FINCHforum

Hi I am just about to set up my first aviary exclusively for British bred birds. I will be housing goldfinches, greenfinches, siskins and redpoles to start off with...
I have looked at some various sites regards diet but would welcome any feedback / advise as to what would be the best alround diet for all of them in the same enclosure? I have read that sunflower hearts are a no go in captivity but surely a few on the odd occasion would not harm? Am I correct or wrong?
So basically is there any wild bird mixture I can buy that will cater for all the birds nutritional requirements, or will I have to cater for each breed individually??
Any advise would be much appreciated....

Welcome to the forum!

Where are you located? In the US, Abba Seed has a diet especially for Goldfinches and Siskins: http://www.abbaseed.com/Seed_Products/M ... /3800.html

This ABBA seed is fantastic for your goldfinches, siskins, redpolls
I have use to raise the goldfinches and they thrived on this food.

Ursula wrote:Welcome to the forum!

Where are you located? In the US, Abba Seed has a diet especially for Goldfinches and Siskins: http://www.abbaseed.com/Seed_Products/M ... /3800.html

I'm based in England, uk so was looking for a supplier from this neck of the woods really..

Go to John Wrenne British bird forum and you will everything you need.
Tell them Jerry from Canada sent you there.
Its a great site with very helpful people.

Jerry

BigBear0007 wrote:Go to John Wrenne British bird forum and you will everything you need.
Tell them Jerry from Canada sent you there.
Its a great site with very helpful people.

Jerry

Thanks Jerry I'll have a butchers at that site and see what I find...

Kernoo wrote:

BigBear0007 wrote:Go to John Wrenne British bird forum and you will everything you need.
Tell them Jerry from Canada sent you there.
Its a great site with very helpful people.

Jerry

Thanks Jerry I'll have a butchers at that site and see what I find...

Not really found what I'm after on that site tbh Jerry, unless I'm looking in the wrong places.. I can find all about the individual breeds in the wild but can't see information about dietary requirement for aviary kept British bred finches... not to worry, I'll continue my search!!

http://www.cagefrontspunchbar.com/forums/index.php

Follow the link.

Jerry

Hi, do your goldfinches eat live mealworms? Mine doesn't want to touch them. She just takes a look, but is not interested. Do you think she'll try them eventually or do I have to think of some other way of including them in her diet?

Kernoo Whereabouts in the UK are you based? If your near Essex i would strongly recommend visiting this site http://www.thegoldfinchman.com

Its owned by an experienced Goldfinch breeder who imports the seeds specially in from Belgium.

I have never seen healthier birds.

I hope this helps.
Max.

I think Blattner's seed is the best option.
Try this link to Garden Feathers Bird Products:
http://www.gardenfeathers.co.uk/versele ... finch.html

What size is your aviary?

Thanks for your reply. Originally I'm from Poland, but I live in Maine, U.S. now. Pet stores here don't carry any seed mix that would meet the goldfinch's needs and I'm not sure I can order the Blattner's mix or any other seed mix from Europe. For now I'm feeding her a mix of seeds that contains canary grass seed, white and japanese millet, nyjer, rape and black lettuce seed, flaxseed, sunflower hearts and oats. Are there any other types of seeds that are vital for her health and I should add to my mix? I'm thinking of ordering milk thistle and hemp seeds for her too. She also gets plenty of greens, grated carrot and boiled egg with shell and bee pollen everyday as well as F-Vite (vitamin & mineral powder) The only thing she doesn't want to eat are the mealworms, hence my question. What do you think about this seed mix:

http://store.birdiebitsnbites.com/catal ... p-895.html

Your Goldfinches might eat meal worms when they are nesting and need to feed the young. Many normally seed-eating finches turn "carnivorous" when they have young... but then won't eat them the rest of the time.

Other than that, the diet you described sounds good. You can try millet spray, hemp and milk thistle too. And don't forget green food. In winter, I just buy pre-packaged assorted-green "salad" mixes at the grocery store and my birds eat them right up.

Goldfinches are nice birds - a little jumpy perhaps - but they can calm down, eventually. I had a pair of Goldfinches that liked nyjer seed so much that they would fly over and eat it from my hand!