FINCHforum

Please share experiences with helping ur society finches survive summer heat.
And especially how high the temperature they managed to do well in on long term ongoing basis throughout all of summer.

90s to 101 esp

Also since need to avoid drafts, how provide fan(s) in really hot weather without drafty for society finches.

I was afraid last yr to open window by them in morning due to cross breeze from outside door. Mornings very breezy which can provide good cooling but was afraid too drafty for them.

zebsoc

I have the same problem in the summer. I have a 3 season porch so starting in the late spring I haul cages out there. It has windows on all sides so I open as many as I can and cover one side of the cages so they can get out of the draft and have had no problems. It is very sunny so they love it.

zebsoc

As long as they have fresh water to bath in and drink, I think they should be ok.

I open window in the birdroom whenever the weather is nice and no one seems to have a problem with a bit of a cross breeze (as long as it's not a cold wind).

If your opening a window, and there is a breeze, make sure you remove their bath water about an hour before (wet birds, cool wind, not a good combo).

lem2bert - thank you for sharing. Sounds like ur birds have a lovely place during the summer to stay cool.
lovezebs - thank you for your help and warning on the bath with window open

What about fans vs window?
During day i use fans to move the air in livingroom.
As long as I don't aim them directly at the birds?

I'm new to my area and last year we had 90s and 100s most of the time for at least a couple months in a row. We had 100s for a week up to 108. (We can start getting 90s as early as May)
My apartment with Single pane windows that the afternoon sun hits full force and which is the only area I have for the bird cage skyrockets in the afternoon.
With no insulation in walls nor attic plus single pane windows, the apartment toasts for 2-3 months.

zebsoc

I also use fans for circulation , just don't aim them at the bird. It is good to have air circulation even for us humans !!!

Summer when???? We all worry about our little ones,I find myself open and closing windows in the bird room till the heat get in they I usually shut there light of on one side of there cage,make sure sun isn't directly on them and make sure they have plenty of fresh water to drink and take baths the heat doesn't seem to bother them
As much as it bothers me.

lem2bert - thank you good to know it's ok to have fans as long as not aimed at birds
Yes it gets really stuffy without good air movement in apartment

I'm used to climate that 80s were the highs and a couple days of 90 was a heat wave.
I love the heat due to my health (if not for my health I'd prefer 70s) but as long as I can keep air circulating I don't mind apartment at a Max of 100 for myself, just wasn't sure if finches could survive temperatures that high.

Barbara - thank you for ur post and help

It is a little strange thinking about summer when outside we're having a big storm today
One thing about my new town is that summer is guaranteed to come and to be very very toasty.
I'm really looking forward to the warmer weather.
Just worried since the society finches doing really well with this cool weather, how to manage it for them in summer.

For fish tank I can drop some ice cubes in to help lower the temperature if getting too high.

Can I put an ice cube in the bath water or would that be too cold for them?

zebsoc

The sudden change in temperature can shock and kill fish, so please don't put any ice cubes in the aquarium water.

It's probably better not to put ice cubes in the birds' bath water either-it would be too much of a temperature change for them.

zebsoc

I had a similar question during last years summer heat, but what I was told was use cold water from the fridge and changed it twice a day so it would be more refreshing my birds. That seemed to do the trick !!

zebsoc

NO ICE CUBES!!!

For fish tank, you can slowly add some cool water, (while removing some warm water) so that you can gradually lower very high temps.

For birds, just cool water, no ice, no ice water.

Didn't have AC in the old house, all my birds including many many socies over the years, all did really well. Room got to 100 degrees in the summer with only a box fan to ventilate (it did have opening windows but rarely got a breeze on those days.)

Finches take heat well I found, if they can gradually get used to it. I kept the fan blowing into the room but not directly on any birds. Just to move the air around.

Well, a few ice cubes in an aquarium is probably 1% water from the cubes and 99% already warm water. I don't see a problem. I've put ice cubes in fish tanks before, a few cubes in a 20 gallon (75 liter) tank. Put a thermometer in the water, and you'll be surprised that a few ice cubes don't cool the water very much at all. Anyway, water in the wild isn't uniformly a single temperature, it varies.

A better idea, I think, is to have a fan blow air across the top of the tank. This increases evaporation from the tank water, and that evaporation cools the water.

Society finches, if they are indeed domesticated Lonchura striata, evolved in (mostly) tropical areas. They should be able to take the heat.