A couple owl questions

[cindy]

Dante, this needs to be timed and the eggs have to be shipped when it is warm out. The eggs will not survive the cold temperatures loaded into the cargo area of a plane transporting mail, no heat. The altitude temps are freezing, especially now.

Your societies must be ready to nest, possibly sitting on eggs that are dudes or fake eggs. Also you societies need to clean and free of canker/parasites in order for the chicks to survive. Once you get a pair I would treat with Ronex or Ronivet 12% and deworm. Allow your societies after treaing with preventitives to raise a few fosters to ensure they are up to the task.

Zebra will foster other zebra eggs so there is no need to go get societies just for zebra eggs.

[Anne73]

I had purchased a little owl finch and was surprised how loud and how much time he spent calling. It would start calling in the morning too before it was light out. We could hear him from upstairs when he was downstairs. They are such cute little birds, but I ended up selling him to another finch lover, because he was just too loud for us. I have had zebras too for years, but his sound was too much to enjoy.

[cindy]

Anne, owls do better if with another owl or a colony...it may have been calling out for a fellow owl to answer back or for companionship. I am very hesitant about removing a single owl from the colony, they call loudly across the room to each other.

[Anne73]

YEs, that may have been it on his loud calling.

[Sally]

Yes, Owls are definitely colony birds and do not like to be alone. You can use this fact to sex them. Place one bird in a cage out of sight of any other birds, and within 15 minutes, it will start to sing if it is a male. There is always the chance that you have one of the very submissive males that hesitates to sing at all, but most of the time, if the bird does not sing in 15 minutes, it is a hen.

[finchmix22]

I had purchased a little owl finch and was surprised how loud and how much time he spent calling. It would start calling in the morning too before it was light out. We could hear him from upstairs when he was downstairs. They are such cute little birds, but I ended up selling him to another finch lover, because he was just too loud for us. I have had zebras too for years, but his sound was too much to enjoy.

I am surprised the Owl finch call was bothersome. I love their meow-like chirps and calls, especially in the am, as my personal alarm clock. Not too loud, but enough to wake me up. Owl finches are one of my favs.

[cindy]

Deborah, some of the alarm calls or if they are separated can get loud, especially if responding to a bird outside. It is not the normal soft sounds but it is more of an alert signal sound! All birds do it but the owls being quiet and having a soft song surprised me how we can hear this one alert call all the way across the house.