G’Day Birdie Sanctuary

14/09/2024

Budgie or mermaid? 🧜‍♀️

Apparently this is a nice comfy spot for Peanut to rest on and do her best underwater swimming impression 😂

-

Want to support our work? We are a not-for-profit bird rescue and sanctuary in Gippsland, Australia. Visit gdaybirdie.org for more info.

Image Description: A yellow and olive green female budgie is lying on the top of large tree branch, with her legs tucked under her.

13/09/2024

Well it’s been a busy week here and I feel like I haven’t been posting enough online!

We had this (not so) little temporary guest here on Wednesday - this young Australian Raven had fallen from their nest in Drouin and they were seen sitting on the ground for 3+ days, so we went out to assess the situation. They were unfortunately unable to be reunited with their parents and turned out to be very underweight, presumably from not being properly fed for several days 😞

It’s important to note that we are not registered wildlife carers and don’t have experience with corvids, so we weren’t the right people to keep this one in care. However we were able to keep this little one safe until transport could be organised to Wild Days Wildlife Shelter who do fantastic work with these guys.

Kay and the team at Wild Days are absolutely incredible wildlife heroes - with spring starting up they are now helping lots of bubs like this one. We definitely recommend following their page and supporting their work if you can! 🖤

-

Image Description: A nestling Australian raven is perched on a kitchen bench. They are fully feathered on their body but their tail and wing feathers are still yet to fully grow through.

11/09/2024

Hello from this little cutie pie! 💛

We went for a drive on Sunday to pick him up from Kiwi's New Life Bird Rescue, as we had some spare quarantine space and this little guy needed somewhere to go. He has the most gorgeous song, and especially loves to sing to the sound of running water whenever the kitchen tap is turned on.

He has already had a faecal check done at the vets (which came back clear), but we still quarantine our birds for a few weeks just to make sure they’re in tip top condition before introducing them to the flock. This also allows us to get to know the birds individually, to make sure their transition into flock life goes smoothly. We can already tell that this little guy is going to be a very boisterous addition to the menagerie!

Welcome, little one. We hope you love it here in your new home 💛

-

Want to support our work? We are a not-for-profit bird rescue and sanctuary in Gippsland, Australia. Visit gdaybirdie.org for more info.

Image Description: A yellow canary is happily perched on a stick inside a cage. Next to him is a red and orange bird toy made from various natural materials.

10/09/2024

Our little guys are so excited for these! 😍

The bells which come on most cheaper pet shop toys are not stainless steel, which means they can cause heavy metal poisoning in birds over the long term. Stainless steel bells are a bit more expensive, but it’s worth it to ensure that playtime is safe for little beaks 🧡

One box of stainless steel bells on its way to G’Day Birdie Sanctuary!

09/09/2024

“I wasn’t sure if you would come to help, because she’s not a special enough bird”

TW: euthanasia

We were messaged by a lovely lady across town this afternoon, who’d found this little injured female blackbird. She did all the right things - kept her somewhere warm, dark, soft and quiet, and even placed a couple of grubs from the garden on a tray next to her (but didn’t force her to eat anything).

Unfortunately an assessment proved what I had feared from the very first message - this little one had a broken pelvis and likely a resulting spinal injury as well. You can see how she’s lying here - unable to stand or perch at all, with her body and legs in an unnatural position.

Pelvic injuries usually occur after birds are clipped or run over by cars. The bird may still be able to fly away, and there may not be any visible blood (both were true in this case), so people assume they don’t need to stop to help. It’s only when the bird tries to land somewhere off the road that they collapse onto the ground and are unable to move any further. To make matters worse, they are usually still fully conscious and alert after these injuries, which means they’re aware of all the pain they’re in.

While we always want to give birds a chance, these are sadly not treatable injuries, and the kindest thing to do is to help them on their way across the rainbow bridge. Thank you so much to the local vet clinic (which I won’t name for this case) who kindly took this little one to put her out of pain. Blackbirds are not a native species which means that some prominent wildlife groups refuse to help them, but no creature deserves to suffer, and we will always help wherever we can. All birds are special to us, we promise.

