How many birds will fit???

For questions about finch enclosures (cages & aviaries).
User avatar
L in Ontario
Mod Emeritus
Mod Emeritus
Posts: 13365
Joined: Sat Feb 11, 2006 10:29 am
Location: Barrie, Ontario Canada
Contact:

How many birds will fit???

Post by L in Ontario » Tue Aug 02, 2011 9:00 am

Here's a very handy Cage Calculator which can be found in the Finch Information Centre linked on the left side of your screen. It's super easy to use - just put in the measurements of your cage and it will give you a rough idea of how many finches can live there comfortably.

http://www.finchinfo.com/housing/cage_s ... ulator.php

There's a ton of other great information there as well!!
Liz

User avatar
mnika
Hatchling
Hatchling
Posts: 36
Joined: Thu Aug 11, 2011 12:27 am
Location: Westfield, NJ
Contact:

Re: How many birds will fit???

Post by mnika » Fri Aug 12, 2011 7:32 pm

Thanks for sharing this! I actually used this link last week to determine how big of a cage I'd need (first time owner).

edgit
Pip
Pip
Posts: 9
Joined: Sun Aug 21, 2011 8:41 pm

Re: How many birds will fit???

Post by edgit » Sun Aug 21, 2011 8:57 pm

I have read online no less than 30 in wide and depth and height dont really matter. I shopped for cages and even when to best shops in town that specialize in small and large birds and i was told 18 to 20 inch was fine for 2 finches.. I puchaced a 18 inch in length and 22 inches high cage for my 2 finches, Everyone said i didnt need any bigger.. They seem to like it..
PLEASE REMOVE MY ACCOUNT. YOUR MEMBER "6FINCHFRIENDS" DOES NOT KNOW HOW TO RESPOND TO A POST IN A NICE WAY AND DONT WANT TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH ANY FORUM THATS TREATS MEMBERS LIKE THIS..

User avatar
L in Ontario
Mod Emeritus
Mod Emeritus
Posts: 13365
Joined: Sat Feb 11, 2006 10:29 am
Location: Barrie, Ontario Canada
Contact:

Re: How many birds will fit???

Post by L in Ontario » Mon Aug 22, 2011 9:09 am

edgit wrote:I have read online no less than 30 in wide and depth and height dont really matter. I shopped for cages and even when to best shops in town that specialize in small and large birds and i was told 18 to 20 inch was fine for 2 finches.. I puchaced a 18 inch in length and 22 inches high cage for my 2 finches, Everyone said i didnt need any bigger.. They seem to like it..
Finches really do need more than 18" of flight room. The length is much MORE important than the height of the cage. Think about it - they fly for MILES out in the wild.
Liz

edgit
Pip
Pip
Posts: 9
Joined: Sun Aug 21, 2011 8:41 pm

Re: How many birds will fit???

Post by edgit » Mon Aug 22, 2011 9:55 am

L in Ontario wrote:
edgit wrote:I have read online no less than 30 in wide and depth and height dont really matter. I shopped for cages and even when to best shops in town that specialize in small and large birds and i was told 18 to 20 inch was fine for 2 finches.. I puchaced a 18 inch in length and 22 inches high cage for my 2 finches, Everyone said i didnt need any bigger.. They seem to like it..
Finches really do need more than 18" of flight room. The length is much MORE important than the height of the cage. Think about it - they fly for MILES out in the wild.
Thanks for suggestion.. I am new to this and just going by what i was told.. What do you think is the least room for flying? I live in a 1 bedroom condo and im limited for space as it is.. Ive had the birds 3 days now and they are already sleeping in their nest.. More suggestion on the smallest i can go with out cramping their room. Thank you
PLEASE REMOVE MY ACCOUNT. YOUR MEMBER "6FINCHFRIENDS" DOES NOT KNOW HOW TO RESPOND TO A POST IN A NICE WAY AND DONT WANT TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH ANY FORUM THATS TREATS MEMBERS LIKE THIS..

User avatar
L in Ontario
Mod Emeritus
Mod Emeritus
Posts: 13365
Joined: Sat Feb 11, 2006 10:29 am
Location: Barrie, Ontario Canada
Contact:

Re: How many birds will fit???

Post by L in Ontario » Mon Aug 22, 2011 10:16 am

I would have to go with the 30" width to be a minimum. Also consider that since you will be breeding them - when the chicks fledge there will be potentially another 5+ birds in that same cage. All of a sudden you could have up to 7 (or more) birds flying in there. Bigger is always better for finches.
Liz

edgit
Pip
Pip
Posts: 9
Joined: Sun Aug 21, 2011 8:41 pm

Re: How many birds will fit???

Post by edgit » Mon Aug 22, 2011 10:42 am

L in Ontario wrote:I would have to go with the 30" width to be a minimum. Also consider that since you will be breeding them - when the chicks fledge there will be potentially another 5+ birds in that same cage. All of a sudden you could have up to 7 (or more) birds flying in there. Bigger is always better for finches.
I have no intention of breeding birds and thats why i got two males
PLEASE REMOVE MY ACCOUNT. YOUR MEMBER "6FINCHFRIENDS" DOES NOT KNOW HOW TO RESPOND TO A POST IN A NICE WAY AND DONT WANT TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH ANY FORUM THATS TREATS MEMBERS LIKE THIS..

