My two new canaries

[Stuart whiting]

lovezebs

Yer absolutely right there Elana about the baths, my birds have the opportunity to bath on a daily basis if they wish,

Young canaries will start to bath at around 5 weeks of age if given the chance,

If a bird refuses to bath the only other option which I've done in the past is to spray them gently with a fine mist spray from the typical type of plant sprayers that one would find from the local garden centre

[debbie276]

Your photos look to have tree branches for perches. These are actually better for their feet than the store bought perches which are only dowels with slots cut in the ends.
And they're easily replaced with a trip around your yard or to a local park. Any semi-straight branch with the bark left on will do fine.

Absolutely agree with using natural branches for the added exercise they offer to the feet of birds. Would not and do not use dowels at all in any of my cages/aviaries.
Very nice birds, best of luck

[debbie276]

Most of the fruit tree branches are perfectly safe for yer birds but still need to look for the clean branches without traces of fungi and fruit trees are badly know for fungi,

There are many here that soak the branches in a bleach water and dry and/or bake smaller branches in their ovens to kill any bugs and/or mold on the branch. You just can't beat the look and benefit of natural branches.

[Stuart whiting]

Most of the fruit tree branches are perfectly safe for yer birds but still need to look for the clean branches without traces of fungi and fruit trees are badly know for fungi,

There are many here that soak the branches in a bleach water and dry and/or bake smaller branches in their ovens to kill any bugs and/or mold on the branch. You just can't beat the look and benefit of natural branches.

I really do very much agree here Debbie in an ideal world yes you can't beat natural perching,

If you read me post above I mentioned how I used to use conifer ( evergreen ) in 30 ft - 10 mtr avaires for cover,

However for convenience and ease of cleaning etc I'd never knock the use of dowl perching in various thicknesses

[debbie276]

Most of the fruit tree branches are perfectly safe for yer birds but still need to look for the clean branches without traces of fungi and fruit trees are badly know for fungi,

There are many here that soak the branches in a bleach water and dry and/or bake smaller branches in their ovens to kill any bugs and/or mold on the branch. You just can't beat the look and benefit of natural branches.

I really do very much agree here Debbie in an ideal world yes you can't beat natural perching,

If you read me post above I mentioned how I used to use conifer ( evergreen ) in 30 ft - 10 mtr avaires for cover,

However for convenience and ease of cleaning etc I'd never knock the use of dowl perching in various thicknesses

Agree to disagree ... JMO

[Stuart whiting]

debbie276

Oh ok, fair do's, no more comment

[paul-inAZ]

Hydrogen peroxide is a very effective germicide. The drug store concentration is fine. To fully sterilize you'd need industrial concentration H2O2.
Disinfecting is sufficient. There is no practical need to go to the next level which is sterilizing unless you are cleaning medical instruments.

For disinfecting tree branches or perches a quick and easy way after washing them off is to wet the wood with hydrogen peroxide and immediately follow with a wipe or spray of ordinary vinegar. Done!
This combination is far more effective than either liquid alone and kills virtually all of the pathogens of concern without the chlorine of bleach.

[Stuart whiting]

Nothing wrong with good old soapy hot water and rinsed and then left to dry,

Couldn't get any easier

[lem2bert]

artgecko

Absolutely love your new canaries !!! I would just let them fly from the perches you do have in there until your new perches come in. Canaries love to fly from one end of the cage to the other !!

[Shannylee]

Congratulations on your new canaries and budgies. Very pretty birds!

[artgecko]

Paul / Stuart- They are branches, but I did buy them at the show with the hardware already attached. I was shocked at how cheap they were (like $6 each) much less than shops sell them for online. We have some crate myrtle (sp?) trees in our back yard and I saw that they were on the "safe list" for perches. When we trim them up this year, I will get my husband to save some of the limbs for perches. Should they be dried a few months before using in the cage?

lovezebs- Thank you for the advice! I was wondering if I fed a mix of 2-3 different kinds of seeds if the birds would "pick and choose" what each species wanted / needed. It is good to know that is working for you. I fed them veggies today (shredded carrot, zucchini, kale, spinach, radish, red and green bell pepper) with some pro-biotic powder, kelp powder, a small amount of "miracle meal" sample I got from Laraine, and their crushed egg shell. The canaries pulverized theirs while the budgies haven't even been to the ground to investigate theirs... I swear those budgies don't move from their main perch much at all.. The breeder said show budgies aren't as active as parakeets and he wasn't kidding.

I will attach a better pic of the yellow female below..when she is actually dry and looks good. There were females with brighter yellow color, but she had the best form of them all. I would like to know what you guys think about her nails..I think the foot in the front is in focus. They look long to me and the other female is the same, but I don't want to stress them out yet to catch them and try to trim them. I also need to order a bird net to use to catch them as the show didn't have one. If you have any tips on this (trimming or catching) I'd love to hear them.

[artgecko]

sharon- Thanks! I'm very excited and think I'm already "hooked".. There is another show in November and I may just have to go back and get a couple more females to go with this pair and possibly get a male to put in a separate cage.

[paul-inAZ]

Crepe myrtle is OK as is almost any tree for your canaries. Canaries won't gnaw on wood. Its only the hook bills that chew on wood where you have to think about "safety". Even then I think the dangers are overstated.
No need to dry them out. I often use them the day they are cut although when cutting I usually get a few extras that may sit around for a long time before use.
Leave the bark on. Its good for their toe nails and they also hone their beaks on the rough texture of the bark.

[artgecko]

Just saw the second page of the thread lol...Thanks for the info on cleaning the branches. I have both hydrogen peroxide and vinegar on hand, so that should work for me pretty well.

lem2bert- Thanks! I've seen them flying around quite frequently already.

I'd like to add a couple more short perches, one between the two I already have (but lower so it doesn't upset the flight pattern between those two) and possibly another low one near the front to provide space for more feeders. I think I've got a sand or mineral perch coming in my Amazon order, so hopefully that will help their nails. I'd also like to see if they would use swings. I've read canaries like them.

Shannylee and debbie- Thanks! I am liking the canaries more than the budgies at the moment...much more entertaining so far. The hens will "call" to each other like they are having a conversation and will sometimes answer me too when I speak to them. They have only peeped / chirped so far, but each has a different voice which makes it interesting to listen to.

After having these two, I'm really excited about adding maybe 2 more females to their cage and then getting a male... It will be a tough choice whether to go with an American singer male or a fife.. the other breeder had fifes and I heard one of them sing..I really liked his flute notes, but am not sure if he would be louder than the AS males. The breeder said that he probably would, just like his timbrados. The next show is in November, so I have some time to decide.

[Sheather]

Your budgies will become more active as they settle, I have two English among my large flock of "normals" and they are no less energetic than the smaller guys. Very playful guys, always on the go. I don't find their personalities majorly different, with the exception of the English budgies being naturally more mellow. They tame more easily, and even without work, they're calmer being held and handled than American parakeets. I've never been bitten by one.