New finch owner here saying hello!
Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2019 10:44 am
Greetings all! Glad to be a member. I wanted to introduce myself and my birds before asking any questions. My wife and I are new finch owners. We have a pair of green-back Gouldians, a pair of European Goldfinches, a Crested canary, and a red agate canary from thefinchfarm. We received them almost 2 weeks ago and for the most part they seem to be acclimating nicely to their new home.
We acquired a 6' x 6' x 3' aviary that we remodeled for them. First, we replaced all the aspen backing to give them fresh nesting material. Next, we sanded the wood floor down to clean off the droppings that had stained it, then installed linoleum on the bottom to make it easier to clean. We have aspen chips in the bottom that we plan on turning weekly and replacing monthly. For the lighting system, the aviary previously used 4x 6' flourescent tubes, which I found very difficult to source at a high CRI. I ended up removing the bulbs and using the fixtures to attach 32' of 95 CRI 5000K LED strip lights on a Leviton dimmer to provide a day/night cycle for the birds.
I ordered some sandblasted Manzanita branches from manzanita burlworks and trimmed them to fit into the aviary quite nicely. I have them on a diet of Morning Bird enriched finch mix, dried eggfood, the occasional millet, and alternating fruits. We also got some Sparkle, Thrive, and Vitalize from Morning Bird that we have been mixing into their water as needed. I ordered some Ronex and Amoxicillin from Morning Bird as well just in case we have any sick birds.
I have attached some pictures of the birds and their new home (Don't mind the cat in the bottom of the aviary, that was BEFORE we got the birds!!)
We acquired a 6' x 6' x 3' aviary that we remodeled for them. First, we replaced all the aspen backing to give them fresh nesting material. Next, we sanded the wood floor down to clean off the droppings that had stained it, then installed linoleum on the bottom to make it easier to clean. We have aspen chips in the bottom that we plan on turning weekly and replacing monthly. For the lighting system, the aviary previously used 4x 6' flourescent tubes, which I found very difficult to source at a high CRI. I ended up removing the bulbs and using the fixtures to attach 32' of 95 CRI 5000K LED strip lights on a Leviton dimmer to provide a day/night cycle for the birds.
I ordered some sandblasted Manzanita branches from manzanita burlworks and trimmed them to fit into the aviary quite nicely. I have them on a diet of Morning Bird enriched finch mix, dried eggfood, the occasional millet, and alternating fruits. We also got some Sparkle, Thrive, and Vitalize from Morning Bird that we have been mixing into their water as needed. I ordered some Ronex and Amoxicillin from Morning Bird as well just in case we have any sick birds.
I have attached some pictures of the birds and their new home (Don't mind the cat in the bottom of the aviary, that was BEFORE we got the birds!!)
What a beautiful aviary you have put together. It looks like an indoor aviary , what a wonderful way to enjoy your birds all year long !! You have a beautiful pair of green back gouldians !! Beautiful birds!! I would love to see a close up of your red agate canary, if you ever get the time to post one. I am impressed with those manzanita branches, they look so real!!! Thank you for posting the info, I am definitely going to look up that company to look into ordering some !! Great job !!!
