FINCHforum

since im pretty much still a novice i didnt realise my RF parrot finch should have been limited to around 2 cluches a year especially since i dont know their age the hens health has deteriated somewhat. now i have been told by a vet she needs to be on her own for a few months with a good treatment of calcium and other good vito's and minerals i was wondering is it ok to give calcium to all my birds including males and fledgelings? i want to ask before i make any mistakes that cant be undone.

i have bought some liquid calcium concentrate in a 120ml bottle. the dosage is 5ml per 1litre.
the bottle says nothing about feeding it to other birds such as males or young. i bought this as i couldnt get any Zolcal in time but i will have Zolcal monday. the same question goes for Zolcal when i get it.

I give mine liquid calcium at 1/2 the dosage on the bottle. I give them have egg shells if they feel they need more calcium than that. I do this to not overdose on the calcium.

I dose pre breeding birds every other water tube fill at 1/2 dosage.

When a hen is laying eggs, I do every water tube fill until a few days after the last egg. This is primarily for the hen when she is laying.

I don't give after that, although I probably should after the chicks hatch, as the chicks are growing and need calcium for their growing bones.

When not breeding I don't give them calcium.
But they have egg shells and some cuttlebone.

The instructions on one site says:
For breeding birds, approx 4 weeks prior to begining of egg laying and through the chick rearing period.
For non-breeding birds, once or twice a week.
For breeding birds, 5x a week.

what about my female parrot finch which is poorly due to lack of calcium? how often should she be getting this supliment? ive given her the first full dosage today but do i do the same everyday until she gets better as the bottle doesnt say anything about how often for a bird in her condition. thanks for all your input its much appreciated

I would give it to her as if she was in breeding mode, 5x a week for a couple weeks, then start to ease down. Provide her egg shells and fresh egg, so she can eat more calcium if she feels she needs it. If you notice she is eating a LOT of egg shells, then that is telling you she is needing more calcium. Then keep it at 5x a week while you see her eating a lot of egg shells.

ok thanks i will do that. she does eat well in general even through the nght. she gets plenty of fresh veg and fruit everyday so im hoping she has plenty of vits, she doesnt appear interested in the male anyway because when i let the male out to fly about in my front room he flys to her calling but she doesnt make a sound nor does she approach him.
anyway i plan to keep her seperated for atleast 3 months or more as i think she needs the break from him

Hi
I dose my female parrot finches that have finished breeding and in rest mode with a calcium supplement 3X per week at a dose rate of calci plus 5ml per litre for the first week and 3ml per litre for the next 3 weeks (i also have crushed cuttle bone available all the time.). Then they move on to crushed cuttle bone and egg shell (microwaved) if you have it ,exclusively, with a water based calcium supplement only once per week. You can feed the calcium supplement to all your birds. There are plenty of additives to bring her back into condition but sprouted seed and egg food have worked best for me. Lots of greens to. Go easy on anything too high in carbohydrates for too long as Parrot Finches are prone to puting on weight.

when they say sprouted seeds which seeds are they referring too? i have a good veriety of seed and in good quantitysso i am able tosprout plenty if needed. thanks for the info i have noted everyones advice for future refference.

use your normal seed mix to sprout. There are various methods. For me I soak say half cup of seed in a plastic container with enough hot water to cover the seed and for take up of water by the seed.. To this I add a cleanser like Avicleans. There are a host of others on the market.VirkonS seems to be a popular choice. Some of the older breeders use 2 table spoons of bleach instead. Soak overnight and then drain and leave in a calender or other drainage container to sprout. Once it has sprouted (just, because it becomes bitter if sprouted too much) you then rinse it again (2-3 times) in the VirkonS or other cleansing agent. You can then present the sprouted seed to the birds , once thoroughly cleansed-not too wet and not too dry.. I am sure that there are members of this forum who will have a more sophisticated and more full proof approach to sprouting but I have tried to keep it very basic just to give you an idea of what it means to sprout seed.

ok i understand it now, going to try that tonight
thanks

Hi Ruler,

Here is a series of 3 short videos on how Mike Fidler sprouts seed at the Save the Gouldian Fund that should help with some of the basics: http://www.fabulousfinch.com/cart/pages ... ideos.html

Mike is also the co-author of the book "Parrot Finches." It is out of print but can be found used at places like Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Parrot-Finches-Av ... 071372112X

Good luck!

Bill

thanks for thos elinks video's are always best for me as its easier to see how its done rather than reading will have a look after dinner. thanks again