*sigh*

tammieb · Post by **tammieb** » Tue May 01, 2007 1:34 pm

Hi Thalia,

I came across this website on linnies and budgies. It's a breeder in Canada, but unfortunately their site doesn't say where exactly they are located. Nice informative site with loads of photos... thought you might enjoy it.

http://www.angelfire.com/ak/whisperingwings/page1.html

Thalia · Post by **Thalia** » Tue May 01, 2007 5:27 pm

oh wow thanks Tammie! I'll have to check it out. Gives me something to do while waiting for patients to come it at work

kenny · Post by **kenny** » Wed May 02, 2007 7:08 am

hi all
as things go ,from what i have read on here they charge an awful lot for birds that are easily bred.in the uk zebra finches go for about £5.00 a pair which i beleive is about $10 dollars in your money..people in this country would flatly refuse to pay any more than £5.00 for a pair of zebras i am not saying its wrong to charge that price as i think if people are prepared to pay that then they know they will be wanted!

ken

Post by **Sally** » Wed May 02, 2007 11:13 am

Hi, ken

Prices in the US vary widely. Superstores like PetsMart, etc., are way overpriced for their birds, and not many smaller pet stores in my area carry finches. I believe that finches have always been more popular in Europe than in the US. I am lucky enough to have a twice-a-year Bird Mart in my area, where local breeders bring their finches to sell. Since there are a lot of finches to pick from, prices are very competitive. Still, I've never seen Zebras for $10/pair. In fact, that ($5 each) is usually what I get for the babies when I sell them to a local feed store that carries birds, though another just gives me $3.

plantsandbirds · Post by **plantsandbirds** » Wed May 02, 2007 11:34 am

ooog....around here the prices are $18.99 for ONE Zebra finch and $24.99 for a Society finch.

Rue · Post by **Rue** » Wed May 02, 2007 6:53 pm

I haven't quite figured out all the ins and outs of animal pricing...but when animals sell too cheaply I find they become disposable, and I feel strongly that any animals...but pets in particular...should never become disposable!

I'd prefer to see prices high...at least that way less tire-kickers and poor owners would purchase them...I hate to think of the conditions that some of these animals live in...

kenny · Post by **kenny** » Thu May 03, 2007 9:35 am

hi all
as i have said before,i wish all the prices were higher then all the non genuine keepers would think twice before buying them

ken

Thalia · Post by **Thalia** » Thu May 10, 2007 11:24 pm

Well I called today, hoping I could bring them in, but they said that the chicks need to have fully red beaks, SO I guess it's next week. 2 have a teeny point of grey on their beak and 2 have a little smudge, so hopefully it'll be gone next week. They also said they're handfeeding a batch of baby budgies right now, so when I bring in the finches I can pick one and then in 3 weeks I can go back and bring him home when he's weaned!! So excited! I only wish they were closer to here so I could go visit on my days off, gas is so darn expensive I can't justify the 45 min one way trip out there

They sell their budgies for about $60 so I think I'm getting a not bad trade there

I'm going to go to the cheaper pet store and buy some bird toys next week after my pay day. What sort of toys do budgies like?

tammieb · Post by **tammieb** » Fri May 11, 2007 7:13 am

Wow, that petshop has a strict policy regarding the Zebra fledglings. I guess it's good that they won't sell birds that young, but frustrating for you!

Budgies like bells, and soft woods that they can chew up. They also like to play with strands of beads. Ladders are usually a hit as well as they really like to climb.

Are you aiming to get a male?

Thalia · Post by **Thalia** » Fri May 11, 2007 10:31 am

I'm going to try to get a male, but since they're still immature I'm not sure how accurately they'll be able to sex them for me. I'll have to look for some nice wood toys and climbing toys, I have one toy with a bell but I'll look for more. I'm excited! I think I'm going to name him Burt

tammieb · Post by **tammieb** » Fri May 11, 2007 12:54 pm

Here are a few links you might find helpful.

This one explains how to estimate the age of your budgie, http://www.geocities.com/budgie-place/bw_age.html

And these two explain how to sex your budgie, http://www.budgieplace.com/mf.html

http://devvle.com/budgiegender.html

Thalia · Post by **Thalia** » Fri May 11, 2007 1:41 pm

Thanks Tammie!
Well they're handfeeding them now, so I assume they'll be in the 4months or under stage, so sexing them will be almost impossible, unless they've bred them and/or the breeder has banded them and they can guesstimate male vs female. I'll keep my ears peeled for the "mad budgie" noise, I want a male but if I end up with a female that's ok too. Whatever I get it should be super snuggly, they do a really good job of handraising their babies, cuddling them and so forth. I'll have to see if I can determine nostril rings though, maybe that way I can hedge my bet for a male.

tammieb · Post by **tammieb** » Fri May 11, 2007 7:21 pm

The UK based budgie forum I belong to has some very knowledgeable breeders/keepers who are very good at sexing budgies at an early age. Hopefully the staff at your petshop can do the same.

Rue · Post by **Rue** » Fri May 11, 2007 10:46 pm

Don't rely on the colour of the cere in very young budgies...

...I thought we had purchased a hen and a cock...

...on both birds the ceres took turns turning pinkish then bluish, then pinkish again...

The first bird that I thought was a hen...turned out to be a hen...

...the second bird that I thought was a cock (quite a blue cere as a baby) also turned out to be a hen...

Thalia · Post by **Thalia** » Sun May 13, 2007 11:12 am

lol Oh we'll probably end up going and John will fall in love with some big bird like a pionus or caique and then we'll end up making a big investment in a big cage and bird etc etc

OR he'll really like a linnie or parrotlet and we'll end up coming home with one of those and maybe needing a bigger cage.
One question, for transporting the finches, should I just leave them in their cage, cover it and put it in the car or should I put them in the little hospital cage or should I use my small dog carrier with a perch added? It's about an hour drive to get out there and I worry they'll stress and band around in the big cage, but the little one is pretty small for 6 birds