Day old baby finches

**madhen** · 08-22-2008, 03:27 PM

Okay, so I understand that Gouldian finches don't "take" to parenting naturally, and that they have to learn how to be good providers, but I have one young pair who are definitely REMEDIAL!! It took them all last year to figure out that you are supposed to SIT on the eggs after you lay them. This year, they were champs on the sitting, and I breathed a sigh of relief...until yesterday. Babies #1 and 2 had been pitched out of the nest, and they were laying there on the cage floor, looking up at me like "what are you going to do about it?" Parents were looking nonchalant and pretending not to notice mewling pink things below.

So here I am, at work, with my little brooder on the desk next to me, two pink little day-old baby Gouldian finches all warm and sleepy from their last feeding. Wish me luck. These guys are HARD to raise from day one. I'm just hoping I don't get home to find any more babies on the floor. They had about seven eggs in there.

**Missy** · 08-22-2008, 04:25 PM

good luck. the babies are so hard to raise. HAve you concidered getting zebra finches as they are pretty broody? I've hatched eggs under and let a zebra raise a few canary eggs with her own. (ROfl and the zebra was just laying eggs...she had no male.)

**madhen** · 08-22-2008, 04:57 PM

I actually have zebras and societies, but none are on eggs, so I couldn't slip the babies in. Last year, I had the good luck to have my society hen on eggs and one of hers hatched the same time as one of my Goulds. I slipped that baby in and she grew up with her society siblings. For a while, they all crammed back into the nest at night.

**madhen** · 08-25-2008, 02:48 PM

We've made it to Day 5!! Woo hoo!! The babies are starting to squeak now when they are hungry...very cute! (In a pink, naked, alien sort of way.)

**Missy** · 08-25-2008, 03:23 PM

ROFL. Still cute even if its naked pink and alien like.

**PrairieRose** · 08-25-2008, 03:48 PM

Any luck at all the with parents 'taking to it' any better?

**madhen** · 08-27-2008, 12:51 AM

No, once the parents pitch a baby out of the nest, they are pretty much done with it. Some breeders suggest putting the baby back in, to give the parents a second chance, but the likelihood is that they will either pitch it again or not feed it. So I am foster mom for these two. With luck, they wean in about three weeks, and we are closing in on the end of week one.

Very obnoxious and demanding sometimes, but what baby isn't? Right now, they are sleeping peacefully, but they've been "fussy" all day. They are here at work with me and they recognize my voice now, so whenever I talk to anyone, they start squeaking for food and attention.

**madhen** · 09-13-2008, 06:45 PM

They are 25 days old now!!!! Woo hoo!!

**itsahumanzoo** · 09-13-2008, 07:34 PM

How cute! I've always wanted birds, but I don't think I could do what you are doing, raising them from tiny alien babies!

**Missy** · 09-13-2008, 07:39 PM

they're cute!!! And the seem to be feathering nicely. Soon I will be hatching chicken eggs, I'll have to show the progress when I get it going.

**Goodwin17** · 09-13-2008, 11:57 PM

What cuties!! I think it is strange that some animals wouldn't know how to be parents naturally. Thankfully they had a good foster mom!

**madhen** · 09-14-2008, 11:21 AM

Originally Posted by Goodwin17

What cuties!! I think it is strange that some animals wouldn't know how to be parents naturally. Thankfully they had a good foster mom!

Yes, I've often thought that, given the experience of most Gouldian breeders, it is amazing that these birds actually survive in the wild!

**itsahumanzoo** · 09-15-2008, 12:52 PM

Originally Posted by madhen

Yes, I've often thought that, given the experience of most Gouldian breeders, it is amazing that these birds actually survive in the wild!

Maybe it's nature's way of controlling the population? Those little things can multiply pretty quick.

**madhen** · 09-21-2008, 12:35 PM

Okay, the babies FLEDGED!!! In my office, which made it interesting.

Now, at home, I am just leaving their brooder door open. They are not quite weaned yet, so when I come over to feed them, they both fly out and land on me.

Still wanting to be fed every couple of hours and not showing a lot of interest in their "real" food, so I'm not sure how long this whole weaning process will take.

Here is a fuzzy pic (hard to take a pic when you are pointing the camera TOWARD yourself).