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| Hospital Cage and Breeding Equipment |
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A Hospital Cage
In the past the recovery of sick and weak birds was basically left up to themselves. This was a terrible thing to both witness and even allow to happen. We realise that a sick bird is a sick bird and not all can be saved. This is life. However, we decided to see what could be done to help these poor birds, for their own sakes as well as to maintain our colony as best we could.
One of the first items we realised was necessary (from seeing them at bird trade shows, online at various sites and in all good Gouldian books) was a Hospital Cage. A simple idea to build a box that provided an emergency heat source for very ill birds. So we built one.
The dimensions are 55.5cm High, 30cm Deep and 40cm Wide. The cut-down cage front is 33cm High x 36cm Wide (For our friends who live in inches, just divide the centimetre (cm) values given by 2.54, to get the equivalent dimension in inches.). In the bottom are three light bulb fittings. There are three 60 Watt bulbs fitted at all times. These are swapped for dark-coloured bulbs (black) for the night period. A small thermometer is also fitted next to the perch so that we can monitor the heat at the birds resting position accurately.
Testing was carried out to determine how much heat is generated, over a specific time period, to ensure we know how many bulbs need to be on as the ambient temperature varies. BE AWARE: THE CAGE HEATS UP VERY QUICKLY! So be careful to know the characteristcs of YOUR cage. As a guide, within say 10 minutes the cage can increase easily by as much 15 degrees celsius (C)! So if the ambient temperature is already at 20C (68F), you can see that you will be providing a cage that will be 35C (95F) - that is too hot - even for a sick bird! We find that a temperature of about 25-30C (77-86F) is pretty good. Oh and don't forget to provide clean water (with a stress/energy supplement if you can) and seed to.
It would be remiss of us to not point out that any electrical work carried out MUST meet legal standards and safety requirements. Get a qualified electrician if you need to. Stay safe.
1. The Hospital Cage |
2. With Lights On. Note Thermometer Position |
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3. The Light Fittings |
4. The Simple Wiring |
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Equipment for Banding and Breeding
We have always used the plastic split bands for our Gouldians. We do not use the closed rings. This is not for any particular reason other than we prefer to band our chicks just before they leave the nest because they are easier to handle this way. Some people say that that is not a good idea ("You should do them at about 7 days...", and "They might leave the nest early if disturbed...", etc.) but that has not happened, and we find it much simpler to work this way. Of course we are not professional breeders either, so we do what is most practical for us. If ever we get to a point where we find we need to use closed rings then we probably will.
There are as many band colour and number varieties as you can imagine. The photo below shows just a few only. We prefer the numbered series type because we can band individual clutches as one similar style. This allows a quick visual identifcation and we can see the numbers plain enough. If need be we may use dual-coloured bands and turn them upside down on opposite legs, which allows four birds to be banded - all with identical bands! Needless to say your breeding records should reflect this!
As for breeding nests. I constructed a dozen simple boxes (photo 2, below at right) from old plywood and used old dowel for the perch's. The entrance holes are 50mm diameter (2"). The boxes are about 200mm (8") long by about 125mm (5") square at the ends. We also have many other nests of all sizes. Our Gouldians seem to use anything without preference. We do have to give them some help by filling them with straw/hay/grasses and creating a good hollow in the middle. They are quite bad at nest building from scratch!
1. Various Split Bands and Applicator Tool |
2. A Basic Nest Box |
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'G & G Gouldians': Copyright 2004/5
