FINCHforum

Hi,
Although I'm not new to owning birds (I was raised alongside very tame cockatiels and budgies) I am about to become the new owner of two zebra finches. My roommate's finch couple have been raising two chicks for about two weeks now. They are almost fledglings - their feathers are developed (out of sheaths) and it seems as if they'll be leaving the nest fairly soon. I'm aware that fledglings still require the attention and feeding of their parents for quite some time, but I'm not sure how long. I'm wondering when it is acceptable to transfer them from their parents cage. Also I've been reading a lot of about cases of tame finches and I'm very interested in trying to gain their trust and have them be comfortable with sitting on me. Is it wise to try to start hand-feeding at this point? Or is it acceptable to handle them a little bit each day (not feeding but just handling) or will the parents then reject them? Is it crucial for me to attempt taming before they are taught to be wild by their parents? Thanks

[First of all I do not think that you would be able to hand feed them at this age. They would not accept it.
You cannot remove them from their parents until they are eating and drinking on their own. It usually takes 2-3 weeks after they fledge.

I won't say that you cannot tame them because there are some on here that have tamed finches, but I think it would be very difficult. Finches really do not like to be handled. They are not like other tame birds.

They really prefer to be fed and left alone.

One fellow on this forum has tamed Java Rice Finches. Not easy to do, I don't think. But maybe your experience with other tame birds will help?

http://www.finchforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=3115

I've seperated by zebra chicks after they were about 8-9 days old and started hand-raising them. They're just over 3 weeks old and presently they still don't mind being handled.
It'll be interesting to see if that continues until they reach full adulthood.

The BCCB chick that I fed from hatching was joyful every time she saw me until just before she was ready to fledge - then she started to back away like any normal finch chick. Once she fledged I've become the Big Bad Hand in the Cage, just like with all of my other birds.

Best of luck, though, and if you're successful I'm sure that folks will want to know how you did it!