I have 2 male finches and one female finch (all Zebras). I have tried to add a pure white finch before, but they wouldn't play with her or be very nice and she died.
This morning, I went to clean their cage and found a egg in their seed bowl. I have never put in a breeding nest and am now unsure if the egg will hatch or if this is just something that happens every now and again. I'm rather confused because I was told they wouldn't breed without privacy.
What should I do to look after a baby finch? Will they lay another egg? I'm assuming no, but thought I should ask anyway. Will it be a issue that there is two males?
Thanks to all that help. Lana :)
By Alanah from Brisbane
I have two finches and I was told that as long as you don't put a nest in the cage they won't lay eggs. Well, mine did, and she layed them in the food tray. So, I just added another food tray so I didn't disturb the eggs. But, I only saw them sit on the eggs a few times. I'm not watching constantly but, when do they sit on them?
LilHoneyBrat form Minnesota
I once had a pair of finches and she laid eggs all of the time but the eggs were never fertilized by the male so, of course, they never hatched. If she has laid all the eggs (zebra finches often will not sit on them until the last one is laid) and is not sitting on them constantly, except for eating, then they are not fertile or something is not right about them. If as time passes the eggs take on a deeper blue/grey color then there is an embryo but if she's not sitting on them the majority of the time they are not going to hatch. Zebra finch eggs generally hatch at 14 to 18 days.
You should also make sure she has enough calcium nutrition since she'll often lay eggs. There are special egg foods available at pet stores and it wouldn't hurt to have nesting material just in case there ever ends up being fertile eggs. Don't touch any of the eggs until you know they are not going to be hatched because many birds will shun their eggs after being disturbed.
Enjoy your finches! I loved mine because they made the most relaxing sweet sounds and it was fun to watch their antics. Oh, and every time the phone rang they broke in to a chorus. Oh, and there are ooddles of books on finches at the library so maybe check a couple out to learn more about your babies. :-)
We may have two female society finches laying eggs that we are not sure will hatch. Do they need a male to hatch?
If you have no male birds, the female finches cannot lay viable eggs. There could be a small chance that you accidentally got a male but if you see both birds laying, the eggs are infertile and should be discarded soon.
My finches laid eggs, but it has been over 18 days can they still hatch?
If the birds did not sit on the eggs and they go past 20 days the eggs are dead. It normally takes 12 to 15 days fort he eggs to hatch.
My zebra finches have laid eggs for the second time . First one didn't hatch except one, which I found dead on the bottom of cage. I removed the nest and old eggs and cleaned everything. My husband's clothes are in the same room as the cage but we don't bother them, just food & water.
How can I keep the next ones if they hatch alive?
My zibra finch had eggs 1 hatched . She stopped taking care of it and then I found it on the bottom of cage dead.. Now she has more eggs . What can I do to help them live ?
These are birds, and they know what to do to take care of there own. This type of breed can even tell when a egg is good or bad. Let nature and the birds take its course.
Since your zebra finches have laid eggs for the second time, then they are young. A pair of young finches may be unsuccessful in their mating attempts, the female may still lay her underutilized eggs. Also young hen may neglect her eggs and fail to bring them to full term. This is quite common for young finches.
Single eggs in a clutch may fail to hatch, due to an unborn chick not developing properly, or because that particular egg somehow managed to avoid fertilization.
Watch your birds next time, but do it carefully so as not to disturb them. If the chicks do not hatch again, then check to see if all the eggs were fertile. Hold the egg in front of a candle or strong light to observe for any signs of fertility. A fertile egg will clearly show a blood vessel network; an embryo formed that resembles an opaque shape will be clearly visible.
The most obvious sign that the parents are abandoning their chicks is finding the chicks on the cage or aviary floor. If you find a tossed chick next time, and it's still alive, warm it in your hands before putting it back in the nest. You may need to put the chick back several times.
Another clear sign the nest has been abandoned is if the parents aren't in the nest and don't go back in to the nest for several hours. If their environment is quite warm they may not need to brood their young as often. However if several hours go by and you are fairly sure the finches have made no attempts to return to the nest, it's time to check the clutch: put a finger inside the nest, if the chicks and remaining eggs are cold the touch they have been abandoned.
The best course of action is to know when the eggs are due to start hatching. Wait 3-4 days after the first egg was to have hatched, then check the nest. If the oldest chick is still alive, it is being fed. If it is dead, then it was not fed. The last option is for you to hand feed the chicks. This is not only extremely difficult and time consuming but it's also quite risky for the chick.
It may be what food is being fed. More probably the adults are being startled and when leaving the next inadvertently knock a young one out of nest. I didn't isolate my birds, so we were careful to not startle them at their cage. We did move about the house as usual and birds and people cohabitated. We fed our finches a regular but varied diet of birdseed with treats of thistle seed, a few bugs, meal worms and greens like grass or even a bit of lettuce. I feel however that the young birds are falling from next accidentally when mom or pop become startled.
Gouldian sits on eggs only during the day but not at night?
Both Gouldian-parents help incubate the eggs during the day, but only the female sits on the egg during the night. Are you sure the female has already finished laying her eggs? Egg binding is an especially serious problem affecting female Gouldian finches during the time that they are attempting to lay eggs. Often, first time finch parents won't sit on their egg right away. Many species of finch won't even start incubating their eggs until the entire clutch is laid.
This is my first time owning zebra finches. About 20 days ago one started laying eggs and finished about 2 weeks ago. She laid 4 eggs in total. Today I noticed a 5th egg. Should I remove the other eggs?
Also I'm not even sure that I don't have 2 females. I'm sure my grey one is a female. And they make different sounds, but I am unsure about the white one.
Usually they don't start to sit on them until after they lay the last egg. So, start your timing from the final egg, and then give a couple extra days just incase.
What do I do if my zebra finches lay their eggs in different spots and I don't know how long they have been there?
The article I read said that the bird will lay one egg a day until she is finished. She can lay up to 8 eggs, but usually 3 to 6. She will start incubating when the last egg is hatched. An egg that has not hatched after 20 days is considered infertile.
I have a female cannery bird and she laid an egg. Does it hatch without a male bird? Thank you for helping.
My finches have laid eggs, but are not sitting on them and are panicking. What should I do?
They will not sit on them until they are done laying all their eggs.
That way they will all hatch at the same time.
