FINCHforum

Has anyone here had to band a finch that was an adult?

I had to band Spice today because he looks so closely like another one and I want to make sure I can identify him.

He isn't happy about it and has been biting at the band a little.
I don't want him to hurt or infect his leg.......

Yes I have. Seems the adult birds really notice this addition more than younger birds. I think that once it figures out that it is there to stay and not causing harm that it will forget about it and stop worring about it. I just banded some of my 6 month red throat parrot finches and it worried them to death for about 3 days...now they haven't a care of it

thats very normal , he/she feels something weird on the leg and tries to get rid of it , this biting will stop after a few days/weeks .

so no worries

ray

All my new birds are banded as adults. I use the split plastic bands. Depending on the birds, some get used to it in a few days, others keep picking at it for weeks. I had one that pulled at it HARD, in fact he pulled at it soooo hard that he flipped himself over when he pulled is leg out from under him. And he did this many times. It was funny to watch.

I also ran into what you ran into. I could not tell the chicks from the mother and father. So my banding was simply so I could tell parents from chicks. I could only tell by behavior who were the parents. The first time I banded them I got one daughter and the mother mixed up. Luckily I got the sons and father correct.

okay thanks!! I feel better. I was feeling really sorry for this little fellow. I got him from someone last summer and he wasn't banded. He is my favorite (as they all are) little buddy and I wouldn't want to accidentally let him go.

I have another that looks almost exactually like him. It is not his baby, but it has a head that is a little more orange. With my bad eyes, it is hard for me to tell. I caught him up twice today in my trap cage thinking I had the right bird. Poor thing and then had to put a band on him. At least now I have the correct one. He is going to a new home.

GOULDYGIRL wrote:You have another one that looks like Spice??!!?? Why do you have to live so far ;(

Renee

Yes Renee I sure do!!

Here is a picture of him. I finally caught him up. His head color is a little more orange than Spice's. More of a tangerine color. I had a hard time telling them apart.

Beautiful! He looks red to me from the pics, so did Spice. Are they both Orange heads?

Renee

No, they are both red heads. But Spice has a deeper red head than this one.

Oh Ok, You said Orange and Tangerine and got me
confused, lol!

Renee

Donna your favorite changes with the time of day. (By the minute)
let me know about the first of sept what bird you are taking to the fair.

James

Donna, I put split plastic bands on adult birds all the time. Whenever I buy a new pair, I put color bands on them so I can tell them apart from others of the same species, if they wind up in the same cage, etc. They almost always pick at the band, but before long, they pay no attention to it. I closed band mostly at fledging, and I have seen those young fledglings pick at their closed bands, too.

Thanks Sally for that reassurance. He sure was biting at it alot yesterday and I was afraid he would bite his leg and get it infected. Maybe today it will be better.

James, I will let you know. You let me know when your ready to try some gouldians.

This topic is kind of like adult humans banding eachother for ownership. You know, guys band girls to get married.

Can someone tell Irene the guy bands the girl, not the other way around.

sorry, but it is an exchange of bands.

James