FINCHforum

My female zebra finch seems to be ill. I don't know what to do and am hoping for some suggestions, she is puffed up with her eyes half closed and has a slow response period and is at the bottom of the cage. Her cagemate has been chasing her around today so I've moved her to a smaller quarantine cage so that she can rest.

She is an older finch as I have had her for five years and didn't know her age when I purchased her.
Do you have any other suggestions to help her until she recovers? or is she not really sick...

zebrafinch13 I can just suggest giving her some idodine block this helps with quite a lot of tunings that’s happened with mine

Could she be egg bound? You could offer some grated hard boiled egg and finely crushed egg shells. You could provide a little heat with a light bulb, old type, as long as your bird can get away from the heat if it gets to warm. Look up the directions for egg binding in the forum, if you think it might help.

zebrafinch13

Sorry this was missed Saturday. Busy holiday weekened. How's your hen doing? I know it may be too late if she was eggbound.

My finch was just like what you described when she was egg bound. How is your finch doing now?

She recovered and was egg bound. Do you have any ideas on how to prevent egg binding? I can't take the male out of the cage as the are my only two zebra finches, I took the seed guard off the food dish but she does lay eggs often.

I can't seem to find a solution.

zebrafinch13

Calcium is always a must, as I imagine you know. Vitamin D3 is also important, and may need to be supplemented if the bird doesn't recieve enough sunlight or full-spectrum light.

How often do you feed egg? More than twice a week could encourage breeding. It's kind of a catch-22, though, as egg is great for an egg-laying bird's health.

What shape is the food dish? If it is is a bowl, she probably will continue using it as a nest and laying eggs. If this is the case, try getting them to eat out of a gravity, tube, or hopper feeder. This may take a while, so leave the other food dish in until they start eating out of the new one.

If she continues laying no matter what, maybe you could try replacing her eggs with fake ones and letting her sit on them. This wouldn't stop breeding, but would at least pace her laying.

I actually don't want them breeding, they are related....

But I've been providing her with calcium and open the window every day for sunlight, My other bird is the one that wants chicks she never sits on the eggs anyway. But I'll replace the food dish.

zebrafinch13 yep I wouldn’t let related ones breed you shud find them both a mate of different relation