Finch Palace A.K.A. My newly built cage!

societyspice · Post by **societyspice** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 2:19 am

I've wanted to build my birds a much larger cage for a while now, but wasn't quite sure how to go about it or what I could use as a tray. Then, at work this summer, they dismantled one of the rolling carts and were going to throw the tray away... Instead, it went home with me and at that point, I just kind of jumped in and built the thing (with some help and lots of advice from my roommate.)

I put all my pictures on a slideshow on this link for anyone who cares to see:

http://www.geocities.com/hcarrel26/Finch.html

reddstagg · Post by **reddstagg** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 4:09 am

Extremely nice setup... I think i'm convinced to strain my aviary a dark color... it looks magnificent. I'm sure your going to get many good years out of that setup.

I'm just curious though, as i'm yet to get my finches, i was told that a wider cage is better than a taller cage... are the finches capable of flying straight up to the higher perches from the ground? or have they got to zig zag up the sides of the cage?

Dean

TammyS · Post by **TammyS** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 9:27 am

Very nicely done and I love how you did the slideshow! I am sure your birds are enjoying their new Finch Palace!

tammieb · Post by **tammieb** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 5:02 pm

Very well done. It reminds me of my first aviary. You can house more birds in a wider space but sometimes you just don't have the room or in your case, the base dictated the size of the cage. The finches soon learn how to fly straight up Dean and it is good exercise!

zookeeper · Post by **zookeeper** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 5:42 pm

Oooooh. TOO nice!

societyspice · Post by **societyspice** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 10:23 pm

reddstagg wrote:
I'm just curious though, as i'm yet to get my finches, i was told that a wider cage is better than a taller cage... are the finches capable of flying straight up to the higher perches from the ground? or have they got to zig zag up the sides of the cage?

Dean

You're right about the cage being better if it was wider than tall.

There are several reasons my cage ended up being the size it is. First, the tray determined the length and width. (I also am currently renting a room, so the cage needed to fit in the 12x12 space, in addition to my bed, desk, TV, and mountain bike!)

The height, however, was determined by a number of factors. I wanted to be able to put potted plants in the cage and I didn't want them to take up too much of the open space, so I thought that by having the cage start from an almost floor level, I'd alleviate this. Also, I wanted to put the cage on wheels so that I could move it by myself if I had to (I assumed I would not be able to lift it by myself.) Additionally, the wire I used was 3 feet wide, so I simply stacked two pieces on top of each other for 6 feet of height. Initially, I forgot to include approximately 1.5 feet extra to account for the base and the wheels and didn't really realize this until after the panels were complete.

If I was going to build it again, I would probably consider building a stand to cut the height in half (and so I wouldn't always have to break it down everytime I move.) However, I don't regret anything I did. It's the first thing of this proportion that I've ever built and I learned A LOT in the process. It's a very rewarding feeling.

I must admit that when I first got my finches, I didn't realize that they actually required wider cages. My first cage was one of those tall kinds you see in the store for parakeets, so needless to say, my birds were cramped and they had to fly straight up and down (for almost 4 years!!) I'm really happy I built the larger cage and that I discovered this website.

Heike

zookeeper · Post by **zookeeper** » Sun Jan 07, 2007 10:25 pm

Your new finch palace is plenty wide, don't worry about that. The extra height is just a bonus they may not fully appreciate.

jonvill · Post by **jonvill** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 6:25 pm

BRAVO!
Nice work on the cage and the slide show was amazing too!
Your birds will love their new home and as you said you were only housing three finches in there the height vs width isn't a major factor.

kenny · Post by **kenny** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 8:48 am

ideal space for the occupants well done on the sldie show and the cage build

ken