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I lost Sunny, my beautiful Orange head, white breasted, yellow back (single factor) male Gouldian the other day. I got him in November and he has been in quarantine since the birds in my flight cage are rearing babies. I did recently get him a mate of the same color. She was living with him. The breeder told me he was 10 months when I got him, so he should have been around a year old, though he wasn't banded with a dated band.

He had been very healthy, normal droppings, eating well, he would sing all day long. The other night when I came home from work I noticed he was asleep with his head under his wing. I immediately knew something wasn't right because he always greeted me with a 'twirt' when I came in the room. He woke up and began ravenously eating, but was puffy and wings drooping the whole time. It was a very frantic thing, the way he was eating. He kept eating way past his normal bed time and finally settled to sleep in a spot different from where he normally sleeps. He had passed away by morning

When I looked him over in the morning I could easily feel his keel bone, he seemed very skinny. I had treated him once for air sac mites since I got him in Nov. But he has received no other meds. I had clipped his nails back about a month ago and don't remember him feeling skinny. Does this sound like anything in particular?

I am worried about his hen. Should I treat her for something to be safe? She seems fine, she is just finishing up a particularly heavy molt, she is about 6 months old.

I have Baytril, S76 and Ronex.

This was Sunny

thegatorgal Sorry about sunny. His colors were so vibrant.

It's tough because we are not sure what the cause was, I just hope his mate doesn't get anything. It's kind of like giving someone antibiotics, but you aren't sure if there is something not right. Keep a close eye on her.

I hope someone more knowledgeable answers your question. I want the best for his mate.

I agree, I hate to needlessly treat when I don't know what caused his death. I am thinking it might have been a parasite/protozoa because of the extreme weight loss despite a healthy appetite. That is something I could treat his mate, Buttercup, for.

thegatorgal in that case, maybe you should go for it. It really can't hurt her.

Yeah, It does seem to be some sort of parasite.

thegatorgal

I am so so sorry about Sunny. What an incredibly beautiful bird.
I'm afraid I don't have any answers for you, just wanted to express my sympathy.

~Elana~

Thanks for your replies, I really miss Sunny, as his cage was in my bedroom and he would sing to me any time I was in there.

I cleaned and disinfected all of the cages today. I caught his hen, Buttercup and she definitely feels thin to me She is eating well, but still going through a rough molt. About a week ago she molted all her flight feathers out at one time, so she was unable to fly! All she has are pins feathers where her flights should be. I adjusted her perches and feed cups to help her out and she is able to reach everything easily. Thankfully the feathers are slowly starting to fill out.

I started her on the Ronex just in case it is protozoal. I also want to deworm her. Does S76 cover any internal parasites besides air sac mites? I will need to get something else if not.

"Going Light" can be caused by a number of things. I suggest
you do a bit of research on the subject and possibly consult an avian vet if your hen feels thin too. I am so sorry that you lost your beautiful male. Hopefully your hen will improve with treatment. Best of luck to you.
http://www.ladygouldianfinch.com/featur ... glight.php