Babies won't fly

hayley87 · Post by **hayley87** » Wed Nov 26, 2008 7:56 am

We have a breeding pair of zebra finches. They had 4 babies who when they left the nest were fine and were flying about by the end of the first day. They've now had another 2 babies who since leaving the nest show no interest in flying and just sit on the floor of the cage. They've been out the nest over a week now and are still yet to fly, but otherwise seem healthy. Is this normal that they are taking so long to fly?

Any thoughts?

fairestfinches · Post by **fairestfinches** » Wed Nov 26, 2008 12:23 pm

It's not normal, but it does happen. What you are seeing is what we refer to as failure to thrive. If they stay on the floor too long the parents will wean them early and no longer feed them. Then it will be up to the youngsters to either fend for themselves or starve. Sometimes the extra nudge of being weaned early works sometimes it does not. Be prepared for these two not to make it, and keep your fingers crossed that they do.

Sean

hayley87 · Post by **hayley87** » Wed Nov 26, 2008 3:59 pm

What do you think might have caused this? They have successfully raised a clutch of 4 in the summer. This time only 2 hatched and all conditions have remained the same, except that they're now in a larger cage.