FINCHforum

Does it matter with finches which way the majority of the bars are placed in the cage design? I am trying to find 2 new cages since I am probably going to house my 2 birds alone but next to one another so they can still see and hear each other. I have a 4' buffet that I want to set them on together so I am trying to find a nice cage up to about 23" wide. I found one that is 22" x 20" x 30 high" marketed for a cockatiel with mostly vertical bars. What do you think?

The other option is a cage that is 30" x 18" x 18" high that is labeled as a flight cage for finches with mostly horizontal bars. The spacing between the bars look the same to me but I would double check it before purchasing. With the finch cage, I would have to move them from the living room (which is quieter at night) to the family room (where we spend the majority of our time). I have a table long enough for both cages to sit side by side on, but I would have to cover them at night to enforce their curfew!

The store also had a CB for $95.00 in with a shafttail for $140.00. Are those prices average?

I would go with the 30" long cage. 30" is the minimum recommended length for a cage to be for a finch to be able to exercise adequately inside of it.

Cages should also be longer than they are tall.

Horizontal vs. vertical bars should not make a difference as long as the bars are no more than 1/2" apart.

CBs should cost roughly $100 (US) per *pair* ($50 per bird)
and Shafttails should cost roughly $150 (US) per *pair* ($75 per bird)

I have one cage with vertical bars. And IMO, the advantage of horizontal bars over vertical is you can hang seed hoppers and etc. on the horizontal bars. The choices are limited with the vertical.

Some birds like to climb as well as fly. My spice finches especially will spend time climbing & hanging if they have horizontal bars.