NDan....Guess What?

NDan · Post by **NDan** » Tue Feb 12, 2008 4:12 pm

What great fun! When do you pick them up? or did I miss that in the post again...

FeatherHarp · Post by **FeatherHarp** » Wed Feb 13, 2008 11:15 am

NDan....Laurie said she will let me know when the Owl pair is done raising their babies and when the babies can be on their own I can come get the Owls. About 2 months or a little less now. So I just have to wait for her to contact me.

This works out well for me right now as I just had knee surgery a few days ago so I am hobbling around the house and Hubby is helping me clean cages every night. So by the time the Owls are ready I should be in good shape!!

One funny thing I noticed is that my Lovebirds are scared to death of my crutches

(the finches not so much) even when I move around when I am not close to their cage. The will freeze in one spot and watch me like a hawk. So when I need to get to the cage I have to hide the crutches....get myself on my rolling computer chair and roll over to the cage! Boy!...the things we do for our birdies....LOL!!

Anyways....will be fun to go see her Aviary setup and all her birdies! I would like some of her Star Finches too!

jabo322 · Post by **jabo322** » Wed Feb 13, 2008 8:02 pm

FeatherHarp- If $129 is a good price for Owls, then the $110 my local store asks for them must be a steal

. Now, that's for each bird, not for a pair, right?

I'd love some owl finches, but even the bargain price of $110 each is too steep for me at this time.

I need a better job. Or a Lotto jackpot.

FeatherHarp · Post by **FeatherHarp** » Thu Feb 14, 2008 7:51 am

Jabo322....The Owls I am getting will cost $175.00 for a sexed pair. It IS on the high end for prices but this gal has a reputation for raising quality finches.

If I wasn't planning on breeding I probably wouldn't pay that much as I could get an unsexed pair at the local pet shop for $80 for the pair. But she couldn't tell me the age of them either. Also bird fairs would usually have them cheaper too.

That is why I got some cheaper finches like the Zebras. I only paid $5.00 for each of them and $40.00 for each of my Gouldians.

Post by **Hilary** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 12:13 am

I've generally paid $80 or so each for owls, whether from breeders or PetSmart.

I don't know why mine have been so hard to breed. I get infertile eggs even though they're sitting tight (and the male is singing). I had a pair that always had fertile eggs but I kept finding the eggs on the bottom of the cage when they were due to hatch. I finally caught the hen - once the chicks started to hatch the hen would pitch the egg out of the nest. Grrrrr!

Sorry to hear about the chick, Sally!

Featherharp - make sure that you have plenty of water available around the cage when you get the owls. I don't know if you use tubes or open bowls, but PLEASE use open bowls in the cage for at least a couple of weeks. They're cute but dumber than doorknobs (in my experience), and they'll die quickly when they can't find the water. Even if you see them drinking from your preferred water container, please make sure you see them doing so on a regular basis before removing the others......

Post by **Sally** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 2:29 am

I already did a posting under breeding, but since I mentioned the Owls here, thought I would update here as well. After finding that tiny Owl baby dead on the floor, and hearing no sounds from the nest, I thought it was all over. The next day, I heard peeping from the nest, and yesterday one Owl baby fledged, and this morning the second Owl baby fledged! Success at last!

FeatherHarp · Post by **FeatherHarp** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 9:31 am

Hilary...Thanks for the heads up about the water. I don't use tubes and have a water cup higher up in the cage but I will make sure to put an open bowl on the floor as well. I sure don't want to lose the Owls after what I am going to be paying for them!

The breeder also sells Owls unsexed for $75.00 each. I just hope being this pair has already raised some young I will hopefully have more success when I decide to breed them.

Queston For Anyone:.....being my 2 male Zebras and Gouldian pair have been in the flight cage for about 2 months now....should I expect bullying by them when I place the Owls in the cage? Or should I consider taking the others out for a few days and let the Owls have the cage all to themselves for a little while?

Post by **Sally** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 11:34 am

The Gouldians will probably be fine with the new Owls, but I would watch the Zebras. You might want to take the Zebras out for a while. Since you are getting a proven pair of breeders (Owls), you probably won't have all the problems that come with a young, inexperienced pair.

FeatherHarp · Post by **FeatherHarp** » Sat Feb 16, 2008 10:47 am

Thanks for the advice and cautions about the Owls. I will take out the Zebras for awhile just so the Owls can settle in better.

Sally...About how long would be appropriate to keep the Zebras away before putting them back in?

Post by **Sally** » Sat Feb 16, 2008 11:20 am

I would keep the Zebras separate for at least a week, if not longer, if you have a good cage to keep them in. I love Zebras, but they do cause problems sometimes. I recently put 2 newly-weaned male Zebras in my community cage, which is the HQ double flight, and they have already become bossy little things.

I think I am going to rehome all my Zebras (5). I had rehomed the pair once and got them back, decided to keep them as I had read they can be good fosters for the waxbills, but they are just more trouble than they are worth right now. The parents have one just-weaned baby, and the father is already plucking its feathers (as he did with the first two babies), and mama is laying eggs in the mineral cup. I'd rather use their cage for a couple of Society males.

I have to admit the Zebras are possibly the most entertaining of the finches. I put two hang-on baths on the double flight cage, and one of the Zebs has figured out he can sit in the bath and sing, and it sounds like he is at the bottom of a well! Changes the sound completely, and he does it a lot, so I think he is entertaining himself--sort of like singing in the shower!

FeatherHarp · Post by **FeatherHarp** » Sat Feb 16, 2008 4:50 pm

Sally: Thanks so much for the advice! Right now the Zebras and Gouldians get along just great. But I will keep them away for a couple weeks once I get my Owls and then watch them to see how they interact with the new Owls. If there are problems then I will have to remove them. I am hoping they will all get along but you just don't know I guess.

That is so funny about your Z "singing in the shower"....LOL!! I can hear when my zebras sing when their heads are in the water cup....they do sound so funny!

Fancie Flight · Post by **Fancie Flight** » Tue Feb 19, 2008 4:19 am

sally gongrads on the baby owls,

And WOW 40.00 Gouldians??? Id have tons of them, Here you ar elooking at 75.00 each for normal 150.00ish fo ryellow and 200.00 and up for blues thats EACH not a pair, and thats breeders, pet stores its about 300.00 for a pair of normals,

Owls run about 60.00 with breeders last I checked.

and funny story a gal thats a membe rof alocal bird group wa sin a pet store they had owls for sale 5.00 Said they were societies shes like are YOU SURE< guy was highly indignent and said yes he knew his birds, Lol she naturally had to buy them, lol

FeatherHarp · Post by **FeatherHarp** » Tue Feb 19, 2008 7:21 am

The Gouldians around here go for anywhere from $40.00 to $100.00 so quite a variance in prices!