Why Gouldians ?

[ruthieharris]

Seems like every few posts about sick birds are about Gouldians , why is this ? You'd think they were a hardy lot being Australian an all . Such a gorgeous bird too

[Buzzard-1]

Well this is my outlook on the situation, There are a lot more Gouldian breeders further south in a lot cooler areas than the birds natural habitat than there ever has been, people are breeding in outdoor aviaries exposing birds to elements that never occur in they natural range instead of a protected bird-room mimicking close to there natural climate , the trend towards line-breeding for mutations is causing weaker birds, the price of Gouldians have come down to a point where inexperienced people can now afford to buy them.
In saying that over the years natural selection has developed a stronger line of birds than there ever has been.

[Tiaris]

Plenty of them being kept in very "basic" conditions where Zebra Finches may have prospered but these aren't the same beast. A reasonable amount of these cases seem to be of birds coming from pet shops & "controlled" conditions to outdoors - both are hazards. A fair portion are also Blue mutations & their combos - enough said.

[jusdeb]

All of the above plus they are like the foxy terrier of the finch world ...Everyones got them now .

Me ..had them , wasnt fussed on them . One day Ill have a colony of Red Brows , now thats a finch .

[desertbirds]

Plenty of them being kept in very "basic" conditions where Zebra Finches may have prospered but these aren't the same beast. A reasonable amount of these cases seem to be of birds coming from pet shops & "controlled" conditions to outdoors - both are hazards. A fair portion are also Blue mutations & their combos - enough said.

Agree with the other posts, i think Gouldians are one of the first species in an aviary to suffer from stress. Stress can mean the birds immune system is compromised and shortly after an illness develops. When you have a look at how many are Gouldians are housed , over stocked aviaries and small cages , these conditions can be stressful for any bird. Years ago many people would say "i wont get Gouldians because they are difficult to keep" , not too many people say that now and the birds are very cheap in comparison to twenty or thirty years ago.

[ruthieharris]

Thanks guys that makes alot of sense