First Post. Help me find direction.

[gafinchman1181]

Well i have decided that i would like to have a bird. I stumbled upon finches after searching the net for easy beginner birds.

I want a bird that doesnt require constant attention from me. I had a love bird a long time ago that i really liked but he always wanted attention.

I am looking for a small easy to take care of finch that likes to sing and wistle.

The finches will be in my meditation room. i frequent this room often because i also have lake malawi cichlids and a riparium in that room. it is my peaceful escape room. The water sounds great in there but i would love some whistling and singing to go along with it.

Are finches the right bird for me? I will take great care of them i just do not want to have to spend alot of hand on time with them. I rather them be nice to look at and listen too.

Any species recommendations that are common and easy to come by?

I guess i need 2 of them. Is it hard to tell male from female?

The cage i have is from when i had a cockatil (spell check) . I am not sure the exact diminsions because it is at my parents house. If i had to guess i would say 18 x 18 x 36" tall. I know it is better to have width than height but this is the best i have right now.

am i moving in the right direction??

[Finch Fry]

A few things.

That cage wont do if you decide to get finches. Finches like width in cage, not height. Finches fly and will need the horizontal space to fly fly fly fly. Also, the spacing on the bars will probably be too large for finches. Finches are usually only 2-5 inches long. So the little guys could EASILY slip through the larger spacing on that cage you have.

As for finches being right for you. Yes, your situation is perfect. They will need your attention once per day to put in new foods and water. Aside from that, if they never see you, they will be happy.

Now you want sounds and whistles... so you want males, not females. As the males sing, the females will just beep. Its not necessary to have a pair, but it is good to have some friends.

I would steer you towards society finches. If you could, get 2 male societies. You wont have to worry about eggs or babies, and they will beep and sing and tweet all day.

Do not get zebras. 2 males will kill eachother, 2 females wont sing and a pair will make babies until they overtake your meditation room. Trust me, everyone will try to sell you Zebs. Get societies instead.

Thats my 2 cents. Hope it helps.

[Nagdabit]

Certainly Chris has offered some good advice, especially as regards the cage size. For finches horizontal is better than vertical. I know that most Petco stores (at least in our area) have a decent flight cage for about $60.00

Society Finches probably would be a good fit for you. The few that I've heard, always had beautiful songs, but they can be difficult to sex. From what I understand, the only sure way to tell them apart is to wait for the males to sing. Which isn't a big deal if you buy them from a reputable breeder, but if you're going to one of the big box stores, you may not be able trust the kid working for minimum wage to tell the males apart from the females.

All we have are Zebra Finches, so that's all I can base my experience upon. While Chris is correct in that Zebras can be aggressive towards other males, if no females are present the threat is lessened. And if you buy them directly from a breeder, someone who knows their history, you can look for two brothers who were raised together. We have put males together in cages on numerous occasions and never had any problems. An older gentleman friend of ours in a similar situation to yours, got two boys from us and has had throughly enjoyed them for over two years now.

Zebras are fairly easy to differentiate between the sexes. The males have cheek patches (with a few exceptions) and polka dots on their sides. And like Societys, Zebras are relatively inexpensive. And while the male Zebra songs are all similar, there are subtle differences from male to male.

If you explore the Finch Information Center you will see that there are MANY different varieties of finches, almost any number of which would fit your circumstances. Technically that would also include Canaries, have you given them any thought? They too, have beautiful songs but can be pricey.

If you provide some additional information, the good people here on the forum might be able to be more specific in their advice and their assistance. Whatever you decide upon, I'm sure you will get countless hours of enjoyment from your little friends.

Also a word of caution, once you get bitten by the finch bug, there's no turning back. Be careful, cause in no time at all your meditation room very well could resonate with the joyful chatter of numerous little winged critters.

Hope this is helpful

[dfcauley]

You have been give some great adivce. I also would suggest the society finches. If you can try to find the crested one, they are so cute, but not as readily available.

If you would fill in your profile so that we know where you are from it would help as in offering suggestion.

[gafinchman1181]

Thank you all VERY much for the information. I am even more exicited about getting finches since reading yalls replies. i can tell yall really love your birds, which is a great sign.

I will go shopping this week for a flight cage. The area i have for the cage is 3 feet wide and about 3 feet deep. So that should give me alot of space for a nice flight cage.

Also is it better to search for a breeder or buy in the stores. I dont know how many people around me breed Finches. I live in Savannah Georgia. Its on the south east cost of the state. About an hour and a half north of jacksonville florida and about 2 1/2 hours southeast of Macon Georgia.

I will probably go look in local stores just to get an idea of what they have. Hopefully they will have society finches so i can look at them.

Nagdabit i understand what you mean about getting bit by a bug. I started fish keeping not too long ago and got bit by the fish bug so i am definitly an ideal host for getting bit by the finch bug.

I guess my next step will be get 1) the cage 2) find a breeder AND/OR check local stores for finches 3) get food and supplies 4) enjoy the birds.

Also is it true that the finches are not born knowning songs? is it helpful to play CD's with birds whistling so they can learn certain songs. i know i could go into the woods with a tape recorder and get tons of bird songs.

