Hand Raising Gouldians
Posted: 02 Apr 2019, 18:04
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
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