Age?

[Kris142]

How can I determine how old my lovies are? The place we got them didn't know, we just got them yesterday. They appear to be about as big as in this VIDEO and they are Dutch Blues.

[Birkah]

My Cipher is a Dutch Blue too! Do your lovies have black on their beak at all? Check out my profile pic - that's Cipher JUST after he was weaned. He's now a bit bigger, and has lost the dark patch on his beak. There are some AWESOME people on the board who can make a pretty good estimation if you post a good pic (and we all LOVE pics!!)

[linda040899]

The babies in the video are between 5-6 weeks old and they are almost weaned. They will retain their baby coloring until they are 4 months old and then you will see the "freckles" on the brow as adult feathers replace the baby ones.

Chances are your lovebirds are older than the ones in the video, or at least I hope they are! If you can post a few photos, we can pretty much tell age right up to age 5 months by the feather color. Front, side and back (including tail feathers) would be very helpful.

[Kris142]

One has a freckle looking spot on his/her beak. They dont appear to have freckles or dots in their feather pattern. Towards the tip on their beaks looks like a greenish-blackish looking color.

This is the best pic I could get in the low light through cage. I'll try again tomorrow after school..
http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/b...0119002130.jpg

[linda040899]

From the photo you just posted, the upper one is the older, roughly 4.5 months old. The "freckling" in the brow area (darker, adult feathering coming in) starts at age 4 months and there's more than just a little bit visible. If the younger one is not showing any feather color change, he/she is just under 4 months. It looks like the beak is completely horn colored but there's no change in the brow area.

Again, this is based on what appears to be in this particular photo.

[Kris142]

From the photo you just posted, the upper one is the older, roughly 4.5 months old. The "freckling" in the brow area (darker, adult feathering coming in) starts at age 4 months and there's more than just a little bit visible. If the younger one is not showing any feather color change, he/she is just under 4 months. It looks like the beak is completely horn colored but there's no change in the brow area.

Again, this is based on what appears to be in this particular photo.

Hey, thanks for giving me a rough estimate. What do you mean by brow? I've seen this term a few times on these forums now. Are they still at a good age for taming? I heard elsewhere that once they are past a certain age, they can become very difficult to tame, only problem is I dont remember what that age was.

[CompassionAk]

I just took a couple pics of Zeus today,he's 16 weeks 1 day here and is just starting to molt and get that freckling on his brow.Your birds should be fine to tame,when I got my whiteface he was about the same age and not tame and he's a big cuddle monster now.It can take a little time to gain their trust but the reward is amazing when they let you give them their first scritches. =)
http://i594.photobucket.com/albums/t...howhigh001.jpg

http://i594.photobucket.com/albums/t...howhigh002.jpg

[HaleBoppPeachyluv]

aww! yours look like my Makalii when i first brought him home. I think as long as you give them time to get used to you, any lovie can be tamed... some just take longer than others... and a lovie idea of "tamed" may be different than the human idea!

Remember, with exercise & good diet, a lovie can concievably live into late teens, early twenties. A long haul pet! You've got lots of time with yours. My mom has had her hen for about 5 or 6 years and i'd say she's just starting to mellow out. lol

[linda040899]

What do you mean by brow?

The brow is the area that starts right behind the nose and runs to just before the back of the eyes. It's the top of the facial mask of a Peachfaced Lovie. If I refer to "the bib," that's the area that starts just below the beak and extends part of the way down the chest. On a Dutch Blue (Aqua) lovie, the brow is cantelope colored and the bib is the same color but several shades lighter. If you are looking at a Green Peachie, the brow and bib are the reddish peach areas of the face and chest.