My new bird won't eat out of the food dishes by itself!

Question

they are really simple dishes and where i got my cockatiel the lady said it ate on its own... it will eat if it put the food dish or water dish right up to it so technically i am feeding it and giving it water by hand... and it knows where the food and water is... will it out grow this? or is something wrong?

Answer 1

Sense you just got the bird, give it time to find out where the bowls are and settle in all on its own. It needs time to get used to being there and when it gets hungry enough it will find the food you sit out for it. Alot of birds never eat in front of their owners, or the owners never look at them when they do. So don't worry about it unless the bird after a week or two appears sick. But given time right now, your bird will do just fine and find the food all on its own.  

Answer 2

Don't feed it by hand or give it water by hand, let it use its dishes.  It will not starve at all.

Answer 3

well ussually when it is young it doesnt know for itself where it is and how to eat by itself i just bought a parakeet about a week ago and it didnt know where the food was so we had to go back and by an older bird to show and teach it so maybe if your bird has a companion it will learn of how to eat by itself later on.

Answer 4

There could be alot of reasons that your bird isn't eating out of the food and water bowls. Try monitoring him/her carefully for the next 2 days or so. In my opinion, i feel that it isn't eating because:

1. It might not have been weaned properly by its mother/breeder

2. It might still be a bit too young to eat on it's own

3. It might be ill

4. It might just need a bit more time to settle down in it's new    surroundings with you.

Give it a week or so (bearing in mind that if it doesnt eat, you will have to feed it by hand or it will get dehydrated) to get used to the surroundings in your home and settle in a little bit more.

Try luring it with a seed every day to get it used to the idea of food. If it isnt interested in the food, then mix it in with whatever you are feeding it by hand with (preferably the proper avian formula for birds) and it will slowly start getting used to the idea of eating food on its own. Make sure that the food and water bowls are easily accessible for the bird to get to aswell.

If within 2 weeks (minimum) you have seen no improvemtents, take the bird to your local avian vet for a checkup to see if there is anything that could be causing the bird to avoid eating, such as sour crop or gland inflammation.

If it makes you feel more comfortable, speak to a breeder that has experience with the type of bird that you currently have. They should be able to give you some more great advice and voice their opinions on the matter.

Good luck and hope this helps you =]