How to Treat Finch Egg Binding

Egg binding is when a finch hen cannot pass a developed egg or a partially developed egg out of her body. Egg binding is caused by a poor diet that does not contain fats and fat soluble vitamins. Signs of egg binding include refusal to eat and a puffy looking body or swollen abdomen. When a finch hen cannot pass an egg it will lie on the floor with its head and wings splayed out as it strains to lay the egg. Egg binding is a serious, life-threatening condition. If you do not treat your finch immediately, it will die.

Things You'll Need

  • Hospital cage or 100-watt lightbulb
  • Cloth
  • Flat dish
  • Water
  • Liquid finch calcium supplement
  • Finch antibiotics
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Instructions

    • 1

      Place your egg-bound finch in a hospital cage that is a temperature between 79 degrees Fahrenheit and 85 degrees Fahrenheit. If you do not have a hospital cage, place a 100-watt lightbulb wrapped in cloth inside a cage to provide warmth.

    • 2

      Keep your egg bound finch in a quiet place. Increase the humidity of the cage by inserting a flat dish of water close to the hospital cage. Add two to three drops of calcium supplement into its drinking water or feed it directly one drop of the supplement.

    • 3

      Help your finch pass her egg by placing a nickel sized amount of vegetable oil in your hands. Rub your hands together to cover them with oil, then pick up the bird and gently massage it on the area where you feel the egg for two minutes. Let it go and monitor your finch hen for one hour. If it hasn't laid the egg yet, pick it up and massage it again to try and get the egg to pass.

    • 4

      Give your finch antibiotics for three days after it lays the egg to prevent infection.

    • 5

      Change the feed that you are giving your finch to prevent egg binding from occurring in the future, as it is a life-threatening condition. Feed your finch seeds that are sources of essential fatty acids such as rape seed, flax seed, hemp and sunflower seeds. Give it hard-boiled eggs, mealworms or other insects to provide Vitamin A.