Winston & Watson Finch Update

From the Left Winston and Watson

Winston and Watson are well settled in now in their corner of the living room where their antics don't go unnoticed easily and they are a constant source of amusement. Winston being the first Finch purchased, is slightly older than Watson and he flies around the cage a bit and only lands on perches unless he wants something on the floor of the cage, or to land on a food or water cup.  Watson however is a different bird altogether. He's like a little Kamikaze,  he lands on perches alright but he also flies at the front of the cage and lands on the wire,  or lands on the top of the cage roof to get to the top of the millet.  Winston seemed fine with this and content to let Watson show off his acrobatics until recently.  Now he's finally copied Watson's idea and is trying to get it but instead of landing on the front of the cage wire he flies at it,  stops and hovers a second then takes off the other way. 


Like any finches,  they benefit from,  and love the deluxe seed mix,  I mix the deluxe seed into the cheaper seed,  so that it's not too rich and it goes farther.  That and along with millet sprays,  they seem to be thriving.  I'm starting to experiment with putting a few small pieces of vegetables. I've just begun with this and tried some broccoli and they didn't seem interested this time around.  It doesn't hurt to offer them bits of fruit as well now and again.  You just have to experiment until you hit on something they like.


I  had offered the birds a bath at least once a week since I got them and they showed no interest in it other than to have a drink from it. I left it in the cage for a few hours each time and then removed it.  Just yesterday a bath was offered to them again and Watson checked it out first as he is more adventurous but yet more skittish of the two.  He jumped in finally and started bathing in earnest.  Of course Winston soon got in on the action.  It was like watching two little kids at a wading pool,  thrashing around in the water and chirping up a storm and having a great time.  Watson stayed in the whole time and the longest and Winston was in twice for two short baths. Content they landed on the lower perches and I made a mental note to cover the wall behind the cage by putting a towel over the cage at the back as they shake off the excess water much like dogs do and splattered the wall with water.  I will offer them the bath once a week now and I'm sure they will use it now.


Out of the two nests on offer to them,  they prefer the covered roof one best and only use the open nest for lounging in occasionally.  When I first got these guys,  I put some hay in their nests and put some on the floor of the cage for them to add more as they pleased , but they were not interested so I added it myself.  Lately however at least once a week now I add a small pile of hay on the floor of the cage and as soon as I put it in,  they go to work taking turns adding it to the nest until it's all in there. If they drop it, they immediately go and retrieve it and try again.  Without trying to sound too boring,  this is fun to watch. they always go in turn and are like little construction workers.


Both birds have  different calls and songs if you want to call what they do songs. I went for a walk today at a reservoir to try out my new camera and ended up picking up three pieces of driftwood that I took home.  I've made one into a natural perch just like the ones they sell in pet stores with just a few small bits I had on hand,  and installed it in their cage.  They love it and it's a smaller diameter than their perches which is better for their little feet.


They have been trying to mate each other lately and as two males, I'm not sure this is a good thing.  If I put a female in there now,  she will have to be big,  bold and bossy so she can take a round out of these two if they get too frisky with her.  For now I'm not planning on getting a hen just yet,  so these two bozo's will have to learn how to cool off.


Do Have A Good Day From The Fine Folks At The Finch Funny Farm!     Jeff   

Breeding Finches Outdoors

Owning birds can be fun, rewarding and an interesting hobby. I started like most bird lovers by owning indoor birds to start with like Cockatiels and Parrots.
because I like songbirds so much, I decided on raising Finches and after acquiring an outdoor aviary, purchased my first pair of Zebra Finches and named them Phil and Lil.This is them below.

I had a nesting box made with multiple compartments and stuffed them with hay.

They were wary of the box for a long time and wouldn't go in causing me to stress about whether the holes were too small, so I made them a little bigger.

Soon they would be mature enough to breed and I made the aviary as comfortable as possible for them.

I had various natural perches and sprigs of millet on offer. Meal worms.

I installed a used can into one corner, leaving half the lid on and bending it into a perch and this is where Lil laid her first eggs.

They loved this can.

I waited anxiously to see the first hatch, checking every day and then she had 4 chicks. One only survived for 4 days. It was just the weakest one I guess and didn't make it.

These little guys were amazing to watch and when they started flying, they were a bit unsteady and when I went out to check on them late one night.I discovered one on the cold floor of the aviary and picked him up and put him back on the perch where he remained for the night. 

They sometimes try to fly from perch to perch and get tired and can't make it up to a perch and land on the ground.I picked them up more than a few times.

I prepared egg food everyday for them and put it in the aviary where the parents readily used it.
A few times I had the pleasure of hand feeding.

It was always a pleasure to watch these little guys get fed and as usual at least one was a bit of a bully and always tried to take more then his share.

I was amazed one day to see one chick feeding another.Obviously a learned behavior.

It wasn't long before they could feed themselves and I sold the chicks back to the store they were purchased at. Just a few pounds towards more birdseed.

I decided on another species of finch and bought another mating pair of White Pied Zebras.

Stan

Next I purchased a pair of Bengali Society Finches.
You do have to be careful as to which species you put together as some get along better that others.
They are all very acrobatic fliers and every one of them landed on me while inside the aviary at least a few times.I was in their enclosure so much, that they got very familiar with me and even friendly.
Their songs are very cute and unique, starting off with a meep or beep and adding to it from there.
When threatened, they emit a sharp hiss.

Finches are very sociable and in the wild often live together in several pairs.

After all these guys had a few families, I added two canaries which get along great with Finches.

As you probably already know, Canaries are amazing singers.
Raising these birds was an enriching experience I would recommend to anyone that loves birds.
They can be kept in an indoor aviary if you have the room in your house or garage.
In colder climates such as Canada outdoor birds require a heater in winter.
They can be kept in a large cage, wide as it is tall. Never put more than one pair together in one cage.
Sadly I had to leave my birds in England when I came back to Canada, but this post has stirred up some feelings again and I would do this again in a heartbeat.

Canary feeding with tarp covering 3 sides, wintered over aviary

Do have a good day and see you next time on good day/ bad day.
                                 Jeff