FINCHforum

Help!

My female finch started acting sick today and I don't know what is wrong with her. She sits still and is very puffed up, and spends most of her time with her head on her back, looking back. We've put the infrared lamp on top of the cage and she seems to like sitting under it. Every once in a while she'll have some seed or millet or water, but for the most part she just sits still looking depressed. She has been laying eggs recently even though there isn't a nest in the cage (they're not ready for babies yet and neither are we!), and I really hope she isn't egg bound. How would I know if she is? Her seed is fortified and we always have a cuttle bone in there.

Any suggestions of what to do now? Should I separate her from the other finch in a hospital cage?

Thank you so much for your help!

Alexandra

I took a quick picture of her so you can see how she is looking.

She definitely looks sick, but not sure if she is eggbound. When they are eggbound, they tend to sit on the floor, all puffed up, with wings drooping down. Just because she is on the perch doesn't mean she can't be eggbound, though. If she stays quiet, and you can keep heat on her, she can stay in her cage--sometimes I hate to stress them any more than I have to, so if I can leave them in their cage, I do. If she is eating and drinking a little, that is good. Do you have any liquid calcium? Since she has been laying eggs, it makes me suspect eggbinding. You could give her a drop right in her beak. Other than the calcium, heat is the best thing for her right now.

Do you use a mineral mix? Hens need lots of calcium. You can supply her with oystershell, and you can also give her some crushed eggshells.