Thanks again for yall's input. I really appreciate it.

[Finch Fry]

No, they dont know their song when they are born. But they learn it from their parents so no need for CDs. I dont see many finches sporting portable CD players and be-bopping to the great hits of zebra and society beeps of the 90s.
Also, there is some literature in the scientific arena that shows that young finches will digress back to a more privative song that is less complex as the generations progress forward if they do not learn their song from their parents. Each child takes his parents song and makes it one or 2 beeps or clicks or chirps different.

In your area there are LOTS of breeder and stores. HIGHLY suggest a breeder over a store. Stores tend to be "mills" where they value quantity over quality. Breeders tend to go for quality first before worrying about quantity.
Another venue may be craigslist. Lots of people get societies or zebras and think its cute to put a nest in so they can sleep at night, little do they know that they have another 5 finches on the way.

The best part about societies and zebras is that usually you can find them for free or next to nothing. Heck, even stores sell them for 15-20 each, which is, in my opinion, ridiculously expensive for a zeb or a society. I just picked up 2 societies for free in Atlanta this past weekend and have given out, on multiple occasions, zebra finches for free.

GL and keep us posted.

[CandoAviary]

I would highly recommend a male canary.They are not only of the finch family but the color and song far outdo most finches of the brown and white varieties. Few birds can match the song. They are longer lived than smaller finches and are readily available. They have been domesticated and caged for centuries and do fine in a cage of that size, though it would greatly benifit from being allowed to fly free in the room for excercise at times. These birds can easily be trained to return to your finger and have little fear and are not the least bit flighty like some finches.
Good luck with your meditating bird

[gafinchman1181]

with a canary can you have two males or would you want just one male? i didnt really want to let it out of the cage at all though. my house is a dangerous place with all my open top fish tanks and my female doberman. i think if i wanted a bird to let out i would get another lovebird or cockatil.

i am trying to make my room feel like an ancient japanese outdoor garden but indoors. i have some artificial bamboo trees, 2 fish tanks, a very nice and comfy couch (it is also my nap room) and enough floor space for stretching and meditation. I thought a bird cage with some singing finches would finish off the room. a little ying to the yang (whistling of birds : calming sound of water) hope i dont sound too crazy!

thanks again for yalls help. i guess i need to start searching for bird breeders around me.

[Finch Fry]

Doesnt the male singing canary need a female to make him sing to her?

[CandoAviary]

Actually the male canary sings to attract a female. Also to annouce to other males that this is his territory. Once the males atrract the female they will sing in courtship. Once the female accepts him he really doesn't sing much. No need. He has a mate and he doesn't want to draw attention to the nest. Most people that want song keep one male canary to a cage. That way he sings all the time except when molting. I could never keep mine like this though, it bothered me to know he was calling for companionship. But that's just me.

[Finch Fry]

Perhaps 2 male canaries together would be ok? I know nothing of canaries so I dont know if they would get aggressive with each other.

[CandoAviary]

2 birds, especially males in a cage of this size would not work. Not enough space. They would most definate fight, not because they are males but for the space.
Maybe it would be best to get a wider cage and then the possibilities of what could be kept would be greater. Also if you want something that is easy to maintain a larger cage makes sense. Cages with small footprints makes it hard for one perch to clear another perch, water and food reseptacles....resulting in constant cleaning. A larger cage would also help keep a healthy pet which and in the long run would add greatly to the relaxation of one's spirit.
I would definately invest in that flight cage. I think you would get so much more enjoyment out of it. I too have a meditaion/prayer room that is full of nature. But when the fish tank is dirty or the birds are messy or the plants need watering....well it can be far from relaxing and soothing. So I increase the size of everything...... and under stocked it. Means less work and more relaxation
75 gallon aquarium with 2 Dicus fish. 6' floor to ceiling aviary with a few gouldians....or a pair of breeders. I change this out periodically. A few large plants and then outside the window, birdbath, birdfeeders, flowers and statues Have fun and hope you create the room of your dreams.

[funtimes09]

However, just adding my 2 cents. If you had the extra money, as I do not know your situation financially you could add a splash of color in your room and get gouldians? They are a bit more expensive, and someone correct me if I am wrong, but two males would do well together? They come in a variety of colors, and the males are the bolder and more vibrant in color than the females. Also, there song to me is rather pleasant! Just another bit of info, hehe. Someone correct me if I am wrong as I am still learning myself!

[Finch Fry]

If the primary objective is song, than Candice was spot on with the Canaries. Otherwise, any male finch like a society or a zebra would probably sing more than a gould. But yes, the gould is pretty nice for it complex colors. You can still get richly colored canaries.

[Domenic]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the green singing finch. They have a spectacular song and are generally very easy to care for. Mine is a pleasure to have around the house and he really lightens things up with his song. They are also pretty widely available, I usually see about eighty of them crammed up in my local petsmart, and while I don't think petsmart is the best place to purchase birds it could be used as a last resort, especially when you don't have any other birds that you are risking. They will also sing by themselves-in fact mine usually waits for all the other birds to fall asleep before he starts to sing.