FINCHforum

A quick question in need of a quick answer.
Is it okay to add FLAX SEED to finch mixes, or not?

~Elana~

I do, and I also add it to my sprouting mix. For sprouting it is way sticky until it reaches a certain stage, though, and kind of a pain to work with in that regard, but dry it's not an issue.

KarenB
So it should be okay to add to my mix then.
I had bought a large bag of wild finch seed. Nice and fresh and smells really good. However it doesn't have some of the tiny seeds. So I picked up a couple of bags of red millet, white millet, nijer, flax, canary seed, sunflower meats, plus a bag of tiny finch seeds (for the wax bill contingent). I mixed them all together, except for the flax, wasn't sure about it. Now I'll add the flax in as well and mix it all together.

Thanks Karen.

~Elana~

Elana - I used to take some of the flax seed (from the health food store) and sprinkle it on my flower beds. The resulting plants had beautiful sky-blue flowers and eventually round little seed capsules. My birds really liked the half-ripe (still greenish/whitish) seeds. In the beginning I had to open up these seed capsules so my birds could learn to pick out the seeds, but they caught on really quickly. What I especially liked about these half-ripe seeds was that they were not as high in fat/oil as the mature seeds.
Iso

My birds won't touch flax seeds. I phased out the mixture I was using that had them.

And I second the sticky. They throw them out on the floor and then bathe and they get stuck to the concrete...

My canaries love them.

Colt & Sheather

So one con and one pro...
Seeing as I already have a bag of them anyway, I may as well add some into my mixture. If they eat them, fine, and if they don't, I'll toss them to the outdoor crew.

BTW Dylan, love the picture of a handfull of Socies.

~Elana~

Thank you! They were adorable.

I'm not sure if any of my other birds eat the flax or not. It comes mixed in my seedmix. I know the cockatiel likes it too, but you don't have any of those.

isobea
Thanks Iso.
Problem is lol, is that my poor flower beds are under a foot and a half of snow at the moment.... I might just try to soak or boil them, and see what happens.


~Elana~

Sheather
Hi Dylan.
I know that some of the mixes have them and some don't. I did find an article somewhere, that mentioned that they are fine in moderation (what ever that means... one seed a day? five seeds a week?) I guess I'll put some into my mix and see how it goes. I'll try to sprout and or boil some, and see what happens. Iso, mentions that you can grow them in the flower beds too and serve the young, unripe seeds as well. The rest I'll bag and throw in the freezer.

~Elana~

Elana - I guess I forgot to mention that I grew (and fed) flax seeds to the birds I had back then: European goldfinches, south American siskins and canaries. They all need a lot more oily seeds. I don't think the birds I have now (African and Australian finches) care for them. You could always put the flax seed that you already bought into a coffee grinder (a little at a time) and then add it to cereal, granola, muffins and such. Very nutritious for us people, too. Our bodies cannot benefit from them if they pass through our system whole (hence the coffee grinder).
Iso

PS: I've been watching the crazy humongous cold front covering most of the US - I guess we are in one of the few warm spots (79 F predicted for today with dry Santa Ana winds from the desert)...

I just had another thought: I sprinkle some sesame seeds over my seed mixes every day and it's always gone by noon. Maybe that would be a healthier option for these types of birds (still oily but not as much as flax seed). What do you all think?
Iso

isobea
Thanks Iso.
Sesame seeds will probably be appreciated by everyone.
As for the Flax, I do have a Canary as well, and I wonder if the Budgies will be interested. (?)

As to the weather....
Today is actually bearable. -1c, no wind, and the sun is shining. Things are begining to melt. The problem is, is that whatever melts in the day time, freezes up again at sunset, which makes for icy conditions the next morning.

~Elana~

Elana - I remember those days - I lived in northern Germany for 31 years! Oh the joys of driving on icy roads... Southern CA is a lot more to my liking these days. Stay warm and safe,
Iso

isobea
California? Safe?
We won't mention wild fires and earthquakes.... LOL...
Never liked the weather here, but after so many years here, I don't think I could stand the ~ HEAT~ anymore either. I don't know what would suit me anymore. I tend to enjoy temperatures ranging between 16-22 c. Where am I going to find that year around? Haahaaha...

~Elana~