What do you do with your baby finches?

steph · Post by **steph** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 2:53 am

I'm new to finches, and I was wondering what you all do or plan to do with the finches you breed...Do you breed them to sell? To give away to friends? What happens when you run out of room in your enclosure(s)?

atarasi · Post by **atarasi** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 3:52 am

This is a great question. I think most people don't even really think about that until they have too many. Speaking of myself, I sell my birds at a small bird store. I don't sell them for profit, I sell them to purchase food or supplies. If I have a clutch of 4-5, I'll keep one of them to go forward with. Some people trade them for new bloodlines, some give them away, some rent a booth at a bird mart to sell to the public.
I don't think any of us are in it to make money.

gomer · Post by **gomer** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 3:54 am

Welcome to this disease called finch breeding.No matter how many aviaries you have you never seem to have enough.Try to have a spare cage/aviary designated for a holding cage to keep young.Some you may need to keep for extended periods Gouldians as a example may take up to nine months to get full adult plumage depending on what month they are born.If you are a member of your local bird club, that's one outlet for sales,Papers and pet stores can also be utilised.If you don't want to get a little money back then by all means give them to relatives.When you run out of room do as all finch keepers do build a new aviary.Then when you cant fit anymore in your yard,you soon find a market for the young.

mickp · Post by **mickp** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 9:06 pm

a lot of my young birds I will swap with other breeders for young unrelated birds. others are sold to reputable dealers.
cant imagine anyone with finches saying they are breeding them for the money and anyone that did say that would not be a person whom I would trust to care properly for their birds

Post by **Sally** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 1:21 am

This IS a great question. I think most of us breed for the sheer joy of it, it is so exciting when you have a successful clutch and you get to see those babies leave the nest for the first time. Then reality hits, when you have to go buy more cages to hold all those babies! That's why I always say to think about what you are going to do with those babies before you start breeding--of course, I didn't do that at all!

I've started taking my excess birds to marts, and a lot of selling and swapping is done between vendors and breeders before the public even enters the mart. I've done two marts now, and I am not disciplined enough to come home without any new birds.

I've tried giving birds to family, but they run away at the mere suggestion. Family and friends all think I'm nuts, so none of them are about to take any off my hands. If you can find a 'mom and pop' type petshop in your area, that could be an outlet. Seriously, it is something we all need to consider when we are breeding.

Post by **Hilary** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 2:01 am

Sally wrote:I've tried giving birds to family, but they run away at the mere suggestion. Family and friends all think I'm nuts, so none of them are about to take any off my hands.

My friend Kim actually wrote to Dr Phil to see if an intervention is in order!

I bring mine to marts, trade, and sell the occasional bird to people in my area. It helps that I have a friend who also breeds, and we often pool birds to provide buyers with specific pairs that they're looking for. I make sure never to breed birds that I know I won't be able to find homes for, though. As much as I love zebras, I only keep girls for just that reason.

L in Ontario · Post by **L in Ontario** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 8:24 am

I too trade when the opportunity arises. Otherwise I sell off the young over the internet (but everyone has to pick up the bird from me as I won't ship) that don't / won't fit into my breeding program. My family also "heads for the hills" if I talk too much about my birds.

Christopher Smith · Post by **Christopher Smith** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 2:12 pm

mickp wrote: cant imagine anyone with finches saying they are breeding them for the money and anyone that did say that would not be a person whom I would trust to care properly for their birds

I can’t say that I “do it for the money” but money is a factor. I feed about 100 pounds of food a month. On top of that I buy supplements and medication. I have to maintain my aviaries. I have to pay for a booth at bird marts. My birds, at the very minimum, have to pay their own way. On top of that the added income is used as hush money for my wife so that she allows me to spend time with the birds.

I don’t understand why people think that making money with birds in a negative thing. There is nothing unethical about it. The buyers hold you to a high standard. The healthier and more beautiful the birds are the more money they bring and the easier they are to sell. And if you want repeat customers you can’t sell them birds that can only survive with antibiotics in their system. You can’t make money selling trash.

Now if you don’t want to buy birds from me that’s OK. But it may be your loss.

Post by **Sally** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 2:30 pm

Christopher, you are obviously one of the good guys. I think what mickp meant, at least this is how I took it, is that there are people out there who basically run 'bird mills' just like 'puppy mills'. When I go to a bird mart, and someone is selling birds that they know nothing about, or state things that you definitely know to be wrong, or has way too many birds crammed into dirty cages, then I run the other way.

I applaud you for making money on your birds--I would love it if mine paid their own way! You are no doubt running your aviary like a business, well-planned and well-thought-out. Many, if not most, on this forum have the birds as a hobby, and selling the offspring is simply a way to empty out cages, so we can buy more birds!

mickp · Post by **mickp** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 8:18 pm

thank you Sally.

gomer · Post by **gomer** » Thu Nov 13, 2008 2:30 am

The ones that are running their bird mills wont be doing it for long with finches.If you make enough to pay for seed and buy a few more birds you are ding well.

Christopher Smith · Post by **Christopher Smith** » Thu Nov 13, 2008 12:46 pm

Sally wrote:there are people out there who basically run 'bird mills' just like 'puppy mills'.

That’s an interesting idea. Where are these "finch millers"?

Many of the post on this forum are related to the health, breeding and feeding. It seems as if most of our problems we are encountering revolve around these issues. It seems that most of us have a hard time keeping our finches healthy and breeding. How are “finch millers” getting around the problems that we are having?

In dogs there is a big price discrepancy between a puppy mill dog and one bred by a responsible hobbyist. Yet in finches I don’t see this same discrepancy. Why do you think that is?

Have any of you ever seen a “finch mill”? How many finches were being raised? What species?

Post by **Sally** » Thu Nov 13, 2008 7:58 pm

Actually, I used the wrong terminology, since 'finch mills' implies they are breeding. Some may be breeding, mostly Zebras and Societies as they are easy to breed, but others are getting them who knows where. I've been to a flea market that had Zebras and parakeets so crammed into filthy cages that the birds could barely move. I even saw Cordon Bleus, too many in too small a dirty cage, and they did not look well at all. The lady claimed she had raised them.

So when I use the term 'finch mills' like 'puppy mills', basically I am referring to people who only have the finches in order to sell them, with no regard for proper care for the birds.

Post by **Hilary** » Fri Nov 14, 2008 3:19 am

I've seen canaries at bird marts that look like they came from "mills" - skinny, not good feather, and crammed into cages. No way would I bring one home without a VERY long quarantine. Much as I'd like to save everybody, those are birds I just can't spend money on.

L in Ontario · Post by **L in Ontario** » Fri Nov 14, 2008 8:18 am

I've seen some pretty sad conditions right in petshops (not a major chain) where too many finches were overcrowded in dirty cages. I even went so far as to take one (with permission) to the bathroom, to listen to it in a relatively quiet area, and yes, I heard air sac mites clicking. I gave the bird back and told them ALL their birds should be treated for ASM. Then I left the store. I'll never go back there.