# newborns question



## andrew2004gto (Mar 9, 2011)

This is the first time I raised doves to breed. I raised wild pigeons when I was young and had to problem. 

Ok I have 3 eggs and one just hatched and the other two are on their way. The mother just sits on him, how long does it take for her to feed him?


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

she will feed them in the next 24 hours the male will help feed them as well or he should.. so she laid 3 eggs.. fertile dove you got there.. usually they only lay two.. are these ring neck doves?


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## andrew2004gto (Mar 9, 2011)

Hi spirt wings we had talk before, remember when they laid in the food bowl(can't tell the sex of my birds.) Anyway I have two females and one male, the one just laid two eggs on the ground so I broke one accidently and the other one i put with the other bird, and by the way I did get a bigger bowl.

Ok that sounds good, and how long do they take to open their eyes.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

andrew2004gto said:


> Hi spirt wings we had talk before, remember when they laid in the food bowl(can't tell the sex of my birds.) Anyway I have two females and one male, the one just laid two eggs on the ground so I broke one accidently and the other one i put with the other bird, and by the way I did get a bigger bowl.
> 
> Ok that sounds good, and how long do they take to open their eyes.


they will open the eyes in a few days.. usually they just sit there and sleep.. if you do this again.. only give them two eggs..feeding an extra is a bit much.. if you have another hen in there I would remove her if she is not feeding them as well.. she may cause problems..


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## Doves1111 (Mar 5, 2005)

andrew2004gto said:


> This is the first time I raised doves to breed. I raised wild pigeons when I was young and had to problem.
> 
> Ok I have 3 eggs and one just hatched and the other two are on their way. The mother just sits on him, how long does it take for her to feed him?


If you want to keep 3 birds together as pets...that's fine...but do not let them hatch out the eggs. Give them fake eggs to set on. If you are serious about breeding doves then that's a different story and you no longer keep 3 birds in the same cage.

When you cage breed Ringneck doves...it is *1 breeding pair per cage*. A breeding pair of doves consists of 2 birds...*1 male and 1 female.*..not 1 male and 2 females. They are not like quail where you set them up in trios. If you raised pigeons before then you should know a breeding pair is 2 birds...not 3. Are all 3 doves sharing in the incubation of the eggs? If they are you may be lucky and all 3 adults may feed the babies. If not...then you may be asking for trouble with that 2nd hen in there. She should have been removed from the cage weeks ago and the true breeding pair should have set on only 2 eggs. 

I hope the eggs hatch at the same time or no longer than a day apart. If they hatch a few days apart the youngest one will be too far behind the first hatch and not survive. The first hatch will be larger and stronger and get all the food.

Here is a great book on Ringneck Doves. I have it...very informative. I think it will help you or anyone else starting out in keeping Ringneck Doves.
http://www.dovepage.com/book/index.html

Dawn


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## andrew2004gto (Mar 9, 2011)

Thanks for the help and they all hatched in about about 12 hour time frame.

I have seen them both feed them, but not very offten, they mostly just sit on them.

How many times should should they be feeding their babies. So far its been 30 hours from the first newborn and still alive.

And anything special should I be feeding the parents to produce milk? Someone told me wild bird seed and grit should be fine. 

O I had a ringneck dove when I was 14, the poor thing died cause a cat got in.


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## Doves1111 (Mar 5, 2005)

The parents make their own crop milk to feed to their squabs. In a few days the parents will add seed to the diet. Doves need a diet of 14% - 16% protein...or even 18% for breeders. What is the protein content on the wild bird seed you are feeding?

In addition to seed, doves should also get some form of a pellet or crumble. Besides the water...there should be 3 separate containers...High Calcium Grit, Seed, and Pellets. When the parents are raising squab they will consume about 50% more of the pellets. You can use pigeon pellets, chicken laying pellets, or game bird pellets or crumbles. The crumbles are good because when the babies start eating on their own they are able to pick up the small crumble when learning to eat. Go to a feed and grain store and ask if you can buy 5 or 10 lbs. at a time instead of the whole 50 lb bag. Some stores will do that for you...some won't. Some people use small Zupreem pellets. I have many doves, so it is more economical for me to use chicken laying pellets and game bird crumbles.

Hard boiled egg mashed up to also good for the parents and their squabs. I microwave the shell for 4 minutes...crush it up and mix it back in with the mashed egg.

I'm jumping the gun here...but the squabs grow fast and will leave the nest in 2 to 3 weeks.
*Doves are ground feeders...so make sure the water and all the rest of the food and grit container are on the bottom of the cage.* Do not place the containers under any perches because they will get soiled on. The parents may be able to fly up and find the food and water...but the babies won't be able to. When the babies leave the nest they will be on the bottom of the cage. Make sure they can find the water and the food. Sometimes the babies can't find the water... even though it is right in front of their beaks. If you see them sitting there with their eyes closed or squinted...that means they are dehydrated. Take their beak and dip it in their water container. You may have to do this a few times to make sure they know were it is.

Dawn


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## andrew2004gto (Mar 9, 2011)

Well Im back and all the babies are alive, but another problem, seems like I have one runt, it is half the size of the other two but was born first.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

andrew2004gto said:


> Well Im back and all the babies are alive, but another problem, seems like I have one runt, it is half the size of the other two but was born first.


That is one of the reasons for the only two eggs.. you may have to take him out and hand feed..


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## andrew2004gto (Mar 9, 2011)

Well I have two healthy doves, the little one died , question Im leaving for my honeymoon sunday and wondering how long does it take for them to feed themselfs, because I would like to seprate them before I leave. They are 17 days old and they do fly.


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## Doves1111 (Mar 5, 2005)

andrew2004gto said:


> Well I have two healthy doves, the little one died , question Im leaving for my honeymoon sunday and wondering how long does it take for them to feed themselfs, because I would like to seprate them before I leave. They are 17 days old and they do fly.


I have 3 doves babies the same age as your 2...they are still in the nest being fed by their parents. They are not fully feathered yet and by no means can they fly!!! You must have super babies!!! 

The parents will feed them until they are around 4 or 5 weeks old.


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## andrew2004gto (Mar 9, 2011)

Yea its crazy how the two grew,they eat like crazy, and the other one was 1/3 the size of them when it died yesterday, I take them out of the cage and they fly all the way to the top of the cage. I would like for them to feed themselves before I leave in 5 days because 5 birds in the cage gets a little crazy, but I have a friend going to come and feed them every 2 days.


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