Strawberry finch question

[danaday]

Hi Everyone

I'm looking to try a new breed of finches and I am thinking about trying my hand at strawberries?!!! I'm not new to the finch world. I'm aware that strawberries are more flighty and require live food/insect protein for breeding. I found a pair, would like to know what is a reasonable price for a pair that is about 2 years old. Low end of the price spectrum to high end. Would like to hear advice and thoughts from anyone with strawberry experiences. Thanks in advance.

[Sally]

I think the last price I saw, also the lowest, was $75 per bird. I can help you with tips, but it will have to wait till next week, I am going to Houston for their show.

[w.l.]

Strawberries may not be zebras or societies, but they are stil easy to breed by waxbill standards. Mine bred this year in a small mixed aviary among birds all bigger than themselves. They also breed in cages more easily than most waxbills.
Mine definitely devoured live food during breeding!

Good luck with them.
And get them while you still can as apparently they tend to become very scarce and expensive in the US once there has been no import for a while.

[Haider]

Hi
where in WI do you live? i live in Sun Prairie

[w.l.]

Way too far from you!

See the info under my profile pic.

[ann]

I had some strawberries some years ago. They had a very pretty song, but my kids complained constantly about their very shrill cheeping noise. They couldn't stand the sound. Other than that, they were very easy birds.

[Sally]

Strawberries can be finicky about breeding if you are trying to cage breed them. I've bred them without live food, but it would certainly be easier with live food. I love their song, but they are definitely the early-risers in my household!

For cage breeding, minimum of 30x18x18 for a pair, but they'd do even better with a larger cage. Mine did best in a flight cage that was 32x21x35 high, or 40x20x20. Plenty of fake foliage for privacy. Either hooded wicker nests or they build their own in the fake plants, using lots of coco fiber and lots of white feathers for lining.

High protein foods--live food or if not, lots of egg food. Most of mine loved freeze-dried bloodworms, which are high in protein. Fresh chopped veggies and spray millet. Sprouted seed. Mineral cup with a mineral mix (oystershell, egg shells, etc). Some of mine like cuttlebone, others don't touch it, but you can scrape it into their mineral cup. When breeding, never let their egg food dish get empty (if that is what you are providing for protein). If you are using live food, keep it coming all day.

No nest checks. Babies are very quiet at first, and you will know you have babies when you hear a sound like tiny crickets, though I had a pair once that were so secretive that I had no idea they had babies until they fledged.

[lovezebs]

danaday

My pair bred for me so easily that I was surprised.

They were in a private cage, taller rather than wider, with a sturdy cardboard box (about 6×5 in) for a nest .

They trully inhaled the live food (mealworms), and lots of fresh eggfood (especially once the babies hatched). Also as Sally mentioned , lots of fresh greens were consumed.

They do like their privacy, so no nest checks for these kids.

Good luck.