Guldians dieing

jamezyboo21 · Post by **jamezyboo21** » Fri Oct 24, 2008 11:15 pm

I dont know what to do. I had a total of 10 gouldians and now im down to 5. There fine for a few months and then they get sick and die. It starts off with them fluffing up and tucking there head back in the feathers. and then for like 3 or 4 days they do this and then they stay at the bottom of the cage and die. They eat everday and drink water but then they still die. The only 2 that seem to be doing great are the 2 original ones i bout in February who have now colored up and are breeding. What do i need to do? The room is always in the mid 70's to low 80's. I own many other finches and they have always done fine and i have never had any die except for the goulds.

mickp · Post by **mickp** » Fri Oct 24, 2008 11:44 pm

where have you been obtaining these gouldians from. have they all come from the same place with the exception of your original pair. it doesnt sound like anything you are doing as your other birds are ok, seems more likely to be some sort of deficiency at the original source. could even be stress if they were seperated from parents to young.
Paul or Gomer may be able to help more.

Post by **Sally** » Sat Oct 25, 2008 12:33 am

What are the ages of these Gouldians? Are they going thru their first molt at the time they are dying? Are you giving them some heat? You can use one of those reflector lamps and just use a regular 100w bulb just above a perch near the top of the cage, that often gives just enough heat to help them thru a rough period. Even though the room is warm, they may need concentrated heat, just so they have another perch away from the heat so they can regulate themselves. Are they all in one cage, and what size is it?

jamezyboo21 · Post by **jamezyboo21** » Sat Oct 25, 2008 12:57 am

They are from a breeder and they are diffrent ages. the youngest one being a year old, the oldest being 3. The original two were from the same breeder except she sometimes get the goulds from other breeders. Whenever they get sick i do put a heat lamp ibn with them and they sit by it for a while and then they still stay sick. i have a flight cage that is 8 ft long 4ft tall and 2 ft wide and theres only 14 finches but they have plenty of room and all get along. i have my zrbras and shaft tails in a diffrent cage. None of them were going thru molts, they were all fuuly colored and in breeding condition.

Post by **Sally** » Sat Oct 25, 2008 1:14 am

Are more hens dying than males? If that's the case, could it be egg-binding? Have you contacted the breeder to see if she has had any problems? If the birds were all 1-3 years old when you got them, that rules out dying from being separated too young from parents, or being moved during first molt.

Do any of them seem to have lost weight, where the breastbone stands out? Any breathing problems, which could mean air sac mites? If you have another one get puffy, can you remove it to a separate cage, with heat, spray millet to tempt appetite, and monitor the droppings?

Has there been a lot of stress during this time? I had to move cages to another room, plus shuffle occupants around and try different combinations of birds, and I had more than a few puffy birds. Heat and spray millet will usually bring these around, but stress can be very hard on finches.

dfcauley · Post by **dfcauley** » Sat Oct 25, 2008 6:05 am

I went through a period where I lost several gouldians. I bought some Ronex and Cocci-Care. This seem to take care of the problem. I know you live in Florida where it is wet and humid so you may have to treat your birds also for this.
Perhaps Poohbear will be able to give you some advice soon.....
Sorry for your loss. I know it is sad and devastating to loose them.

poohbear · Post by **poohbear** » Sat Oct 25, 2008 9:30 am

Horror stories regarding Gouldians are common.I have one or two that are not too bright but overall I lose very few and rarely have to worry about fledglings reaching adulthood.But it has been years since I have bought in, having established my own stud with various bloodlines years ago.
There are a hundred reasons why birds should take ill...without a veterinary post mortem any diagnosis is bound to be hit and miss. A general probiotic and heat is all the layman can use without professional help.

Sorry James...that's all I can say to help...not much.

L in Ontario · Post by **L in Ontario** » Sat Oct 25, 2008 10:01 am

Sorry for your losses James. I don't have anything to add to the good posts above.I hope things get better for your birds real soon. Keep us posted.

jamezyboo21 · Post by **jamezyboo21** » Sat Oct 25, 2008 10:14 am

They coud have been stressed out. They came from an indoor life and when i got them they stayed outside, but now that its getting cold outside i moved them into the house in a cage double the size of the old one. They get the proper diet and have fresh food and water everyday. i've had half males die and half females die. i only had one female die from egg binding. The breeders says shes never had a problem with hers dieing so, i dunno, i guess im just gonna have to keep a heat lamp on one side of the cage.

Post by **Hilary** » Sat Oct 25, 2008 9:23 pm

They are all coming from one breeder? I would try getting birds from a different source and see if you have the same problem.

B CAMP · Post by **B CAMP** » Sat Oct 25, 2008 9:37 pm

Did you lose them when they were outside or inside ,could they have been stressed being outside with some kind of animal stalking them at night like cats . I know I have several cats around my outside avairy but i don't have gouldians in it mostly zebs. Maybe the gouldians can't take stress as well as some finchs just a thought.
sorry for your loss it still seems strange to me.

gomer · Post by **gomer** » Mon Oct 27, 2008 7:05 am

sorry James to here about your lose.I to have had similar types of deaths before.I think the answers you have been given are all probable.But i think these are the most likely.I once bought eight gouldians from a breeder that breed all his birds indoors.Once brought home I lost all birds but one after a month or two outside,when it got a bit cooler.Gouldians only have downy feathers which makes them more susceptible to droughts then normal finches.Even after being brought inside they could have been under enough stress to become ill.(the one that did live became my best breeder for many years .theory of evolution)
Worms you may have introduced them Check as Sally said.If it is bad worms, treating can kill some birds as they get into a ball and cant be digested easily.But not treating is worse.Use a little cod liver oil if this is the case.
protozones (coccidia) blood in faeces of badly infected birds,treated with sulphonamides,By the sounds of it you should be treating twice a year for this,I would treat for this now any how,As this will also stabilise the gut.
Air sac mites,do they cough sneeze treat if necessary.they can live for months with them.
Infectious disease.many have visible signs that you probably would have noticed.better diagnosed by vet i believe least likely.
When faced with something like this and I don't know what it is I always start by working out what it isn't.process of elimination.
Sometimes its hard to get to a avian vet I know I have never been,the nearest one is 5 hours drive away.But if you cant work it out sooner then later that may be a necessity.
Also check hygiene standards and give the cage a good clean.
Keep all birds from aviary together don't go moving them in with other birds now.
You should do autopsy's on all dying birds.You may notice something odd.and you will get better as you do more.hopefully not more.