Keeping Finches Warm During First Winter...

[finch71]

Hello,

I live in Florida and we are getting our first cold blast tonight. It will be in the mid 40s.

This will be my first winter with finches. I have two large cage aviaries near a dining room window. Yesterday it was windy and a bit cooler. I noticed that my cut throat pair were hiding in their nest most of the morning. I thought it was odd because usually they are out and about. Then I realized it was much cooler out and a bit windy due to Hurricane Sandy edging by Florida. Our windows are old and only one pane. It doesn't take much to get drafts through them.

I know to keep some light lamps on them and last night I went out and bought a thick blanket and put it around the larger aviary cage facing the window. The smaller cage I placed a thick towel towards the window. I actually turned the heat on this morning just to take the chill off the air. The heating vent is on the other side of the dining room.

Should I buy a small heater to place by their cages? Or will blankets and lamps be enough? Any advice will be appreciated!!

[Sally]

Some of my birds are in an unheated back room, so I use one of those oil-filled heaters that look like old-fashioned radiators. I got the more expensive model that has a digital thermostat, set it to 60 degrees F, and it keeps this small (9x10) room comfortable through even the coldest nights. My breeding room is on the north/west corner of an older house, so sometimes it is cooler in there than the rest of the house. Since I like it cool at night for myself, I put another one of those heaters in that room (12x14). It keeps the temperatures up for breeding birds. For occasional use, you could probably get by with the less expensive model that doesn't have the digital thermostat, just set it on low heat.

[finchmix22]

I bought an electric indoor/outdoor heater, for about $90 bucks on Amazon and I use it in my bird room. It have low, medium and high heat, so I can very the temp. This keeps them warm during winter. I have two cages in my family room and they have heat lamps on three side of the cages, and a light weight material type of curtain sheer, that goes over the top and on the fourth side, to keep out drafts and AC/Heat from vents. They seem to do fairly well, but I watch them as they are by a window as are yours.

[30 Seconds to Bob]

The blankets and the heat lamps are probably all that you will need. You may however want to look into getting a "convection control film" applied to the window near the cage. It's not the normal window tint we usually use in Florida, but it will help to eliminate the drafts. Bob