If you accidentally hit a bird while driving, please stop to check on them and have them assessed by a carer. They may appear fine on the surface but you never know what injuries they are hiding. Without prompt care (and humane euthanasia when needed) they can be left suffering in agony.

Rest in peace sweetheart. I’m so sorry we couldn’t do more for you 🤎

-

Want to support our work? We are a not-for-profit bird rescue and sanctuary in Gippsland, Australia. Visit gdaybirdie.org for more info.

Image Description: An injured female blackbird is lying on a towel inside a carrier

08/09/2024

When you buy animals from a pet store, 90% of the time the staff members have no clue about animal (especially exotic) care. They’re junior retail staff members who have potentially never even owned the species you’re looking to purchase.

Go through a reputable rescue, or a breeder who knows what they’re doing. Stop buying birds from pet shops, even ones which claim to be “bird” focused - it’s equivalent to getting them a dodgy backyard breeder.

Can businesses please do better?

This is a job ad for a pet store.
No animal experience required.

Animals are not products for training. This isn't an electronics or coffee store where there'd be no victims from someone getting stuff wrong when they're learning (burnt coffee maybe...).

And *especially* the fact that these are exotic animals, that even fewer people have knowledge of and that require specialised vets.

If we're going to keep breeding and selling live animals in pet stores - we shouldn't, but if it's gonna happen - we need to do better for those creatures.

Image Description: a screenshot of a job ad with any identifiers blacked out.

08/09/2024

Look who’s fledged! 🥰

The third baby spotty unfortunately didn’t make it - we were too late and they were too malnourished to be saved 😞

But the original older two have done fantastic in care, and are now flapping around to explore the world for the first time. We’ve upgraded them to a large flight cage and are working on hand taming them, as we’re hoping these little ones will make lovely companions for someone as opposed to releasing them into the wild.

The fledgling stage is so magical - watching their brains discover things and make connections in real time is such a privilege.

Thanks to everyone who supports our work to give a second chance to birds like these two 🤎

-

Want to support our work? We are a not-for-profit bird rescue and sanctuary in Gippsland, Australia. Visit gdaybirdie.org for more info.

Image Description: Two fledgling spotted doves are happily perched on a person’s arm, which is covered in a light long sleeved shirt.

06/09/2024

And then there were three! 🐦

This baby spotted dove has come to us locally from Warragul. They were taken in by a caring family during the horrible weather, who offered warmth and hand rearing formula for a few days before bringing bub here this afternoon.

While a lot of their feathers have now grown through, unfortunately they are still extremely small for their age, weighing just 38 grams. We’re hoping that with some specialist care here they will now start putting some weight on and catch up on much needed growing.

Fingers crossed for this little bubba 🙌

(The other two spotties in care are still doing well and are starting to fledge!)

-

Want to support our work? We are a not-for-profit bird rescue and sanctuary in Gippsland, Australia. Visit gdaybirdie.org for more info.

Image Description: A baby spotted dove is perched on a person’s finger. Their body is fully feathered but they still have scraggly down feathers around their face. Their eyes are open and alert but their body is very small in size.

05/09/2024

Ceres always was the queen of playing peekaboo. We miss her so much 💚

Peekaboo!

05/09/2024

In case anyone’s still looking to make plans for this weekend! 🙂

05/09/2024

Very demure, very mindful.

Just kidding - she’s a ball of pure sass 😂

Bing the zebra finch was looking a bit under the weather the other day, so she’s currently on a few meds and supportive care. It’s worked wonders for her - she’s perked up and is now convinced that she doesn’t need any more TLC from the very annoying humans.

She hopes your weeks are all going well. If not then she passes along a loving “meep beep!” to brighten them a little more 🤎

-

Want to support our work? We are a not-for-profit bird rescue and sanctuary in Gippsland, Australia. Visit gdaybirdie.org for more info.

Image Description: A female zebra finch is being held in a person’s hand while she is looking towards the camera.

