Hand Raising Gouldians

Includes Species Profile.
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Yassica
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Posts: 3
Joined: 03 Mar 2019, 18:06
Location: Castle Hill, NSW

Hey Everyone,
Recently we had a little issue with 2 seperate pairs of Gouldians in seperate aviaries. One pair were old with 3 babies & had their nest box challenged by another bird & the other pair had 8 babies! We ended up having to take the 2 weakest out of the 8 & the 2 out of 3 that survived a bird attack from the older birds & suddenly began hand raising 4 chicks in order to save them. We did lots of reading & watching videos in a short time (as well as bird shop visits) in order to quickly find a way to save them. Since then (5 weeks ago) we've done quite a bit of research & were able to make new discoveries from this challenge. They were in a nest box on a reptile heating pad, lined with coconut fibre & toilet paper. They were fed formula, dripped water, cleaned, taught to fly, taught to stand, upgraded to a lined cage & are now flying a ruckus when ever they get the chance!
My reasoning for making this post is for any advice on hand raising Gouldians overall AND our current hurdle which is moving from formula to seed! They've had a nibble on seed grasses & stray seeds before but are yet to accept it as a full source of food. Also weaning them toward water has been tricky! I understand a lot of this comes naturally/from watching other birds so we sometimes place them in a large cage with another pair trying to breed to watch them eat & drink. Anyone with experience of suggestions please let us know :)
PS: Never underestimate the value & love of having a hand raised Gouldian as a pet. They have been FANTASTIC! They respond to visual commands, have lots of individual personality traits/interests & are quicker learners than you'd think... They ALSO adore humans, following you around the house & landing on your shoulder for an easier follow! They very much accept me as their mother, its wonderful :)
From Yassica
Instagram Handle: finches_australia
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finchbreeder
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Posts: 11489
Joined: 27 Jun 2009, 20:00
Location: Midwest of West. Aust. Coast
Location: Midwest of West.Aust.Coast

Congratulations on a job well started. When you have uneven nests e.g. 1 with 8 and 1 with 3 you can always switch a couple from the big nest to the small nest moving those closest in size. Have never handraised birds. But many years ago my parents occassionally did this with hookbills. Add some seed to the formula, and keep putting a bowl of seed there for them. Be a bit mean and stretch the time between feeds to encourge them to be hungry enough to look to feed themselves. And good luck.
LML
LML
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finchgreg
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Posts: 7
Joined: 22 May 2018, 11:38
Location: Brisbane , QLD
Location: BRISBANE

Hey I saw your videos on Instagram. I think you are doing really well with them. I hand raised my first finch which is a Bengalese and It has done very well. I pretty much fed it on formula and soaked seeds. And then introduced seed grasses and fruit. I have since introduced it back to the aviary and it is settling in nicely. But maybe Gouldians are a bit harder to hand raise, being more exotic but I hope it all works out. They do get very tame in the aviary as I have some so I think they would make a great hand raised finch :)
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