FINCHforum

Not sure if I am in the right place or not.

A couple of years ago, I adopted 4 zebra finches. One male and three females. I was new to owning birds, so I did some research on cages and feeding, etc. About six months into having them, one of my females died. I have no idea why. I went out and bought another within a few days because I read that it's best to have these types of birds in pairs.

Fast forward around 18 months (a couple of months ago), another female died. Two weeks after that, another female. Two weeks after that, the last female. In all cases, they were acting normally and within 24 hours they were "puffed up" looking and barely breathing. Within hours of this happening, they were dead.

I then only had the one male left, Ed. I knew that I should get another female for company, but was afraid Ed would be next to pass. So I waited. A month went by, he was still just as active as ever. Singing beautifully as ever. I knew he was lonely though.

I thought maybe I would try another mate for him since he seemed unaffected by whatever happened to the others. I wanted to be extra cautious, so I bought a brand new cage. I put the new girl in the new cage and put the cages next to each other so they could get acquainted. By the first night, they were already cuddled up to the bars trying to get as close as possible. So I decided to go ahead and merge Ed in with her in the new cage. All went well. They had bonded easily.

We had the new bird, Sheneequa, for approximately two weeks. This past Saturday I was laying on the sofa watching them fly back and forth. Acting normally. The next day, Sheneequa had the "puffed up" look like the others had had. I knew what was going to happen next. In less than a day, she had passed.

I am completely baffled as to what is happening to the females I put in there. They didn't appear to have any trauma done to them. So I don't think Ed is killing them. ( My first thought) Ed still seems "normal", although grieving I believe.

Here's my main question, I guess. Can Ed have a disease that is infecting the others without it affecting him? A carrier of sorts? I want to get him a mate, but terrified it will happen again.

I'm so sorry that you are losing your hens. When I lose hens, and I'm not absolutely sure why, I always suspect eggbinding. Eggbinding can kill a hen within 24 hours. Since your male is fine, and it is only the hens that have been affected, this is what I would suspect. You don't mention any breeding activity. Did any of the birds try to make a nest, or did you supply them with a nest? Did any of the hens lay eggs at any time? Do they have a source of supplemental calcium? When the hens puffed up, did they spend time on the floor of the cage, did their wings droop down, did they just look miserable?

Welcome to the forum, though I'm sorry it is in sad circumstances. There is lots of good reading at the Finch Information Center, linked at left, and the Breeding section there has articles on egglaying, eggbinding, etc.

Thanks for your reply. During the first few months, I did find eggs and they tried to use the paper lining the cage to make a nest. But nothing for the last year or so. With the latest hen, I found no paper or eggs.
I didn't want to promote breeding, so I always took the eggs out and did not provide a nest. Although, a few hours before the last hen died, I did find her in the food dish.

I do have a calcium bone (not sure what it's called) in there and the female pecked at it often the first few days.

They all looked miserable. They were puffed up, had their eggs turned and tucked under a wing. The last hen pretty much stayed on her perch during the this time.

I have read that it is not ideal to house to males together. Is this true?

In the meantime, I'll go look at the egg binding article you suggested and see if there is something else I can do if I do in fact get another hen.

You have my symphony! I have a batchelor group (2 boy star finches, and 1 male canary) because I've lost so many canaries and finches (female) to eggbinding! Even with vet visits, calcium etc etc it didn't save them in the long run. Maybe get another boy zebra finch and keep him in a separate cage next door.

I tend to agree with egg binding. A good mineral mix with different calcium sources should help along with hard boiled eggs for Vitamin D3 to help absorb the calcium.
An all male cage may be a good alternative for you if your not interested in breeding at all.

so sorry to hear about your females. hope things work out.. I agree your male should have a cage mate. good luck. - tammy

Sounds like egg binding to me too. Maybe get another male as a companion.