04/09/2024

How gorgeous is Sunny (plus Koeks from LemonBirbs) 🥹

Disabled birds can still live amazing lives with a bit of TLC 💛

Introducing Sunny ☀️

Sunny has come to me today as her owners reached out recently due to Sunny being very depressed after losing her flock mate and husbird Woody recently. They did the absolute right thing by putting her welfare first and finding a flock with less abled friends to go too. 🥺

Sunny is a one legged canary as she hurt her other leg years ago and had to have it amputated. This means once out of quarantine, she’ll have adaptions put in the cage so she can cuddle with the others and not put too much strain on her remaining leg. 🥰

She already seems to have settled in talking to the flock and having a few splashy baths in her cage.

I’ve given her the middle name of Koeks from LemonBirbs recent one legged addition to their flock who is called Koeks. 🥰

I have no doubt from the sass Sunny is showing from this photo, she’ll bond with Nellie straight away, and help keep Rusty behaving (we can only hope)!. 🤣🥰

Welcome to the wonky finch flock Sunny, I’m so glad to have you here. 🥰💜

03/09/2024

🧡

03/09/2024

That was an intense day or two! But we’re pleased to say that our power and phone services are now fully restored. Thank you to the emergency crews which have been working overtime to sort things both locally and around the state.

Thanks also to everyone for your patience as we get around to responding to messages, as well as catching up on the small backlog of washing, dishes, and cleaning!

If you need assistance with birds (especially any local to the Warragul area), you’re welcome to contact us now 🧡

Pictured here is one of the spotty bubs - look at how big they’re getting! 🥹

-

Want to support our work? We are a not-for-profit bird rescue and sanctuary in Gippsland, Australia. Visit gdaybirdie.org for more info.

Image Description: A young spotted dove is perching on a person’s hand, facing the camera side on with a full crop. White text above the bird reads “we’re back” in capitals.

02/09/2024

UPDATE: After last night’s severe storms we are now without any power, Internet, or phone service (currently typing this post in Pakenham where we’ve finally found somewhere with power)

Unfortunately we will therefore be UNABLE to help with any cases until further notice.

The birds are all safe, and fortunately we have no property damage, but we will be fully offline until further notice.

Please stay safe 🧡

-

Image Description: A red sign with white text saying “temporarily closed”

01/09/2024

TRANSPORT NEEDED

This little cutie needs to get from a carer in Geelong to another carer in Werribee. If you’re over west and able to assist, please send us a message 🙌

-

Image Description: A blue and white female budgie is perched on top of a water dish. There are also food dishes and gum tree branches in her setup.

30/08/2024

What a difference a few days makes - the spotty bubs are now already almost too big to snuggle in my hands! 🥹

While they initially arrived here looking pretty weak, they have perked up dramatically and are both now growing well. They are taking 10ml feeds like champs (for contrast, an adult budgie takes 1-2ml in a crop feed). It won’t be too much longer until they’re fully feathered and then ready to fledge.

With baby bird season ramping up, Pigeon Rescue Melbourne are in desperate need of volunteer transporters across the state. There are also a lot of birds ready for adoption if you’d like to add a feathered family member or two - we definitely recommend sending them a message if you’re able to help in any capacity 🐦

-

Want to support our work? We are a not-for-profit bird rescue and sanctuary in Gippsland, Australia. Visit gdaybirdie.org for more info.

Image Description: Two baby spotted doves are resting in the palm of a person’s hand, which they are nearly the same size as. They have pin feathers on their wings and tails, and their body feathers are growing in.

28/08/2024

While we’ve welcomed a couple of new feathered friends recently, we’ve also unfortunately said goodbye to a couple of our beloved flock members 😞

Friar was one of our gorgeous crested canaries who spent 18 months here in the rescue flock. Friar was originally found being attacked by wild birds - he became disoriented and managed to fly straight into a cardboard box that his finder was holding in hopes of catching him safely.

