I have some finch problems

[georgiagail]

I realize this might be a bit late but you can expect a small bird like a finch to live perhaps 5 to 7 years (although there are certainly cases of finches living longer).

When your female passes away, you can provide another finch as a companion to your male. This does not need to be a hen; many folks will keep a couple of gouldian males for their beautiful color. Gouldians tend not to be aggressive birds. I used to raise them (at one time had about 200 goulds) and it was very rare to see an aggressive one.

Gail

 

[seminolewind]

Thanks, Gail. When the girl died I ended up getting a white zebra hen. Then he started to go downhill. When he died, I ended up getting a male zebra-who is a real charmer- and a pair of green singers.
You see, I was a bad girl and went to that exotic bird expo in Brooksville, Florida.

I do miss my Gouldians, I wish I would have known that I could have 2 males.

Thanks for letting me know that they usually live for 5-7 years.

Those little birds are very cute, I'm enjoying them!

 

[AquaEyes]

I'm so sorry you lost your beautiful Gouldians. I realize now it's a bit late, but if you ever wanted to mix different species of finches together, it's possible, but you have to be picky. Some finches are more aggressive than others. Some species that are dimorphic (males and females have different colors, usually with the males being a brighter color) can be aggressive to other species that share the same "male" color. For example, many Gouldians have red faces. If you got a red-headed finch male of another species, he could perceive a red-headed Gouldian as a threat, and the poor peaceful Gouldian would not be very happy if they shared a cage. If you google something like "mixed species finch aviary" you'll find compatibility charts to find out which species mix well. Zebra finches are generally OK, but if you have a flock of zebras with a flock of Gouldians, you'll notice that the Gouldians get kind of pushed around. They won't get attacked, but zebra finches are a little more "pushy" when it comes to feeding and claiming nests. A pair of zebras in with a flock of Gouldians is usually not a problem, though. You'll find out a lot if you look up some finch websites.

OK, here, I found one....with a LOT of species...

http://www.finchniche.com/a-chart.php

Good luck with your new birds.



~Chris

 

[seminolewind]

Thanks, Chris. I ended up with a pair of zebras and a pair of green singers. They get along well. The zebra male is real friendly, he is the only one who will come to the front of the cage to look at me!