If it doesn't work, then you should be looking for fluffed up sluggish birds that have difficulty eating. They drop bits of food and dribble, contaminating the feeding area. In the advanced stages, they're reluctant to fly and fairly easy to catch.
I believe the croup becomes stuffed up with a hard cheese-like substance which makes it impossible for the poor things to swallow, and they starve to death. Sadly, with finches there is no cure.
The disease was once confined to pigeons and birds of prey (presumably, the raptors preyed on the pigeons and caught the disease) but it made the jump to finches in Ayrshire a decade or so back. I can't help wondering if it's because massive numbers of feral pigeons 'graze' around the feeders, and from there they infect the finches.
One thing which helps combat it is to pay scrupulous attention to hygiene, cleaning feeders with Arklens or similar and changing location on a regular basis. Our problem is that our feeder hangs over the lawn, so it's not really possible to disinfect it properly.
The good news is that the virus can't survive in dry weather or sub-zero temperatures.
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Date: 2010-11-07 05:42 pm (UTC)http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article637452.ece
If it doesn't work, then you should be looking for fluffed up sluggish birds that have difficulty eating. They drop bits of food and dribble, contaminating the feeding area. In the advanced stages, they're reluctant to fly and fairly easy to catch.
I believe the croup becomes stuffed up with a hard cheese-like substance which makes it impossible for the poor things to swallow, and they starve to death. Sadly, with finches there is no cure.
The disease was once confined to pigeons and birds of prey (presumably, the raptors preyed on the pigeons and caught the disease) but it made the jump to finches in Ayrshire a decade or so back. I can't help wondering if it's because massive numbers of feral pigeons 'graze' around the feeders, and from there they infect the finches.
One thing which helps combat it is to pay scrupulous attention to hygiene, cleaning feeders with Arklens or similar and changing location on a regular basis. Our problem is that our feeder hangs over the lawn, so it's not really possible to disinfect it properly.
The good news is that the virus can't survive in dry weather or sub-zero temperatures.