New pair of gang gangs

[sypher]

Thanks for that, Hopefully Smiley will come on and have a chat.

Shaun

[sypher]

I have posted a couple of pics of them over in the photo section.

[Smiley]

LOL not to many know me as Smiley here Karen

They can be funny with nest inspections. The best way is to use a mirror and a torch. Motor bike mirrors are great with there handles. Just bounce the light off the mirror into the box and you will see all. Mince I wouldn't feed that to them, chicken or chop bones, mealworms or other grubs. Maybe some roo meat, no fat in that. They do like mice, but only now and again...Seeds from eucalyptus and acacias make up most of there diet. In the wild they eat lots of cotoneaster and hawthorn (Crataegus) berries. So your best to get as much native food as you can.. It's worth it......Try to keep sunflowers to a mim, best to feed small parrot mix with budgie seed 1/2 and 1/2.... And add some calcium to there water...A wide range of fresh vegetables and fruit and some nuts..

Hope this helps....

[robert]

Sorry if this upsets anyone. At a meeting of a Bird Society,I heard a breeder of Gangs Gangs acknowledge that he feeds his birds ,budgies. As an equal opportunity person,I feel this is only fair, if one feeds Gangs Gangs to their Predators. I personally dislike it happening to either.But if it happens to one,in all fairness ,it ought to happen to the other.There are birds who could make a good meal out of Gang Gangs. From Robert and Precious

[Karen]

Yeah, it happens hey, no we don't like it but it happens.
I one time put 2 finches in with a new IRN - was only going to be for 20 mins, I came out to find the IRN munching on one of the finches! Now I never knew that would happen but I guess they are meat eaters.

If we are to be true to nature then nothing should be a taboo bit of information no matter how we might find it distasteful, nature can be a cruel woman. Thanks for sharing Robert, never knew they'd eat budgies (ain't giving mine up!).

[vankarhi]

well I guess in the wild the gang gangs would eat small birds and animals. Yes nature can appear to be cruel hey. I am afraid if I owned gang gang I would try to stick to a diet like what Nat (Smiley) has suggested.

But on the other hand I remember as a kid feeding guppies to Oscars.........I grew up thinking that is normal. I have also been in a pet store when they fed the snakes baby mice (pinkies) ......... I had mixed emotions when I watched it. One was "OMG that poor baby mouse" ... the other was "well in the wild this is what they do" ..........

[sypher]

I do not intend to feed mice. I have fed them cooked bones, but they didnt touch them. I will try again as they werent eating much at the time as they were settling in. They also eat dry dog biscuits etc.

I have been trying to get hold of a hawthorn tree without success. I want to feed the berries to the pair. Ill keep trying.

Shaun

[farseeker]

It's very interesting hearing about their diet. I don't think I'd be able to feed them live animals - yes it's what they eat out in nature, but I don't really see putting small live animals in a restricted space with them as following nature - they don't really have that chance of finding a place to hide in or anything.

Good luck with breeding them, I sure hope you have some success. ;D

[sypher]

Thanks Alissa. I hope so to.

[silvercloud]

This thread has been a great read. I knew they ate meat but it's an interesting discussion anyway. Feeding alive or dead critters doesn't bother me anymore as I've had to do a lot of that due to the rescue birds I've had to care for over the years. Good luck with them Shaun.

[sypher]

Thanks Silvercloud!

[just4birds]

hey sypher

Jane, Kate (bullibirdsale) and i just spend the pass sunday with Jim McKendry and he talked alot about his Gang Gang cockatoos which 4 are housed together in an outside aviary ...

He informed us that the gang gang cockatoo is now becoming a worse feather plucker then the african grey .....

Also in his cage he feeds all his gang gangs in different bowls that are placed all over the aviary so that they arent just feeding from one dish ... plus he has a boing in his after which he sticks branches down the middle of so that they can move up and down the boings feeding etc ... (hope that makes sense)

thats about all i can think of for noww ... but hopefully jane or kate mite remember some other things

*Lisa*

[Jane]

I remember Jim saying that Mealworms are great for feeding as well as enrichment. He tips a pile of mealworms onto a log and the birds spend hours trying to catch them to eat. (goes for most other parrots too)
And stuffing casurina & gumnuts with seeds for them to find, oh and like Lisa said, food dishes etc in different places everyday so they have to find them, this includes their basics like pellets and vegies, keep moving to eliminate boredom ;D

[sypher]

Thanks heaps for the information Lisa and Jane.

I dont quite get what you mean Lisa with the Boing?? is that one of those red toys? I have tried to feed my gangs fruit, veges, nuts, casurinas, pine cones, lamb bones, corned beef etc, and havent touched any of it. They did chew the casurina branches though. Not alot though. All they want is sunflower.

I have put in palm logs, natural perches, branches etc to chew, but they havent chewed them like I thought they would. I have been trying hard to keep them busy, but they dont do alot. In saying that, they are in perfect feather and dont seem to interested in plucking at the moment. Can conditions such as feather plucking etc possibly be bred out of a species? I know the answer will most likely be no, but I think it is something that could be thought about.

Thanks again. Shaun

[Jane]

The boing is the big curled rope boucy swing thingy. Lisa will have them on her website for sure. The way Jim had poked the branches down the middle meant the Gang Gangs had to climb up down and around to get to all the casurina branch.

[Jane]

This is one:
www.friendlybirdinn.com.au/shop/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=123


Sounds like yours will be far too well entertained to think about plucking

[sypher]

Ahh ok, I get it now. That would keep them entertained!

[just4birds]

I've shared some links and i can order pretty big boings ... i'll take a piccy of the one i just got my black cockatoo ... he loves it ... and hopefully i can get some branches soon to stick them through it like we learnt on the weekend

[sypher]

Thanks Lisa, Will talk soon about the boings. Thanks for all your help.

Shaun

[just4birds]

its a great pleasure Shaun