FINCHforum

I'm curious as I just learned about this great species! Does anyone have any experience with them?


Thanks!

Featheredfluffkins

I do not have any but was curious as to what they look like so looked it up online. They are pretty but big They have videos of people who have tamed them. Now if I wanted a bird to tame that would be perfect, (no hooked bill )

lem2bert wrote: Featheredfluffkins

I do not have any but was curious as to what they look like so looked it up online. They are pretty but big They have videos of people who have tamed them. Now if I wanted a bird to tame that would be perfect, (no hooked bill )

Yeah!! !And I've heard they can live fine with finches, provided theres enough space for both of them. Maybe when i build my outdoor aviary....

Featheredfluffkins

Now there's a fine incentive !!!

Featheredfluffkins
I've heard of them before, but never really knew anything about them. I just looked them up and found this interesting article: Mousebirds. It turns out that they are extremely rare in captivity, despite being relatively easy to breed. Now I kind of want some...

Icearstorm

I did not see that article when I was searching, thanks for posting it. Enjoyed reading it very much !

It's so sad how they're so rare... I'd love to get a breeding pair and hand raise the babies. I just checked the article and it turns out that aviary sells them! I think maybe in the spring

lem2bert
You're welcome : )

I used to have these about some 30 years ago before the main import ban took hold and stopped a large number of birds being imported,

There ok but found that they didn't really wanna do much IE they just eat and then sit in the sun in the avairy basically sun bathing for hrs as the sun apparently helps em to digest there food,

Also I found em to be a little messy, their feasses are a bit like a lorikeet and seem to squirt everywhere,

I should think that if anyone can manage to find any it wouldn't surprise me if they were to be quite dear as most softbills since the importation ban have had the world wide population of softbills increase in price quite considerably

Featheredfluffkins

I know that some of our South African Forum members have them in their yards and gardens as wild birds.

Let's see if MariusStegmann chimes in on them, or maybe Monique at monotwine .

Kelsey Hartsell in WA has a pair. What delightful little things they are. She had one at a bird show, and it just rode around on her shirt. Never even tried to move.

lem2bert wrote: Featheredfluffkins

I do not have any but was curious as to what they look like so looked it up online. They are pretty but big They have videos of people who have tamed them. Now if I wanted a bird to tame that would be perfect, (no hooked bill )

They are NOT big. Quite small actually, Long tails though.

Here is a pic of the one that was at the 2015 CCBA show. Their tails are super long.

wilkifam

I see by the picture that you posted with someone holding it, the bird actually does look small. The article I originally read had a picture of the bird, but it looked bigger.

By the way, very nice pictures.