but he'll eventually get the hang of it.