Is my Zebra sick?!

[Nicci_M]

lnlovesorange - Oh my gosh, thank you for sharing your experience with me!!! I was about to lose my mind with concern over the safety & wellbeing of my babies! So much so that I had to take off two days from work cause "Momzilla" was on top form!! She did the same as your Mama - chased babies away from the food, wouldn't feed them & there as hell to pay if they went anywhere near the nest!! Luckily for them and me the little things learned real quick & were fully weaned by mid last week. I ran out yesterday & got an el-cheapo flight cage & transferred "Momzilla" & dad to it. Initially she seemed a little quiet & sad but I'm certain it wasn't 'cause she missed the babies but I think she instead missed the nest & eggs! I've gambled with the babies though and put Gandulf, Frodo & Pippin in their cage for no reason other than limited space. Each one of the guys went after, what I think might be, a female baby ! Let me tell you, the reaction of "little girls" & the other two must have caught the boys by total surprise 'cause they turned on them & let them know that their behavior was off limits! It was amazing to witness just how protective they are over each other! There's been the occasional squabble but for the most part seem to have settled down. I'm keeping my fingers & toes crossed that the "harmony" is not short lived!! Oh, my fledged were 3 weeks this past Friday How many babies do you have?
PS - thank you again for sharing & your advice, both are much appreciated.

[lnlovesorange]

Nicci_M I had a total of 4 babies. 3 Boys and a girl. The girl i named Ebee (E.B, stands for Early Bird, cuz she hatched at 12 days, fledged at 17 days and weaned at 30 days) which is on the early side of the spectrum for all of those things!!! So her name is quite fitting, now it sounds like a name, like I call her Eebs, (think of the name Phoebe, but drop the PH, and how you shorten that to Feebs? Well, mine is Eeebs!!) lol ANYWAY, I digress, as usual.... She is the oldest. And I know what you mean. She and the other NG (I had 2 NG's and 2 Lightbacks) The male NG and her really bond, and if any of the others try to mess with her, he sticks up for her, not that she needs it, as being the oldest and female she got picked on the most by her mother, which I think is why she weaned so quickly. The other thing I was going to recommend to you was to make sure the babies (if you separated from the parents) make sure they can still see them, or on free fly time can spend time with the parents, because they do Learn A LOT from the parents, and if separated too soon, there might be life skills that they don't have. ya know? Ok, jusr reread your post, and I get it now, the others you put in with them are adult birds... sorry took me a second!! Yes, the babies do form a bond, and stick up for each other, like Ebee if she saw one of her little brothers getting picked on my the mom she would run over and take the beating instead, or peck at the mom to get her to stop picking on the little brother... it was quite a site to see! Glad my story helped, I always feel like all I ever do on this forum is take, take take, never contributing back, so I'm glad that my story helped you!!! Good luck, and post some pics!!! My babies are coloring up now, and coming along quite nicely!!! I'm going to put some pics up when they are done their juvenile molt!!!

[Nicci_M]

lnlovesorange,

Thank you for the advice! Just wanted to give a quick update since separating the babies from parents. Babies & adult males have settled in really well. Not as many squabbles as I though may be the case & they all seem to be getting along fine. Mom & Dad are in "heaven" in their new flight cage. Mom (Fiona) has laid at least 5 eggs, all which have landed on the bottom of the cage. I couldn't stand it any longer & placed a nest & nesting materials in their cage. There are currently two eggs in the nest, which I'll remove & replace w/fake ones.

How long before babies go through the "juvenile molt" stage? All of my little ones' beaks have almost fully changed. I have two males, a Fawn named "Sprout" is the oldest & Onyx (NG). Sprout is sporting a few flank feathers & both are beginning to display breast bars. Their "song" is developing so nicely too & I just love listening to them go at it! I have 3 females, Coco (NG), Zoe (Fawn), & Mia a Fawn as well is the baby (& my fave!!).

I'm going to attach a pic of babies & 3 adults - I hope it doesn't post "sideways" lol

[Derk]

lnlovesorange@Nicci_M

Thank-you both for sharing your stories. They are helping me be prepared for what may happen to my two little fledglings. So far, nothing nearly so dramatic. Fingers crossed.

Nicci - lovely birds. I hoped to get a fawn but I think both are going to be light backs but likely too early to tell. How soon did you know for sure you had a fawn?

[Nicci_M]

Derk,
Based on their coloring I just assumed they were, but as it turned out at least one of my babies is not. A newbie thing I guess lol! Lesson learnt - never assume anything with these little guys especially if you don't know anything about genetics of their parents! As for the other two, they appear to be fawn but I'll have to wait until they've gone through their juvenile molt. Here's a picture of Sprout - thought "she" was a fawn female lol!! Any ideas on what this little guy is? In a previous post under "Genetics" Colt said Sprout appears to be a light back, to which I'm inclined to agree.

[Derk]

Nicci_M
lol - I am way to new when it comes to colours to start guessing. I rarely see any other birds other than my own.

[MiaCarter]

lnlovesorange - I can't wait to see EB and the others when they're colored up.

