Question on owning Gouldian Finches as a beginner

[JerseyGuy]

I want to purchase 2 Gouldian Finches. Do you have to have a Male and a Female, or can you house 2 Male Gouldian Finches in the same cage ? Thanks for any input you can offer.

[Sally]

Two male Gouldians will usually get along just fine together, and with two males, you don't have to worry about breeding problems if you aren't interested in breeding.

[JerseyGuy]

I finally made it home safely with the 2 Male Gouldians. They are in their cage and chilling ..... but haven't moved, and haven't eaten or drank any water. Is this normal ?

[Sally]

Did they ever move, eat, or drink? It is late now, so they should be sleeping. Especially with water, you need to make sure they know where to find it. If you use tube waterers, some birds have trouble figuring them out. I always put a small dish of water in the bottom of the cage, as all birds can figure that out.

[JerseyGuy]

Hi Sally -

I put them to bed at 7:30PM. But prior to that No, I did not see them
eat or drink. The water is in the cup provided with the cage, at the bottom. The cage came with 2 cups. I used one for water and one for food. There is also millet at the top perch and a food cup up there too. I did not see them go down to the bottom of the cage to drink the water. They sat for a long time on the top perch and didn't move. I just figured they were trying to get accustomed to their new
home and surroundings.

Then at about 6:30PM - they became very vocal and active for about
10-minutes. I then just covered the cage and put them to bed.

I hope today I see more activity, and I see them eating and drinking.

[paul-inAZ]

There is no real need to cover the cage at night.
Around sunset, regardless of any room light mine settle in for the night. Any ordinary activity or TV etc doesn't seem to affect or bother them.

[Sally]

I agree. I don't cover my birds, since I have dozens of cages, but even if I had just one cage, I wouldn't bother with covering it. Sometimes the very act of putting the cover on and taking it off may spook them. I have cages in my living room, the tv is on (sound quite loud too, since my hearing is not the best any more). They settle down when the sun goes down. One thing they still do from time to time is sing, especially the Purple Grenadiers, and since they have a lovely song, I don't mind that a bit.

[JerseyGuy]

Ok, right now I have the back half of the cage covered, to make them feel more secure (it was recommended on the FB Finch group
I belong to). Tonight I will not cover the entire cage.