Strange behaviour Goldfinch!

[smokenfluff]

Hello fellow wildlife fans,
I'm a newbie so please bare with me.
Last night at around 6pm and pitch black outside, a Goldfinch was hopping up and down outside by my patio door like he was trying to get in. I went outside in my dressing gown and sub zero temps armed with a torch a couple of times but couldn't find him. Then at 9pm there he was again right by the patio doors stood next to a flower pot. I went out with a tea towel to wrap him up in but i needn't have bothered. He walked towards me and stood right by my feet. I picked him up and placed him in a cat basket with some seed and water and put him in an outbuilding that is dark and quiet until the morning but sadly he didn't make it.
Surely this isn't normal behaviour for a wild bird is it? I've never known anything like it! However it is the second Goldfinch in a week that has died. The first was very lethargic and sitting for long periods in the strangest of places but he was eventually nabbed by a Magpie!
I really don't think he was hungry as i have a wide variety of food and feeders in the garden that are in continual use by all sorts of birds.
Any suggestions as to why he behaved like this would be very much appreciated. I'm totally baffled!

[Picidae]

''However it is the second Goldfinch in a week that has died. The first was very lethargic and sitting for long periods in the strangest of places ''

Sounds like you could have a case of Trich, a very infectious disease that spreads through finches, especially this time of year when feeders are busy.

I suggest you take down all your feeders and thoroughly disinfect them, dry them out, disinfect water baths, dry them out, and thoroughly clean any patio areas.

Leave if for at least few days before putting them back up and see if you have any more dead finches - they won't go hungry, Goldfinches rarely rely on one food source and tend to feed in roving flocks this time of year.

Alternatively, do you have a CAT? (noticed you have a cat basket). Birds are less mobile when it's very cold - the dead birds could be victims of cat attacks with subsequent lethal infection. (Either yours or neighbours).

[faz]

its easey to say but agree with above well said picidae

[smokenfluff]

Hi,
Thank you for getting back to me. The feeders have only been up and in use for about a week and a half. Just before the severe cold weather. I'm from West Yorks and we've had at least two feet of snow so i put all of my feeders in use so all the birds got a look in. Prior to this i only had four feeders up and thngs wern't that busy in the garden. If it is Trich how often should i clean the feeders and is this disease passed between gardens? If so how can i stop it? Thank you so much for your advice it is appreciated.

[smokenfluff]

Forgot to mention - I don't have any cats. I have three dogs though and they don't take any notice of the birds. The cat box is like a white plastic coated metal thing that i have used in the past for occasions such as this. I used to volunteer for a wildlife rescue place near where i live you see and the cage was surplus to their requirements.

[Farplace]

Do you have water available for the birds? They can easily get dehydrated at this time of year.

[Picidae]

Originally Posted by smokenfluff

Hi,
Thank you for getting back to me. The feeders have only been up and in use for about a week and a half. Just before the severe cold weather. I'm from West Yorks and we've had at least two feet of snow so i put all of my feeders in use so all the birds got a look in. Prior to this i only had four feeders up and thngs wern't that busy in the garden. If it is Trich how often should i clean the feeders and is this disease passed between gardens? If so how can i stop it? Thank you so much for your advice it is appreciated.

Hi

Have a read through this thread I need some advice, trichomoniasis canker with a Dove.

(I hesitate to suggest you remove your feeders for more than a couple of days in the first instance but to disinfect and dry them as advised (a weak solution of household dettol will suffice), simply because, the finches may possibly have been overcome by the freezing weather (hypothermia can also produce lethargy) and Trich tends to be arrested during freezing weather but do keep a very close eye on things. (One of the signs is birds will have difficult swallowing)

Yes, it's spread between gardens but not much you can do other than to warn any neighbours to be vigilant if they're feeding birds in the garden.

[PMG]

I wouldn't stop feeding in this weather - more will die of hypothermia than of Trich if the food suddenly disappears from an area they are used to. Instead I would stop using the bird table (if you have one) and spread food on the lawn - they will pick it out happily - and you can weed kill the lawn in spring or summer if sunflowers or other plants start to grow! Use something for water - like a plastic dustbin lid that you can 'purge' with boiling water regularly. Trich does seem to be arrested in cold weather - I'm glad something slows it down its a horrible thing. I wonder if you've had a sparrowhawk thro (we have one regular) cos we have a decent flock of 50+ goldfinch - I wonder if when it sweeps thro some of the birds have flown into your patio doors? The bird hopping about in the dark does sound like some sort of brain damage like its had a bang on the head ......... ?