Other finches use abandoned nests?

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Jessica
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Location: Oregon USA

Hey gang, I have a flight cage 1.8meters long by 1.8 meters high by .61 meters deep. It has four nests.

Two pairs have built nests in them from scratch (box style nests) and both pairs of Gouldians failed (first-time parents). After they abandoned the nests, I removed the baby bodies and unhatched eggs so they could try again but ... they won't use the nests and instead both pairs went to NEW nest boxes and are building again.

My question: Should I just remove and discard the completed nests that they abandoned or do OTHER finches see it is now empty and, when they are ready to breed, think, "Oh Geez - here's a completed nest for us to use - SCORE!" I see another pair who has been 'practicing breeding and picking up nesting materials and they peek into the nest but won't use it.

How would you all handle this situation? I just don't know what finches think about using someone else's nest. Would other finches in same cage remember a nest belonged to someone else so ignore it or would they use it? And if I put a DIFFERENT pair of finches in the flight (someone who has never seen the nest being used before), would the new birds realize it isn't being used and possibly use it?

I've searched extensively and can find nothing on this subject. I started another thread about reusing nesting materials and I won't reuse it but ... 1) the original parents might come back, 2) other birds might realize it's abandoned and use it and 3) new birds to the flight might want to use it.

What would you do please? Remove the materials or leave it there?
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finchbreeder
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Rules re nest boxes.
1. Always have 1 more nest box than you do pairs of birds. Every lady must have a choice if all decide to breed at once. :D
2. Always provide lots of nesting material.
3. Once a nest has been used, assess cleanliness. If in doubt empty and clean. But if nothing hatched may be reused as is.
4. Put a mix of nest types and at a mix of heights if the birds are of different types.
5. Most finches think the higher nest is a sign of the top bird, so a row at the same height is good for birds of the same type.
6. Space nests as widely apart as the avairy allows, birds like a little privacy too.
Enjoy your birds.
LML
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Jessica
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Oh thank you! I hit every point then and on #3, the nests were very clean so I'll leave them just in case anyone wants to reuse them or the materials in them. I thought the old parents would want to pull stuff from them for the new nests but no, they go to the huge bin of mixed materials and choose new stuff.

Another thing we've learned this week ... we are TERRIBLE match makers. Every attempt to 'pair' them has failed. They always want the person in the other cage. And why do they poop in their dishes? What dummies! :lolno:

ADDED: I've printed your rules to post for the family to be sure the fam knows (mostly for little brother). :crazy:
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Jessica
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Mom just said we're switching to feeders which keep the seed protected - I forget the word she used. Curious what that might look like. because it doesn't work trying to blow seed hulls out of dishes.
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BrettB
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Dominant pair will pick the best nest site, the next most dominant pair the next best site and so on ...
My birds rarely change nest sites and will usually breed again in the same box.
I have had Gouldians eject other finches from their nests, but usually only when insufficient boxes are provided
Give them plenty of nesting material, some pairs will stuff their box full others use hardly any.
As mentioned before, matings outside the pair bond is common and sometimes hens will lay eggs in other pair's nests
Pairs that pick their own partners generally breed sooner and more successfully.
They do not always follow Craig's "rules" :P
Hope they do better next time, failures among first time parents are common

Cheers
Brett
"We don't see things as they are, we see things as we are ." Anais Nin
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Jessica
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Thank you, Brett! No matter how much we study, it seems so many things are 'by experience only'. One of my favorite sayings is:
Experience is a tough teacher. First it gives you the test and only THEN provides the lesson.
I can't move birds in this flight cage around right now since I just discovered three new eggs from the original breeding pair! BTW, on the nests, mom picked ones which were longer (box style) to give Gouldians more room, having read it makes it more difficult for parents to toss them and Gouldians like to go in and turn and go back in a ways.
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finchbreeder
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The rules are for the Breeders - the finches do not read them. :silent:
So while most are appropriate - the birdies sometime say - bother your rules - I am an individual.
Picking their mates for them will work most of the time if you keep them in pair only cages. But even then they will, as you have observed, think the neighbour is cuter.
e.g. Great pair of Budgies Mum put down to breed this year. 2 nests, 1 nest 5 great chicks, 2nd nest only 2. Really poo year for budgie numbers here this year, lots of pairs went off early or failed to start. Back to the point. Chick 1 in nest 1 - Hey - how did that happen? Genetically impossible for this pair. Oops mum obviously had a hens party before the wedding.
LML
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Jessica
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Oh that is so funny!! I caught one little lady going into a nest which didn't belong to her. I wondered if she dropped an egg in it but didn't look because I don't want to disturb them.
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Craig52
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They do not always follow Craig's "rules" :P
Hope they do better next time, failures among first time parents are common

Cheers
Brett
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