I see you got gouldians too while I was out sick!

Nicci_M - Sprout is beyond precious!!!

Sprout seems to be a lightback.
Fawn have more of a brownish tone, while lightbacks are more of a light grey tone. Handsome, handsome, handsome!!!

You've got the most adorable little family there! Great family photo!

[lnlovesorange]

Nicci_M They are precious!!! What a beautiful family you have!!! My juveniles are just about finishing up their moult now, and they were born the week of Feb 23, so what's that 3 months or so? I feel SOOOO bad for them when they are in that stage (the pic of your poor ragedy Sprout up there! ( Doesn't your heart just go out to them? I can't imagine molting!!!) But it ends up being worth it, because they turn out so beautifullly in the end. Just be sure to give them lots of protein while they are moulting. I gave eggs, and sprouted seed, which they DEMOLISH. I think they like it cuz it's so soft. Anyway, your Sprout looks a lot like my Melvin Jr. which is a NG, (but it's hard to see the coloring in that pic) but I think b/c he has the lightback gene, he is split for it... and he has like a "frosted" tip to his wings (picture someone with frosted tips in their hair?) and he is lighter than an NG, but it isn't noticable if you are just looking at him, only if you look at him next to a NG. And my other two boys...are just stunning they are LB's but they lookd like CFW's, accept their backs are a very light like...Khaki color... Ugh, little ba$%&&* they are so cute!!! LOL
Also, you would know if you have a fawn once they color up in the nest. Fawns are light brown, and their beaks are horn colored. So if you had a fawn you would know before they even fledged if you can see into the nest (not sure who asked that)

MiaCarter I am SO GLAD you are back, and doing well. Missed ya girl!!! Hope you got my "get well" wishes
Nicci, is Mia, the third one in from the left in that photo? Or is she the one up above in the branch? I have my guess, but I want you to tell me! Looks like your family is doing well though, and they are quite lovely. What are Mom and Dad again? Visually at least? And sorry it took so long, I haven't been on the forum in a while. I used to check it everyday, but now only if I get an email that I've been mentioned, so if you want my response just mention me so that I see it!!! So glad i could help... makes me feel like I am giving back a little bit, since I TOOK so much from this forum when first starting out. And Derk it's not necessarily "normal" for what happened with my birds to happen, I mean a little bit, because they want to start a new clutch... but my birds i guess really shouldn't have bred at all because their offspring will be aggressive... story for another day, but Your birds could be just fine, and raise thier young, and wean them no problems!!! So good luck with that!

[Derk]

lnlovesorange
Everything has gone fine with my first two babes. They developed quickly and once out of the nest, Mom did not let them back in. But they were able to fly from the floor and to the perch. Dad fed them for awhile but I have seen them eat and I am not so sure the parents are involved very much at this point. Mom & Dad are fine with them unless they get too close to Mom - they are two boys - chest bars & likely light backs. They are practicing their 'singing.' Mom has produced three eggs and I can't decide if I am going to let them hatch. I should probably copy this reply and create a new thread and ask the forum what they think.

[Nicci_M]

lnlovesorange - thank you so much for the compliment! I'm totally stoked over my bird family .
Thank you for the advice concerning protein. I didn't know that but do provide egg, mealworms and sprouted seed twice a day in addition to seed and fresh veggies. Sprout looks so much better now, in fact I find it difficult to tell him apart from Frodo whom is a light back!
I am not sure I've seen pictures of your babies but will scroll back through the older posts later this evening.

As for little Mia, yep you're correct, she is the precious little darling third from left. I so adore her lol! She's is the cheekiest little so-and-so I have ever encountered lol!! She takes no nonsense from any of her siblings or the adult males.

I'd love to see pictures of your recently moulted birdies!

[lnlovesorange]

Nicci_M HA!!! i just KNEW that was her. I could tell by her little cutie face!! What a babe she is. Isn't it so funny how they have personalities... strange. My eldest, is the only female to come out of the clutch, and though she is a NG female and her mother is CFW, she reminds me of her mother SO MUCH!!! just the way she stands... and acts, and she gazes out the window for hours just like Charlotte ... very strange, as they didn't spend a whole lot of time together. must be genetics I guess... Here are a couple photos of my birds. My Melvin (Dad) must have been split to Lightback, so a lightback and CFW made me VERY lightback males (they look more like CFW's which i dont' mind, I think they are beautiful, and I've NEVER seen birds that look like mine so they are unique too!!!)

[Nicci_M]

lnlovesorange - Wow, your babies are truly gorgeous!! The contract in their coloring is very beautiful & quite striking. With as many finch pictures I've seen, yours have made me do several "double-takes" lol So yes, I absolutely agree in that they're unique. Thank you for sharing!
My little Mia is a character like no other lol. She's incredibly territorial over what she perceives to be hers i.e. nest / food / water. If any of her cage mates come anywhere what's hers, she kinds squats down, puffs her feathers & makes a weird hissing sound lol. And guess what..? The intruder(s) take off as if chased by a predator lol!
Anyhow, I love watching her & enjoy every minute!