Howdy from Hunter Valley NSW

[suzcus]

Hi,
Have had success with breeding and keeping various parrots and finches over the years. But never Gouldian's. They always just die for no reason I can ever figure out. This year I have decided to dedicate my outdoor entire aviary to 4 pairs of Gouldian's only. Plus 3 king quails. I purchased my birds direct from a breeder that had over 200 healthy birds. So far they look good as I nervously count them each day. Feeding daily fresh picked grass seeds, chopped up corn, kale, apple and cucumber. Always supply good quality finch seed, charcoal, egg shells, grit and calcium mix. Have planted grass in the cage and some native shrubs. Not sure what else I should be doing, apart from crossing my fingers.

[Craig52]

Hi and Welcome to the Forum Suzcus.
You seem to have everything sorted out for gouldians but they need plenty of cover from cold breezes
They need a fully covered roof and 3 side covered in usually with a clear polycarbonate for light and sunshine. Gouldians don't have under down like other birds so they will perish quickly due to cold draughts but they can handle the cold without draughts.

[finchbreeder]

What Craig said, and the open side of the avairy should face roughly northeast to get the most of the morning sun.
We discovered here that one particular avairy that fits this criteria, produces chicks like wildfire. While other avairies that do not fully meet the requirements they sit round looking OK but not producing or turn up their toes. Depending on which avairy it is and how close to the requirements the avairy is.

[Craig52]

Yes sorry not to mention that fb that is very important. East to North facing is very important

[suzcus]

thanks for that tip about what direction to face the open side of the aviary. I only have the end portion open but can see I will need to cover one or two of the sides in winter. So far still have all 8 alive, but a violent storm tonight after an extremely hot day will be a challenge for them.

[finchbreeder]

As long as you make sure to change the water on very hot days - manually or by auto retic - they handle heat pretty well.
Which part of the country are you in?

[suzcus]

Hunter Valley around Pokolbin NSW - so we get hot but also cold in winter. I have gone with a huge ceramic dish and placed some rocks and a fountain in it this time. so far working really well. Plus have a seperate water dish in case they decide the big pot is just for bathing

[finchbreeder]

You would also have to watch the river for flooding a lot more than we do where I am. I don't even pay extra for flood insurance. They figure if we flood the whole of Aussie will have sunk about 5kms down into the ocean.