Angry/disappointed/frustrated/down right furious!!!!!!

[Olympic_Aiairies]

Sorry guys. I've had two crazy really long days at work!! IHOP was stilling doing well when I checked on her this morning before I left for work.

The foot is now almost entirely black but she's still bright eyed and active so no sign of infection so far. I'm trying to keep the handling of her to as little as possible. Don't want to stress her out any so I've been just observing her. Like I said she's in a really small cage to make thing easier so I can get a pretty good look at the foot without bothering her too much.

Mia I decided before I started with my finches that I wouldn't be hand feeding. It was a hard choice but I work during the day and just don't have to time to do it. If I was home than I would probably do it but I can't be at home during the day Mon-Fri so I had to decide early on that nature would have to take its course. That being said I will foster if I need to (with other zebras) and plan on getting a pair of societies once my bird room is done.

[Sally]

So sorry you lost the babies too. I use the gravity type feeders, often called vacation feeders. The seed hulls mostly fall down into a drawer, so the birds always have access to fresh seed. The drawer does fill up before the hopper is emptied though.

I have my pet sitter keep an eye on the hoppers, empty the drawers when full and top off when needed, but a single pair in a cage can go quite a while before needing attention. These can occasionally get clogged, so they do need to be checked.

He must have checked the water regularly, as they will die quicker from lack of water than food, I believe (just like humans).

I go out of town for up to three days at a time, using the vacation feeders and two water tubes on each cage, and have never had a problem, but I have to hire a pet sitter for longer periods. Check in your area for good pet sitters. I actually found mine when I saw her flyer at the feed store, and the clerks at the feed store recommended her. She runs a cat rescue, and she is fabulous!

[MiaCarter]

Olympic_Aiairies - That's wonderful news! I'm so happy to hear little iHop is doing well!


Is the entire leg turning black? Or just the lower portion?
I wonder how long it will take to fall off. I also wonder what happens to the bone. Does the leg fall off at a joint? Or does the bone just disintegrate and it falls off mid-bone?
Always wondered about these things! I guess we'll find out.

I don't blame you for not handfeeding. It's not for everyone. I work at home, so it's easy. But if I worked outside the home, it would be impossible.

[Olympic_Aiairies]

Mia it's turning black at the ankle where it was originally swollen. The rest of the leg (above that) is still orange and healthy. She still seems to be doing well.

Sally do you know where they can be bought online? We have a camping trip planned in Aug for 10 days and I don't want this to happen again.

[SandyinLargoFL]

Sally do you know where they can be bought online? We have a camping trip planned in Aug for 10 days and I don't want this to happen again.

Do you have a Walmart's nearby? In amongst their bird stuff are small tubes that hang on the side of the cage and can hold water or seed. I bought them for $1.22 a piece. They hold a fair amount of feed or water. If you bought them now, your birds will have plenty of time to learn to eat from them. I'd just put several on each cage.

[Corkysgirl]

Olympic_Aiairies I'm happy to hear IHOP is still doing well. It sounds like her leg is doing just what it should be doing.
I'm not sure Sally will see this post because you didn't tag her. I have some links that may help you.
This is a link for a vacation feeder. As MiaCarter suggested in another post, you should do a trial run. If you're going away, say....for 4 days, test the feeder, water tubes, etc. and see how the birds do without refilling them. First you want to make sure there are no mishaps with them. Also you want to know just how much they are really eating.
https://ladygouldian.com/node/130
Here is a link for a good water bottle but I've seen them on other sites so this is just a sample of what to look for. The smaller ones are for smaller birds. Yes there are the plastic ones but I have had them leak and drain out suddenly without warning. That would be really bad. Some work, some don't. http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/p ... atid=10194
Then I would also leave extra millet sprays. Laraine sells very large and fresh sprays. Here's a good link for hers. https://ladygouldian.com/content/genuin ... yellow-box

[Sally]

That vacation feeder that Corkysgirl linked at ladygouldian.com is the one that I use, I have one on every cage of mine. The tube waterers I use are these: https://www.birdsupplynh.com/catalog/pr ... 93af069351

I also use the 14 oz. size, which is great for flight cages with more birds.

