Creating My First Home for Finches

If you are new to the hobby and have some "newbie" questions - feel free to post them here! :0)
Post Reply
Mythic Silence
Pip
Pip
Posts: 2
Joined: Tue Dec 11, 2018 11:25 am

Creating My First Home for Finches

Post by Mythic Silence » Thu Dec 13, 2018 1:26 am

Greetings,
Cage.jpg
Cage2.jpg
Cage3.jpg
I just finished setting up the home for my finches. I would greatly appreciate feedback and suggestions since this is my first time housing finches and I want things to go as smoothly as possible. :)

~ Please note that the window you see in the picture looks out on a fully enclosed indoor/outdoor room with storm screens, so it isn’t a truly “exterior” window and no drafts come through. I promise that the cage is placed in the warmest, coziest part of the home. :)

~ I will be purchasing 2 male zebra finches since I have no plans to breed and don’t want to have to worry about egg laying or potential binding. From what I’ve read 2 males in a large cage should get along well. Please let me know if there’s anything more I can do to promote harmony between the pair.

~ Cage is 37x23x48 and the 2 finches will be the only occupants.

~ Plants are artificial – no fake berries or foam or anything. I soaked them in hot water with vinegar and rinsed them before adding them to the cage.

~ I’m using newspaper to line the pull out tray.

~ I have a variety of perches in the cage including a wooden platform for resting little birdie feet and a small flagstone as a natural, foot safe way to file their nails. Does the number and variety of perches seem about right? I don’t want to create an obstacle course, but I also don’t want them to only be able to spasm back and forth between a couple perches.

~ I’m feeding a mix of seed and pellets. This is the seed: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00F1 ... UTF8&psc=1 And these are the pellets: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001L ... UTF8&psc=1

~ Fresh foods will be offered several times a week (spinach, carrots, broccoli, apples without seeds, sprouted seeds, and hard-boiled egg with shell bits will be the most common offerings). A cuttlebone will always be available. There are 2 food, 2 water dishes, and a treat cup in the cage to help prevent squabbles.

~The light in the picture is an avian sun lamp. The room where the finches live doesn’t get oodles of natural light (largely due to the aforementioned indoor/outdoor room on the back of the house), and I wanted to supply vitamin D.

~ I do not have a nest in the cage – I’ve found mixed information about whether or not that would be a good idea for two males. If I add a nest should I add 2 to prevent fighting, or is any nest at all an issue because they cannot breed? Also, if adding a nest is a good idea, how difficult are they to keep clean?

~ I had some toys on hand designed for hookbills –natural shredding type toys. Will the finches ignore them or enjoy them? Would they see them as nesting material and become frustrated by the lack of nests (or inability to breed if I add a nest or nests to the setup)?

~ I typically use Method brand cleaners in my kitchen and bathrooms – I’ve heard these are okay to use if you have birds. Does anyone have any experience with them? I won’t be using them in the same room as the birds, but I live in a small A-frame style house, so even with the bathroom door closed and the exhaust fan on during cleaning, I know my paranoia will be running at high levels when it comes to fumes. (I will use vinegar and water for cage cleaning)

Thank you for taking the time to look and offer suggestions! I know this was a lot of questions and information. :)

~Elizabeth

User avatar
MariusStegmann
Weaning
Weaning
Posts: 1726
Joined: Wed Nov 16, 2011 12:20 pm
Location: Cape Town, South Africa

Re: Creating My First Home for Finches

Post by MariusStegmann » Thu Dec 13, 2018 6:17 am

All looks good. There is plenty of space for 2 zebras.
Marius
Image

User avatar
lovezebs
Mod Extraordinaire
Mod Extraordinaire
Posts: 18214
Joined: Sun Dec 15, 2013 11:51 am
Location: Calgary Alberta Canada

Re: Creating My First Home for Finches

Post by lovezebs » Fri Dec 14, 2018 9:58 am

Mythic Silence

Hi Elizabeth.
Everything looks great, you've obviously done your homework.

Regarding offering nests, I wouldn't.
Boys tend to get territorial once nests are introduced, which can cause fights.

Other than that, you sound ready for your feathered babies.

:)
~Elana~

Linnies~ Canaries ~ Zebras ~ Societies ~ Gouldians ~ Orange Cheeks ~ Shaft Tails ~ Strawberries ~ Red Cheek Cordon Bleu ~ Goldbreasts ~ Red Brows ~ Owls ~ Budgies ~ Diamond Firetails ~ Javas ~ Forbes Parrot Finches ~

Mythic Silence
Pip
Pip
Posts: 2
Joined: Tue Dec 11, 2018 11:25 am

Re: Creating My First Home for Finches

Post by Mythic Silence » Fri Dec 14, 2018 12:14 pm

Thank you, MariusStegmann and lovezebs!

I'm feeling pretty confident about moving forward now - though I still welcome any suggestions that folks may have. :)

I think I will wait and see about the toys. I can always remove them if they seem to be an issue. Everybirdy is different, so I suppose I can't plan for everything!

Hopefully I will be acquiring my new friends this weekend. :D

LunesEMartes
Pip
Pip
Posts: 14
Joined: Fri Apr 19, 2019 11:14 pm

Re: Creating My First Home for Finches

Post by LunesEMartes » Sat May 11, 2019 4:54 pm

Ik I’m late for answering but I just wanted to say the setup looks amazing and I have a nest that my two males sleep in together, they even used the cotton bedding you can buy in stores to make it more comfortable.
Six zebras:
Nieve & Peony
Peach & Poppy
Nube & Lunes
Two societies:
Duck & Evergreen

Post Reply