Canaries are naturally prey animals, but Friar was undoubtedly the most anxious, timid, and scared canary I’ve ever worked with. He had a lot of residual trauma from his time in the wild and it took several months before he began to come out of his shell. He would panic if he saw a bird flying past outside and would hide tucked away in his cage.

He also had no idea how to interact with other canaries at first - he was so scared of the flock and was reluctant to even try and fly near them. However with a lot of time and patience, he found his place here. He fell in love with Bronwyn, and although the love was unrequited, she helped give him a lot of confidence. He also spent a lot of time with our disabled canaries - Honey, Fluffy, Sunny Banana Sundae, and Big Bird. Friar was such a tender soul that he often preferred the quieter pace of life with the disabled flock. While we always offered him opportunities to come out and fly (and he did - especially when food was being dished up onto plates!) he loved being able to return to the safety of his cage, surrounded by his canary friends.
With them for company, his days were always full of delicious veggies and sunbathing through the windowsill - he was no longer terrified of the wild birds who would fly past outside.

Rest in peace, our darling Friar. We are so incredibly proud of how brave you were in those initial months, and how far you came. You found your own version of happiness here, and we will cherish the memories of you. Thank you for allowing us to be your humans. We love you lots and lots, forever and ever.

Flying over the rainbow bridge 🌈
Arrived December 2022 - Departed August 2024

-

Want to support our work? We are a not-for-profit bird rescue and sanctuary in Gippsland, Australia. Visit gdaybirdie.org for more info.

26/08/2024

And so baby bird season begins! 🐣

Our first two bubs for the season are these two tiny spotted doves, who’ve come from a golf course in Frankston. This one was a team effort - a massive thank you to Pigeon Rescue Melbourne and Pigeon Rescue Support Inc for helping with transport.

Baby pigeons and doves require specialised care and feeding methods. They eat differently to most other birds and are therefore unfortunately easy to aspirate - for this reason, it’s important to not offer any food or water to babies this small. If you can’t reunite them with their parents, it’s best to instead just keep them warm and safe until you can find an experienced carer.

These two are a bit touch-and-go at the moment, but for now they’re snuggled together in the brooder and have taken a crop feed well.

Fingers crossed, little bubbas 🐦

-

Want to support our work? We are a not-for-profit bird rescue and sanctuary in Gippsland, Australia. Visit gdaybirdie.org for more info.

Image Description: Two nestling spotted doves are being cradled in a person’s hand. The one closest to the camera is in full view, while their sibling next to them has their head nestled. They have a small amount of baby down feathers beginning to come through on their bodies.

25/08/2024

Rio and Cleo makes for double trouble in the budgie flock 🤍💚

Both of these lovely ladies came to us at different times, and both were lucky to come from very caring owners. This isn’t the best quality photo but I just had to share, because it’s always lovely to see the birds playing and exploring together.

-

Want to support our work? We are a not-for-profit bird rescue and sanctuary in Gippsland, Australia. Visit gdaybirdie.org for more info.

Image Description: Two female budgies, one white and one light green, are perched on nearby branches of a tree stand while curiously looking up at the camera.

24/08/2024

I still reckon the best way to pass an honours statistics course is to get baby canaries to teach you the content 😂💛

Studying is a lot more fun with company!

24/08/2024

This little cutie has splish splashed their way across town and has now ended up at the sanctuary, where it is apparently always bath time!

Little Bee the canary was found in Greensborough earlier this week and spent some time at the lovely Greensborough Veterinary Hospital & Rosanna Veterinary Clinic who unfortunately weren’t able to find an owner. Thank you to Jacquie for transporting and to Bird Vet Melbourne for holding them for us to collect this morning 💛

We are hoping they’re being missed by somebody as they are in good body condition, are very vocal, and are quite comfortable around people.

If you recognise Little Bee or are missing a yellow canary, please get in touch. The second photo shows what they look like when they haven’t been busy bathing!

Proof of ownership is required for all birds. This bird is currently at G’Day Birdie Sanctuary and is not available for adoption.

-

Want to support our work? We are a not-for-profit bird rescue and sanctuary in Gippsland, Australia. Visit gdaybirdie.org for more info.