[Corkysgirl]

Those look like good tube waterers that Sally posted. It's the small tubes that have leaked all the water out on me on numerous occasions, and have given up on them. I have quite a collection!

[Sally]

I was quite disappointed to see that those tube waterers are only offered in clear. I personally like the blue, as I read one time that the blue are anti-algae (no idea if that is really true). I also note that they say limited supply. I used to use the Benelux waterers that I got from Bird Supply of NH, but I found that those tubes did develop cracks, which then made them leak. Any plastic tube will eventually develop cracks, but the S.T.A. from Italy seem to last longer. The bases are a bit more flexible, too, so they don't crack as easily. I believe glamgouldians also carry the S.T.A. waterers.

If you are going to be gone 10 days, then I would start looking for a pet sitter now. My pet sitter comes each day, takes care of dog, cats, and birds (she even hand fed some fledglings for me one time), and she will text me each day to let me know how things are going. When I didn't do text, she left a voicemail for me each day. Check with vets, pet stores, feed stores for recommendations. If there are reputable dog or cat breeders in your area, you can ask them if they know of anyone. You want someone responsible enough to understand the the food and water have to be checked each day. I don't have my pet sitter clean cages, that would add a lot to the time she has to spend at my house (meaning it would cost me a lot more). Usually I'm only gone 5-6 days when I need a pet sitter, and no bird is going to die from a cage that isn't cleaned in that period of time. I prefer that she doesn't clean cages anyway, as that always increases the chance that a bird might escape. The one time I was gone 10 days, the pet sitter decided to clean cages, and a male Purple Grenadier got out. Fortunately, she was able to capture him quickly.

[MiaCarter]

Sally -- Agreed on trying to get a petsitter now.

I have numerous animals with special needs who need medications and injections on a daily basis. And I have multiple cats with FIV, and they can go downhill VERY fast if they get sick, especially while stressed since mom isn't around. And we have two diabetics, who need injections, really regular meals and close monitoring. And we have two FIV cats who are former ferals and VERY shy and skiddish around new people (and they also need daily meds, so there's a bit of wrangling involved.)
So I need a super experienced petsitter.
I found one via my fabulous vet clinic. A few of the vet techs do petsitting for extra cash. We actually hire two -- one for the AM and one for the PM. (It would be a LOT for one person.)

And since they're medically experienced, they know when to take an animal in for treatment.
It's never happened with my guys, but it happened with my mom once when her kitty in chronic kidney failure started going downhill.

So I'd ask your vet clinic.

I'd also consider going onto Care.com. I know they have pet sitters. It would take some looking, but you could find someone good, I bet.

I wish you lived near me in Florida! I'd take wonderful care of your fly babies!

[Corkysgirl]

Sally I never ordered from this company but they say they have the blue tubes...also 14 oz. I'll attach the link. http://www.myladygouldianfinch.com/prod ... rtubes.php

[Sally]

Corkysgirl Thanks for the link. That's Terri G., she's good people. I thought from the description that they were only available in clear, but now I see she has the blue as well. Thanks!

[Corkysgirl]

Sally, That's great! It is confusing. I thought that too when I saw it...with the drop down links. That's good to know she's a good resource. I saw other things on there that I needed.

[MiaCarter]

Olympic_Aiairies -- Hi Heidi!
How is little iHop? Is she doing well, I hope? I was thinking about her.

[Olympic_Aiairies]

Mia she is still doing well. I moved her into a bigger cages a few days ago and put her in the room with the rest of my birds and she seems much happier. She's annoyed she can't be in with them but i don't want her getting hurt. She's still adjusting to the one usable leg. The leg itself is slowly shrivelling. At this rate it should fall off within the next few weeks.