What else can I do? 2nd chick died and eggs too.

chrischris · Post by **chrischris** » Tue Feb 05, 2008 6:09 pm

Sounds like a nice bunch you have there. Yes the yellows and blue backs are my favorite. Do you know if the orange head female is split to blue?

Chris

kiwi & mango wrote:The pair that are sitting on 4 or 5 eggs right now are red head, purple breast and green back male and the female is black head, purple breast and green back. The new pair we got a few weeks ago are black head, white breast, blue back male and female is orange head, purple breast and green back.

I think we will just have the three pairs. Our next set we would like a yellow back for sure and a male orange head would be nice as well. Time will tell....

If all goes well with this clutch and I get one chick I might keep it as well.

chrischris · Post by **chrischris** » Tue Feb 05, 2008 6:16 pm

Trimming the beak? how over grown was it? and how did you do it?

I've never done this to my goulds before just my conure.

chris

kiwi & mango · Post by **kiwi & mango** » Tue Feb 05, 2008 6:58 pm

Hi Chrischris

I usually take it to someone I have met at a pet store and she usually trims the beak and nails etc. for me....but with the eggs and the weather there was NO way to take them out of the house. So I jsut caught him...that was hard..

and then she told me to get a brand new pair of nail clippers, new so I know they are sharp and just take a tiny bit off. Then see if another. It wasn't very much because I didnt want to stress him out much since he is doing what he is doing and sitting on the eggs so nicely but it is for the good of the eggs that will be hatching. It took all of about 40 sec. and then he was back in the cage. This was my first time doing it but now that I have one under my belt I think I might be able to do it again when he needs it.

chrischris · Post by **chrischris** » Tue Feb 05, 2008 8:13 pm

I've trimmed nails before without problems but the beak...yikes...

Chris

kiwi & mango · Post by **kiwi & mango** » Tue Feb 05, 2008 9:04 pm

I think I would be more worried about the nails since they could pull their leg back or I could some how break it....

I wa told to keep a little corn starch on hand incase it started to bleed but really it was so much easier then I thought. He sort of tried to bite it which was hard to get just the tip of it but I took two little snips and I mean small! I didn't file it down or anything like that. I did run my finger over the side to make sure it wasn't sharp but other then that it was all good.
I also looked at the section on trimming beaks and nails here on the site a few days back because I knew that it needed to be done and I knew I couldn't take him out. I just waited until the house was quite so there was less stress for him.

Post by **Hilary** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 12:58 am

K&M -

You were awefully lucky. Personally I wouldn't have chanced catching and removing one of the first time parents while they were on eggs - that's just begging to have them abandon the nest. Sounds like it worked out ok, though - you've got nice, easygoing birds!

kiwi & mango · Post by **kiwi & mango** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 9:18 am

Hi Hilary

With my male his beak is fine for a while and then in a few days time it grows remarkably fast. I noticed sunday night he wasn't eating as much as he normally does and that usaully means the beak is becoming a problem for him. When I spoke to the woman that I know through the store monday we were trying to figure out a way to not have to remove him but the bottom line is if I leave it then it will grow more and in 10 days or so when the eggs hatch it will be dangerous for the male to feed the chick. So a choice had to be made either now and have them not return to the nest or have the chicks hurt and most likely die because of it. I thought that if somthing goes wrong then at least his beak will be trim he will eat fine and stay healthy himself and then perhaps they would lay more eggs.
Believe me I was worried about it too, the problem with my male it seems like his beak is fine for a while and then with no reason it grows over night. So mcuh that I notice he isn't eating as much. The shell casings from the seeds on his side of the cage is much less then usual.

Could it be because of the egg and egg shells?

chrischris · Post by **chrischris** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 6:26 pm

Yeah I did also think it was a bit risky to do the trimmings during nesting but looks like things have gone well.

In the future trim before they nest but I guess sometimes that may be hard to catch.

Chris

kiwi & mango · Post by **kiwi & mango** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 9:15 pm

in the future I will keep a note as to when the last trim was done and see if it can be done before going into the cage but like I said within three or four days it grows....reminds me of the little boy that lied....

What makes a beak grow fast like that? to much of somthing within his diet?

thanks

chrischris · Post by **chrischris** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 7:48 pm

May be something genetic that makes the beak grow fast.

As for your pair how is it doing? are they still very attentive to the nest and do they leave the nest for long peroids?

Chris

kiwi & mango · Post by **kiwi & mango** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 8:36 pm

Hi
They are better then ever I would say. I don't think there is ever a time that one sitting on the eggs. One sits usually the hen and then she shuffles them around, after a short while she makes a funny noise and he comes in and she leaves. Then he is in the nest for quite a while and then he does the same. It is like tag team.

I believe they will be sitting on the eggs as of sunday or monday 14 days. So my guess would be if chichs are going to hatch it will be about wednesday. Like I said i am a little worried since the other day when I had to trim his beak I had a chance to look in the nest and three of the 4 looked sort of dark or gray. I hope that doesn't mean that they are bad or rotten. The one looks nice and white or cream colour.

thanks for the interest.

chrischris · Post by **chrischris** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 10:27 pm

I'm excited for you and it looks like you have a great pair there. The fact that they tag team in switching incubation roles is really essential in the eggs doing well.

On a similar note I have 2 pairs that do that well but this one pair I have well... That pair the female comes out of the nest box to chase the male as he is making too much noise flying around the cage and chirping and all. I do expect him to settle down a bit in the next few days and get into this incubation program that he is suppose to do.

Another nest of mine has chicks. I heard them today and when I looked into the box 4 of the 6 eggs had hatched and one seem to be on it's way to hatching as the shell was cracked. Hopefully he will be out in a day or so. Hope they all do well...but time will tell.

Keep us posted on your pair and if there are any chicks come next week.

Chris

kiwi & mango · Post by **kiwi & mango** » Sun Feb 10, 2008 11:33 am

thanks chrischris

I noticed yesterday and so far this morning they are very quite. Usually I hear them chirping back and forth to one another but yesterday and this morning nothing really to speak of.

Today is 14 days of them both sitting on the nest. I am thinking now until about wednesday or thursday I should know if anything will be hatching.

Very difficult for me....I just want to look inside and see if there is anything new but I know not to do that.

Should I be able to see or hear chicks within a short time of them hatching?

chrischris · Post by **chrischris** » Sun Feb 10, 2008 7:41 pm

Hey K&M,

You should be able to hear the chicks chirping 2 days after they hatch. Hatching time is 14-16 days I think it's 14 if the parents sit really tight and have a smaller clutch as their body heat is more easily transferred to the eggs.

If today is 14 days you should hear something within 2 to 4 days depending on when they hatch. I also found that when chicks hatch both of my goulds seem to spend more time inside the nest together with the chicks. In fact the first day of hatching the male slept inside the nest with the hen. He now sleeps outside at night.

Boy O boy are those chicks ever loud.

Chris

kiwi & mango · Post by **kiwi & mango** » Sun Feb 10, 2008 11:22 pm

Hi
well they have never been off the nest during the 14 days except when I trimmed his beak and that was for about 10 seconds. They always do a tag team or one parent sits on the side of the nest and waits for the other to land on the perch then they do the switch off and that is when if i am quick I can see the eggs. They never leave until the other is already in the nest. I will try and listen closly over the nest couple of days but i don't want to break the routine. at 9:00 i change the food and water and I try and have a look inside but usually they are sitting so tight. The quitness is what is surprising....

Usually she is quite load at times but today nothing really to speak off for her telling him what to do....

I will keep you posted.
thanks