Image Descriptions: A small yellow canary is perched on a stick inside a cage while their feathers are wet and ruffled. In the second image their feathers are dry, and they are perched on some newspaper inside a pet carrier.

23/08/2024

Did somebody say DANDELIONS? 🌼

Toby the sparrow loves nothing more than destroying delicious dandelions straight from the garden.

As Victoria’s only dedicated sparrow sanctuary, she is one of 18 unreleasable house/tree sparrows who call our place home. With the weather warming up, we’ve got some exciting plans for these little guys to hopefully share with you very soon! 🤍

(In the meantime, they use these flight cages for sleep indoors, and apparently it’s time to give the cages a quick wipe down)

-

Image Descriptions: A series of photos showing a leucistic house sparrow munching on a dandelion flower out of a person’s hand. The sparrow is perched on top of an open cage door and is leaning down to eat.

23/08/2024

Would anyone like a grumpy Custard Donut for breakfast? 🍩

One week on and her nares (nostrils) are still nice and clear, so she’s very happily rejoined the canary flock! 💛

-

Image Description: A pale yellow canary is being gently held in a person’s hand. She has a very unhappy facial expression.

20/08/2024

Some fabulous Bobbie floof to brighten your days 🩵

(Her face is messy because she loves munching on veggies but doesn’t like taking baths 😂)

-

Image Description: A sky blue female exhibition budgie is fluffed up and resting on an open door of a bird cage. She is facing the camera front-on to show off her extra large feathers, which are stained from food. There are other budgies in the blurred background behind her.

19/08/2024

Some really important info and advice!

18/08/2024

It’s been a busy week here with a couple of vet trips!

The other day we noticed that Custard Donut (listed as cream canary on the invoice) was having sudden breathing difficulties as well as a lot of swelling around her nares, as you can see in this ‘before’ photo. It turns out she had a growth which was causing a blockage to both her nostrils - the poor thing was literally unable to breathe through them which is why she was showing open-beak panting 😭 Dr Pat did a great job unblocking both nostrils: Custard Donut is now breathing normally again and is so much happier! She is now on a week of medications at home to prevent any further inflammation or infection - we are otherwise crossing our fingers that the growth doesn’t return 💛

Meanwhile Eris was back to the vet to get another superlorin hormonal implant. Eris had her oviduct removed 12 months ago after repeated complications from egg laying and egg retention. This means that she can no longer physically pass eggs through her system, meaning that her hormones need to be kept in check so that her body doesn’t try to form egg yolks. The implants require a quick anaesthetic for insertion, but she did really well with this. However one unfortunate side effect is that she has put on a huge amount of weight (13 grams!) so we are really trying to manage her diet going forward as well. If you hear her begging for treats, don’t be fooled - the scales don’t lie! 😅

The bill for these two was $451 but it was worth every cent. If you are in a position to help us recoup funds so that we can continue helping birds, you can donate through:

G’Day Birdie Sanctuary
BSB: 633 000
Acct: 213 300 676

Or call Melbourne Bird Veterinary Clinic on 03 9764 9000 to credit to our vet account

Or visit PayPal.me/gdaybirdie if you are overseas

We are a registered charity and 100% not for profit 💚

16/08/2024

This gorgeous canary was found in Rowville earlier this week and was handed into Melbourne Bird Veterinary Clinic. They have a bruised wing, but are otherwise in good health and have now come here to the sanctuary for quarantine and cage rest.

They have a few distinctive physical characteristics and mutation patterns (not pictured) which the owner should be able to identify. They are coping well in a cage here, but are currently very skittish of humans, so they may have originally been an aviary bird. Please check your setups to check that everyone’s accounted for, and get in touch with us if you believe this may be your bird 💛

Proof of ownership is required for all birds. This bird is currently at G’Day Birdie Sanctuary and is not available for adoption.

-

Image Description: A yellow canary is perched on a branch inside a bird cage, with a plastic toy also in the cage. The legs have been partially obscured to hide details of any leg ring(s).