Breeding Gouldian Finches

When breeding gouldian finches in captivity, breeding is triggered by giving them a diet that is protein rich. But In nature, the reproductive season of the gouldian finch is triggered by a change in the length of daylight hours along with the availability of food. This is indicative of the wet season.

The gouldian finch diet includes egg foods, seeding grasses and sprouted seed. The birds lean period ends about six weeks before the birds are paired together by introducing them to the protein rich diet. The ideal time for breeding gouldian finches is to pair them up at the start of summer. It does depend on the climatic conditions of your location ie (northern and southern hemisphere).

Breeding gouldian finches with artificial lighting and heating can simulate the required conditions in cooler climates and when the daylight hours are shorter.The best time to start breeding gouldian finches is when they are in top condition. They should be bright and active and look like they are raring to go. They become very active and sometimes will go through a vigorous flapping of wings routine. The hens beak should be turning black by now and the males beak changes to a pearly white.

There are two main methods of breeding gouldian finches. These are colony and selective breeding.

Colony Breeding

Colony breeding gouldian finches is a bit of a hit and miss method as there isn't good control of the birds selecting their mates. Selective breeding gouldian finches in separate cages is totally controllable.The birds are selected by yourself. The offspring's genetics can be predicted as to a possible outcome (head color and breast color in mutations).

The number of pairs in a colony breeding aviary should not be too high. Overcrowding of gouldians causes stress which in turn creates health issues. Stressed birds are more likely to contract bacterial infections due to their lowered resistance.

Overcrowding by having too many pairs in one area when breeding gouldian finches does not actually produce more young, in fact you are likely to end up with less young being produced.

In a bird room which is approximately 6 x 6 feet I would suggest only have a maximum of up to 5 pairs. The breeding boxes I have had good success with have a round opening at the front and a perch just below it. Having a little platform at the box entrance is a good idea. The birds can enter their nest box easier instead of doing a balancing act on a round piece of dowel when carrying nesting material when entering their nest box.

Selective Breeding

Selective breeding gouldian finches is a very productive method of breeding gouldians. I prefer this method myself as there is far more control and no interference from any other gouldians.

The cages I use are fully dividable with a plywood divider. I use 2 adjacent cages for the one pair of birds which provides the pair with plenty of room especially for when their young leave the nest.

Basically you choose a male and hen that you would like to pair for a desired head color for their offspring. Head color in the normal gouldian is the only variable where as gouldian mutations have allot more variable outcomes with head and body colors. Mutation gouldians is another topic in itself. I will explain this topic on another page in detail.

Different head colors should not really be mixed or you may get blotchy head color in the offspring. The offspring's head color may look like a blackish red or a blackish yellow. This problem is more noticeable in the hens produced. If you are choosing a black headed hen to breed, ideally it should have a deep rich velvety black color with no signs of red or yellow feathers showing through.

A method of testing the chosen pair of gouldians for compatibility is observing them. If the pair of gouldians show signs of being aggressive to one another by beak fencing or chasing one another around the cage indicates this pair of gouldians are not compatible. Remove one of the pair and replace it with a new mate. Observe the pair again.

When a male is interested in a hen it will nearly immediately start its courtship with the hen when first paired. The male will then stare at the hen while standing tall, then it may start a whistling routine. The hen if interested will bow its head and move it side to side. When the pair have been observed carrying out this process indicates they are compatible.

The final method of testing the compatibility of the pair if you are still not sure is to observe the pair near dusk. They will roost side by side if they get along together. If not they roost or be separate on the perch.

When all is well, within about 2 weeks the hen will of stated laying eggs. This will depend on the current breeding condition the hen is in.