URGENT! - undercooked cordons

[toothlessjaws]

Hi everyone, i just came home and found two undercooked cordon chicks on my avairy, it will be dark in about 10mins from now and i don't think they can get back in the nest. parents calling them but they are just huddling up. its not warm tonight in melbourne. added complication: i have no idea which nest is theirs!

do i bring them inside? put a heat lamp in the avairy?

never had this happen before!

gotta do something quick!

[Craig52]

It's too late now but so long as they can get up off the floor even a few centimeters they should be fine. I seen some well under done cordons survive in a lot cooler temps than ours are now, they are tough little buggers. Cheers Craig

[toothlessjaws]

thanks for the prompt help Craig - I sat patiently and waited as it got dark. the back of the aviary has a nice thick layer of very fiberous mulch (lots of dry leaf matter etc) which is quite warm and poly carb sheets on the sides to avoid drafts. of course the chicks moved to a cold rock at the wire out front! eventually i saw the cordon parents move into some brush up high that i had never seen them go to before. i went in with my torch and saw an entrance cavity with a nest hidden much deeper in the brush. i picked up the chicks and put them at the entrance and the parents flew in and quietened down right as the sky went dark. fingers crossed all good. i'll go out and check the aviary floor in an hour.

[Curly]

How did the young Cordons fair...hope they survived for you
Cheers Curly

[toothlessjaws]

Craig was right, they're tough!

They jumped the nest again the next day and despite being far too young to be able to fly back there, seem perfectly content living on the floor. there is plenty of brush down low to hide amongst and a good warm covering of mulch so i think they are going to be okay. parents are looking after them and last night i left them to their own.

the nasty jacarini's seem to be leaving them alone so fingers crossed!