Artificial Incubation A Success - Handfeeding Lady Gouldian Finch Baby

First feeding for baby Lady Gouldian finch.
This bird was hatched in a homemade incubator from day one.
 

Hurray!

Here is our first Gouldian finch hatchling. Now the fun begins. Feeding such a tiny little sprite is a lot more troublesome than feeding a baby Bourke parakeet. This little fellow's beak is so tiny. The eyedropper is too big for it.  A Lady Gouldian site suggests beginning with a toothpick. Hmmm...the liquid Exact is so thin. 

This photo was taken at the very first feeding. I woke at 4am and my conscience told me to go check the incubator. Did I? No. Rolled around and ignored the nudge. Lazy me. I didn't get up until 7am and there he was! There is another egg that should hatch today, God willing.

Got some food in him in spite of the inexperienced person
feeding him with an inadequate eyedropper.

Things are still touch and go, but my husband feels proud that the incubator he designed and built was successful. Now, the feeding is up to me. Pray for me, that my ability will be helped with divine intervention. If he survives, it won't be because of me. This little bird is a miracle. Come to think of it, so is every baby of every kind. Miraculous.

Peace and Blessings.

LATER UPDATE: Although both of these babies survived to adulthood, with later baby Lady Gouldians we used a dental pic with the tip cut off and smoothed out. It is too easy to "drown" a tiny baby finch like this with the dropper. The dental pic, or a very tiny paint brush with only two or three strands, works better for birds this small.