User avatar
L in Ontario
Mod Emeritus
Mod Emeritus
Posts: 13365
Joined: Sat Feb 11, 2006 10:29 am
Location: Barrie, Ontario Canada
Contact:

Re: How many birds will fit???

Post by L in Ontario » Mon Aug 22, 2011 11:14 am

edgit wrote:
L in Ontario wrote:I would have to go with the 30" width to be a minimum. Also consider that since you will be breeding them - when the chicks fledge there will be potentially another 5+ birds in that same cage. All of a sudden you could have up to 7 (or more) birds flying in there. Bigger is always better for finches.
I have no intention of breeding birds and thats why i got two males
Then 30" width will be fine for them.
Liz

User avatar
charisma
Persistent Pursuer
Persistent Pursuer
Posts: 293
Joined: Mon Jan 03, 2011 3:40 pm
Location: St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada

Re: How many birds will fit???

Post by charisma » Mon Aug 22, 2011 11:40 am

Great information Liz, thanks for sharing :D

I have a good quality, good size cage but its not as wide as 30 inches. My finches are out flying on a daily basis though... They spend a lot of their time on a perch my dad made for them in front of the window. They love talking to the birds outside :lol: They spend a lot of time flying in circles above me which is great when its a warm day cause they move the air just like a ceiling fan! LOL

I'm thinking as long as they're getting their fly time in ..the cage is basically for eating and sleeping in.
Sandra~
The happy owner of one female shaft tail - Lucy
and one newer male shaft tail - Schroeder (purchased Aug. 18/11)
and one brand new creamino baby shaft tail -fledged Nov. 17th/11

I also have two beautiful cats Nina and Mindy :)


Rest in Peace Putters, we'll miss you always. Taken from us
far too soon (Sept 19th 2012) :(

pegstegan

Re: How many birds will fit???

Post by pegstegan » Thu Sep 22, 2011 8:01 pm

I typed in my aviary is 3.5 by 2 meters. But it said that it can fit 40-50 birds. Wouldn't that be a bit too much?

User avatar
Sally
Mod Extraordinaire
Mod Extraordinaire
Posts: 17929
Joined: Thu Mar 29, 2007 11:55 pm
Location: DFW, Texas

Re: How many birds will fit???

Post by Sally » Sun Sep 25, 2011 12:25 am

I think the cage calculator works very well for cages, but once it gets into sizes that are more like an aviary, the equations don't seem to work anymore--it always lists too many birds when an aviary is input.
3 Purple Grenadiers, 1 Goldbreast + 1 cat.

National Finch & Softbill Society - http://www.nfss.org

Caryota_gigas
Callow Courter
Callow Courter
Posts: 157
Joined: Tue Jan 03, 2012 8:26 pm
Location: Auckland, New Zealand
Contact:

Re: How many birds will fit???

Post by Caryota_gigas » Wed Jan 04, 2012 2:54 pm

Hi all,
I am new to this and am in the middle of building my aviary.
I used the bird calculator and came up with 164 - 218! I was going to get about 4!

User avatar
AiSell
Hatchling
Hatchling
Posts: 45
Joined: Wed Jan 16, 2008 8:18 am

Re: How many birds will fit???

Post by AiSell » Wed Apr 04, 2012 7:31 am

L in Ontario wrote:Here's a very handy Cage Calculator which can be found in the Finch Information Centre linked on the left side of your screen. It's super easy to use - just put in the measurements of your cage and it will give you a rough idea of how many finches can live there comfortably.

http://www.finchinfo.com/housing/cage_s ... ulator.php

There's a ton of other great information there as well!!

Cool, thanks so much very very helpful !!!

hlynnreid92
Hatchling
Hatchling
Posts: 38
Joined: Thu Jun 28, 2012 10:08 pm
Location: Michigan
Contact:

Re: How many birds will fit???

Post by hlynnreid92 » Wed Aug 08, 2012 10:37 am

edgit wrote:I have read online no less than 30 in wide and depth and height dont really matter. I shopped for cages and even when to best shops in town that specialize in small and large birds and i was told 18 to 20 inch was fine for 2 finches.. I puchaced a 18 inch in length and 22 inches high cage for my 2 finches, Everyone said i didnt need any bigger.. They seem to like it..
Yes my cages are 17x14, height 20in and 12x10, height 18in.
The pet stores all tell me this size is enough but i was considering going bigger too... first timer as well

User avatar
L in Ontario
Mod Emeritus
Mod Emeritus
Posts: 13365
Joined: Sat Feb 11, 2006 10:29 am
Location: Barrie, Ontario Canada
Contact:

Re: How many birds will fit???

Post by L in Ontario » Wed Aug 08, 2012 10:50 am

Hi Lynn - welcome aboard!!

Have you used the Cage Calculator in the first post above? It will give you an idea that not many will fit in a cage that size.

It is unfortunate that most petstores will sell you any cage to make a fast buck. The general rule is to purchase the longest cage you can afford. Height doesn't really matter as finches fly back and forth horizontally - not so much up and down.

Here's a link to another thread you may find of interest. I hope it provides you with some useful hints and tips!!
http://www.finchforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=21148
Liz

Post Reply