how could they do this!

[ann]

my society finch egg was having trouble hatching, 24 hours later he was still trying. this morning i was going to go help him hatch. I had towels, a heating pad, a mini nest, made the room humid with the shower, everything was ready. i was even going to record it for you guys. when i went to go get the egg, i couldn't find it in the nest. this happened to the other egg before it. they just disappear! they aren't in the nest, and the're not on the floor. only one baby hatched. before it disappeared, i saw the egg cracked and rolling around the nest trying to get out. it was gone when i looked this morning . then aaallll the way over on the other side of the cage, their was half an egg with a baby dried up inside it . but that's only one, where do they keep going!? Im so sad and frustrated, if i had helped earlier, i could have saved it, but i waited too long. they are supposed to be amazing parents, but they once pushed out 5 eggs, and now this ! Why are they doing this and where are the eggs going!

 

[DebsFlock]

I'd have to suspect they are eating the eggs, but I've not kept finches so I don't know much about their habits.

Perhaps there is something more going on than meets the eye? Some reason the babies are having trouble? Hopefully a finch expert will chime in!

 

[ann]

good point, they do eat hard boiled eggs with the shell, but they wouldn't eat the baby...ii just wished i saved him when i could. i wanted feel under the nesting material, but i dont want to harm the baby or scare the parents out of feeding it.

 

[mcw009]

I've only worked with zebra finches, but with them the egg almost never simply vanishes- we've usually just overlooked it. Are you sure it's not buried in the nest, rolled under newspaper at the bottom of the cage, tossed completely out of the cage? Day old finch babies are so tiny they can be hard to see, especially if they're already dead and a little dessicated. I think zebra finches do eat the egg after a baby hatches; I've just rarely lost a half-hatched egg entirely like this. It is possible they ate everything, though.
In my experience, zebra finches can be horrible, horrible parents, even if they're already successfully reared a clutch. I imagine it's very upsetting with pet finches (I bred finches in a lab, so I didn't tend to get very attached, though some pairs were very saddening), but remember they're just birds- in the sense that they don't really understand what exactly is going on when they're breeding and they're really running largely on instinct (not that they don't matter as much!). It might seem like kind of an atrocity to us, but nature isn't good or bad; it just is.

 

[ann]

i agree completely, you can take a bird out of the wild, but you cant take the wild out of the bird. its nature in a cage, and you cant control nature. If i looked under the nesting material, would it harm the baby? i looked around, its not out of the cage on the floor. they do seem to be doting on the one baby, i guess that's a good sign.

 

[mcw009]

I'd be worried that looking under the nest would disturb the parents and make them reject the nestling. Normally it would be fine as long as you don't totally destroy the nest, but you should probably treat these guys with kid gloves for now.

 

[ann]

i will probably just gently poke around, the baby is growing and doing fine. do you think its because its their first clutch and they're inexperienced?

 

[mcw009]

That's a definite possibility. I've seen a lot of zebra finch pairs that didn't have a clue the first time around but then started successfully raising chicks. If they're both doing well with this chick, it bodes well for future nesting attempts. See if both parents are working hard or just one - if one is slacking, especially if it's the female, you might not have much better success in the future.

 

[ann]

ill go and watch them for a while after i inspect the nest.

 

[henpecked]

Co-parenting doesn't work with all birds, it's trial and error. You'll just have to see what they will tolerate in their nest box. Most birds will eat eggs and shell so they don't attract predators by disposing of them near the nest site. You can save chicks that have trouble hatching but it's tough and the outcome isn't always good. You have to be very careful and watch for spots of yolk that are still attached. Wet the shell with sterile water on a q=tips and gently peel off with forceps. It takes practice and you'll have failures. You can research this by goggling, helping chicks hatch.

 

[ann]

@henpecked- i was planning to help him hatch this morning. i set up a heating pad on low with a towel over it, a little tissue nest to hold him, q-tips and cotton balls, washed my hands in hot water to warm them, and turned the shower on hot with the shower door open (it was like a sauna in there!) to create humididty. I think the chick was too weak to hatch and died in the egg, and the parents ate it . i was sad, but i guess if it was too weak to hatch, it was natures way, it may have had health problems later on. On the bright side, the other baby is doing fantastic! ill post pics as he grows

 

[henpecked]

I'd boost the humidity to about 60% or more in the last few days before hatch. Sometimes the AC will keep the humidity too low. A humidifier could help, or a bathing dish for the hen. Too little ,too late, i know.

 

[ann]

they have a dish but don't really bathe in it much :/ would draping a warm damp washcloth on top of the nest help? the wash cloth wouldn't cover the nest, just the cage above it. also, do you know any places to get a humidifier?

couldn't have said it better. i wish i had helped him earlier, but i waited too long. however, if he was too weak to hatch, me might have had health problems later in life. i guess it was for the better, hes buried with a note, some tea leaves, and right next to my finch bonnie. hes growing up in Heavens nest