aggresive finch

[brenleigh]

Hi, everyone. I'm Brenda and this is my first visit.
I had a lonely white zebra finch for 3yrs. and decided to get him some cage mates. He is a male and I purchased 3 more male zebra finches to house with him. When I brought them home, I removed my original finch from the cage, rearranged the perches etc. and placed all into the cage at the same time. My problem is that one of the new birds is being very aggresive towards my original white finch; ie: excessive picking, chasing and did I really hear him hiss at my boy!?!
I removed the aggressive one to a cage by himself and placed it in another room of the house, hoping that when I return him to the flock in a week, he won't be so bad 'cause he'll be the boy in town. Did I do the right thing? They are in a flight cage 30"Wx35"Hx18"D. Please help me out with any advise and suggestions so I can make this work. He was my first pick for his coloring and he has the best song. I don't want to have to re-home him. The shop where I got him has a no return policy.

[Finch Fry]

Hi, welcome.

Your cage is a bit small for so many finches and will without question induce large territorial stress.

Not that I don't believe you, but is there a possibility that some or any of the finches are female? If so, this would be the source of aggression as they are competing for her. If not, then it may be them trying to establish a pecking order. You will have a "top dog" and that will be established fairly quickly. The pecking should stop and should not result in any feather loss or plucking, if so, well, you may just have to rehome him.

Finches are like people, some times, they just dont get along. I dont like everyone I meet.

[brenleigh]

Really!!! You think my cage is small?? I thought it was quite large and was thinking of adding more. I wanted to add 3 females so that there were more than the 6 in a cage as recommendation in the info. link.

[Finch Fry]

according to your posted numbers.. 30 wide by 18 deep is barely large enough for 2 finches. The height is irrelevant in determining space consideration for finches since they need horizontal flight distance to exercise and maintain health.

Also, a side note, never more males than females, the odd man out gets really pissed and will aggravate and compete for a hen and you will have fighting for SURE. Best solution is ALWAYS more females than males.

GL!

[brenleigh]

Thanks for that info. I will definately NOT be getting any more but, I will stick with the 4 males I have. I tried to add a pic but it was too big. I will try to re-size it and try again.
So, should I continue to keep the aggressive one away for a few days and then re-introduce him to the rest, or just put him back and let them work it out on their own?
I really appreciate you sharing your knowledge with me.

[Finch Fry]

I have experience with 1, 2 same sex, 2 opposite sex and 3+. All work out just fine. The 2 males are brothers, they are just fine. 2 opposite sex breed like rabbits. The 3+ mixed zeb is fine but there is always a top dog and he rules the roost.

The general thing most will say is not to have 3 males in the cage. 2 will buddy up and pick on the 3rd. 4 or more is better, there is too much going on for one to pick on the other and everything stays pretty chill.

Personally, my suggestion... get rid of 2 of the finches (keep the original one and the aggressive one you love so much if they can get along). Or at a minimum try putting one pair together in one cage, and the other 2 in another cage. They will both have a buddy and will have the proper size cage they need to reduce their stress. I think one of these 2 options is ideal.

[brenleigh]

Okay. Her's a pic of my 4 zebras. Pretty sure they are all males.
I will take your suggestions to heart and definately NOT get any more.
The 3 seem to get along fine without the aggressive one(he's the lighter colored one on the lower perch).
I really want them all together in the same cage, so, I think I will put him back in a week and hope for the best.
I want to learn all I can about finches, so keep the suggestions comin'.

[dfcauley]

Yes, it looks like they are all males...... but you really need another cage and have just two in each cage. Zebras can be very agressive.....

[ac12]

The 3 new ones look like all males, based on the cheek patch.

I read and was told that "sometimes" white birds will get picked on. In fact I have a pied zebra chick that the mother chased so much that I had to split the family, with dad having the pied chick.

Sometimes, once they get their pecking order figured out, they will mellow down. But sometimes not... So you need to keep an eye on the aggressive male and your white. If you keep all 4 in the same cage, be prepared to rehome the aggressive male if he does not mellow down.

BTW I had to give 3 of my zebra juveniles to one of the local stores, as they were WAY to aggressive to any new bird in THEIR cage.

[cindy]

Try this...can you add some silk or plastic big leaf/stemmed plants to the cage for the odd man out to fly into and hide, put a few into each corner, it may help slow things down a bit.

This my RCCB cage I have it heavily planted in the middle and side but leave the center open so the can fly back and forth. Do you have any nest for them to go and roost in?

[brenleigh]

I didn't know that about the whites being picked on. Thanks. The other 2 new ones like him just fine.
If the aggressive one doesn't let up on my white when I put him back, I will just keep him in a separate cage and enjoy him like that.
Thanks for the tip about leafy fake leaves. I will definately try that. I'll try anything to make this work.
No. I don't have any kind of nest available for them. I didn't think they needed one unless there were females in there wanting to lay. If I need one, could you possibly post a pic of what kind?

[Finch Fry]

no no, you dont need one. they will be just fine without it. The nest will only stimulate aggression due to breeding drive as induced by the nest.

[franny]

I didn't know that about the whites being picked on. Thanks. The other 2 new ones like him just fine.
.....

For some reason, most finches like white feathers for lining their nests. Could be that the aggressive one is just in a mood to breed and is plucking the only white feathers he can find...

I agree, no nest is best.. and when there is any sign of agression, especially then.

Did you check out the cage size calculator at the Finch Info Centre?

http://www.finchinfo.com/housing/cage_s ... ulator.php

If the extra "plant" cover doesn't settle things down, then yes, I'd split them, 2 to a cage, and they will likely become best buddies.

[cindy]

no no, you dont need one. they will be just fine without it. The nest will only stimulate aggression due to breeding drive as induced by the nest.

Ooops,nest/ thoughts: a place to hide! Try the plants with big leaves they can hide behind instead.

[ac12]

I have seen some of my zebras hiding in the large size feed tray below. They get in and get down low.

At least I think I have the 6oz size.