Feeding Spoons:
The standby feeding technique for baby birds is the bent tea spoon! Folding a spoon is not particularly difficult but getting one that is even and has a good shape of spout takes a little more skill.

Using a folding jig and a metal press we have folded both small and large spoons to suit most baby birds. The down side of a simple spoon is that you cannot tell how much the baby has eaten and they are quite messy – often the baby gets covered in food as you try and restart the feeding reflex between spoonfuls.

Ezy Feeder:
The Ezy Feeder was designed to allow handrearers to measure the feed taken and to feed continuously. The spoon has an G8 tube attached with a hub that allows any Luer lock syringe to be fitted. The syringe is filled with food, attached to the Ezy Feeder, the tip of the spoon is dipped in feed or warm water and given to the baby. Once the feeding reflex starts then you continue to fill the spoon and feed the baby until it is full. There is no need to stop and start.

The syringe will now give you a good idea of how much the baby has taken. The baby is not covered in food as he has finished feeding in a short time without numerous restarts of the feeding reflex.

Crop Needles:
All bird keepers should know how to crop needle. It is a simple procedure that is life saving or at least time saving!

Crop needles can be used for emergency feeding of ill birds, for hand rearing of all sized babies and for the administration of medicines and wormers to all birds.

Crop needles come in a range of sizes – from a G18 (which is very small) to a G8 15cm large needle for cockatoos and Macaws.

The stainless steel needles have a Luer Lock fitting for commonly used syringes.

The “tear drop” shape of the ball on the end of the needle eases the entry of the needle to the crop to eliminate tissue damage.

A set of crop needles should be in the “Tool Kit” of all bird keepers who are serious about the welfare of their birds.

Reusable Syringes:
The range of Vetafarm feeding syringes allows for birdkeepers to feed any sized bird with ease.

The Perspex syringes with metal nozzle and removable plunger are ideal for hand rearing. The syringes have a shaped plunger handle that gives good grip and control when feeding.

The metal nozzle and collar allow the Crop Needle to be firmly attached to the syringe protecting the baby form those “wayward” needles that sometimes cause dramas!

Additionally we have had the nozzle diameter drilled out to 3 mm to prevent the blockage of feed in the syringe. This may sound like a minor thing but it is the syringe nozzle where most blockages occur and drilling it out makes feeding so much easier.

Cleaning is a breeze as the plunger screws off for easy washing.

When attaching a Crop Needle to the syringe simply loosen the smooth metal collar and slot the needle hub onto the nozzle and tighten the collar. The needle will now be securely attached.