Another dead Owl Finch

[limechiffon]

I woke up to a second dead owl finch this morning. The two I bought in August are both dead now and I have three left (from a different breeder/state). She seemed perfectly fine last night... no struggling to breathe, hopping around, eating, etc. They were all treated for air sac mites in september.

I don't know if I just got unlucky with the first pair, or if I'm doing something wrong. I've kept zebra finches alive for a couple years now but maybe they're hardier? The finches are in a 30x18x18" cage with two bowls of seed, millet, a cuttlebone, and get fresh greens or hardboiled egg every other day. It'd be every day but they act like they're going to have a heart attack when I reach in the cage - flinging themselves against the bars - so I've just been giving it every other day to avoid stressing them so much. They've got a heater on one side so they can choose their temperature/where they want to be. The cage has silk greenery so they can hide and play with it.

Are these just delicate finches? I feel like I'm unintentionally killing them and I'm worried to get a 4th if it's just going to die.

[wildbird]

Do you rinse the greens really well and only leave the hard boiled egg in there for not more than two hours"? It would seem the others would be affected too though. Probably just those two had something wrong when you got them.

[Gracie85]

Did you have all five in the same 30x18x18 inch cage? That's too many. Even owls can turn mean if crowded, although you probably would have seen the chasing and aggression. More likely you were unlucky in getting an unhealthy pair from that breeder.

[limechiffon]

The greens are rinsed and the eggs do not stay in all day. And I agree, I'd think it would affect more than one bird. These two died a month or so apart.

There are (were) four in the cage at the most, now three. They're in there while my husband finishes up the 60" flight cage he's building. I hadn't noticed any aggression in the three weeks they were housed together. I am a little worried though now that I have three, that one will start to get picked on. But if I pull one out and put him alone, he may get lonely. It's a catch-22.

I'm half wondering if I should give up on owls altogether and sell off these three before I kill them too.

[Fernando]

This cage is too small for so many birds. I think it would be a good advice to refrain from buying new birds before you know the reason for the death of the two. So sad, these tiny birds make one feel so helpless ...
A bird may be suddenly dead - but two birds in a row, there should be a reason. Birds are very sensitive to fumes - I'm thinking of the heater - and they can be stressed to death by a storm, an electricity cut during night (panic because of complete darkness) etc. There may be other reasons than a health problem.
Did you control the dead birds? Thick bellies? Something strange? Btw, do you know the age of your birds? This may look like a silly question, but I've met a few people now that have no idea about the age of their birds! Banded birds - closed rings - at least give the year of birth.
Hope you get your bigger aviary soon! The birds will love it. My owls are not shy at all ...

[wildbird]

Did you find both of them in the morning? Could there be a predator, cat, mouse, or something else that could scare them? Do you leave a night light on for them?

[Fraza]

You could have got u lucky and beeen given an old pair that have died of old age

[limechiffon]

I'm starting to think they were old. In the few months I had them, they never sang like these newer ones and just were less active. Thanks for the advice, everyone.