Zebra finch suddenly became aggressive
Posted: Sat Aug 04, 2018 4:14 pm
Hey guys, I need your advice.
Around 1.5 years ago we adopted 2 male zebra finches from 2 different locations. They got along well for more than a year, but then a few months ago one of the finches started losing feathers and stopped being active. At first we thought he had some sort of illness, but then we noticed that the healthy finch was bullying the sickly one. He would chase him around the cage, try to pluck his feathers out, chase him away from where he was sitting, etc. Thinking that his sickly nature was stemming from stress, we placed him in a spare cage around a month ago, and he's been there ever since. He's completely changed, his feathers have regrown, he's vocal again, flying around. The two cages are next to each other, and the finches can see each other and they 'talk' to each other. They both seem a lot happier now that they're separated, but I have a few questions -
1. What caused one of the finches to suddenly become aggressive after having no problems for over a year?
2. Should we try reintroducing the two finches or should they be kept apart?
I know that zebras are social birds, and I don't know if just being able to see and talk to each other is enough for them. Getting more finches is most likely out of the question. Is there a way to try and safety reintroduce the two guys, or would it be better for them to be kept separate?
Around 1.5 years ago we adopted 2 male zebra finches from 2 different locations. They got along well for more than a year, but then a few months ago one of the finches started losing feathers and stopped being active. At first we thought he had some sort of illness, but then we noticed that the healthy finch was bullying the sickly one. He would chase him around the cage, try to pluck his feathers out, chase him away from where he was sitting, etc. Thinking that his sickly nature was stemming from stress, we placed him in a spare cage around a month ago, and he's been there ever since. He's completely changed, his feathers have regrown, he's vocal again, flying around. The two cages are next to each other, and the finches can see each other and they 'talk' to each other. They both seem a lot happier now that they're separated, but I have a few questions -
1. What caused one of the finches to suddenly become aggressive after having no problems for over a year?
2. Should we try reintroducing the two finches or should they be kept apart?
I know that zebras are social birds, and I don't know if just being able to see and talk to each other is enough for them. Getting more finches is most likely out of the question. Is there a way to try and safety reintroduce the two guys, or would it be better for them to be kept separate?