Green Singing Finch as an alternative to a pet canary?

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lovezebs
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Re: Green Singing Finch as an alternative to a pet canary?

Post by lovezebs » Fri Dec 19, 2014 1:25 am

GlennO

You can go on u-tube and look for videos of different birds singing.
If you really like the European Gold, then why not get one, or even a pair. I don't think that you are necessarily trying to recapture your childhood, just because you still enjoy something that you liked as a child.

I recall going to sleep as a child to the sounds of pigeons cooing. I still enjoy the sounds of pigeons and doves to this day, and I haven't been a child in many MANY moons.

Regarding a Gold and a Green.... There is quite a size difference and I'm not sure how compatible they are together. You should check on the compatibility chart.

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Re: Green Singing Finch as an alternative to a pet canary?

Post by isobea » Fri Dec 19, 2014 2:03 am

GlennO - I agree with Elana: I would not put goldfinches and green singers in the same cage. If the goldfinches are your favorite, what speaks against getting one (or even a pair)? The male would probably sing less, though, if there is a female present.
I'm surprised you can't get American goldfinches in Australia. They are available in Europe so I just assumed you would have them, too. Another bird which I really like (but the song is not as good) is the red hooded siskin (Carduelis cucullata). They are available in Europe - and not even expensive because there are so many captive-bred birds now - but not legal to keep in the US anymore (because they are supposedly endangered. Well I guess they are in the wild...). I used to keep and breed them years ago and truly enjoyed them.
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Re: Green Singing Finch as an alternative to a pet canary?

Post by GlennO » Fri Dec 19, 2014 2:47 am

lovezebs wrote: GlennO

Regarding a Gold and a Green.... There is quite a size difference and I'm not sure how compatible they are together. You should check on the compatibility chart.

~Elana~
In the species profiles both species are stated as being 5" in size, and both are listed as being in Tier 2 in the Compatibility Chart. I thought that they might get on ok in the absence of females to quarrel over, and also that they might sing more whilst providing company for each other.

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Re: Green Singing Finch as an alternative to a pet canary?

Post by lovezebs » Fri Dec 19, 2014 10:56 pm

GlennO
Might work then.
My Green Singers are smaller than some others. I read somewhere that there are two lines of Green Singers, small ones and bigger ones.

The Golds I've seen, were quite a bit bigger than my Greens., that's why I said what I did. My Greens are approximately the size of small Zebras.

Goodluck with your choice.

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Re: Green Singing Finch as an alternative to a pet canary?

Post by GlennO » Sat Dec 20, 2014 12:34 am

Thanks Elana. I'll just have to check out in person the ones that are available here and compare them to the goldfinches. I'm led to believe that they are mostly the small variety. The bigger ones were more common here a few decades ago but I understand that they are quite rare now.

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Re: Green Singing Finch as an alternative to a pet canary?

Post by MiaCarter » Mon Dec 22, 2014 2:44 pm

Just a comment on the cage....
I think that extended cage would be quite nice for a pair. They would have a good amount of room in there. Good pick.

Just be sure to put perches, shelves, etc. at varying levels inside the cage so they can "use" the entire height.
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2 Cockatiels
2 Parakeets

....along with 1 MinPin, 1 Pug, 1 JRT, 1 Yorkie, 2 Chihuahuas and 15 cats.


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Re: Green Singing Finch as an alternative to a pet canary?

Post by GlennO » Thu Jan 15, 2015 2:54 am

Update: Well after much thought I bought my bird. He is a 3 year old Canary x European Goldfinch mule. His song is a wonderful mixture of Canary and Goldfinch melodies, though mostly Goldfinch. A little louder than a full Goldfinch, but with the Canary blood he is a little less flighty and perhaps more suited to life as a pet cage bird. I think I'll call him Maestro! :D

The breeder also had some Green Singers, it's first time I've seen them. They are indeed tiny, smaller than a Goldfinch, and loud! I cannot believe the volume that comes out of their little bodies!

If I ever manage to record Maestro singing I'll post a link to utube. Cheers!

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Re: Green Singing Finch as an alternative to a pet canary?

Post by Atbird » Thu Jan 15, 2015 9:42 am

Congratulations on your new bird.
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Re: Green Singing Finch as an alternative to a pet canary?

Post by isobea » Thu Jan 15, 2015 8:24 pm

GlennO - Congratulations! I think you got the best of both worlds. Those hybrids are amazing and often very beautiful. Does he have much of a mask like his goldfinch dad? Can you post a picture?
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Re: Green Singing Finch as an alternative to a pet canary?

Post by GlennO » Thu Jan 15, 2015 10:14 pm

Hi and thanks. Yes he has the mask though it's more orange rather than red like his dad.

It's hard to take a pic since he rarely sits still especially when I get close so I did a short video so you can see him better. He sings a little bit in it (mostly canary bits). Very hard to capture his full song, he's a bit camera shy! I may not have heard it all yet since I've only had him for a couple of days. He's still in the cage I used to carry him home. He's a bit nervous and I'm afraid to catch him yet.

http://youtu.be/nADk-LK6ZQE

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Re: Green Singing Finch as an alternative to a pet canary?

Post by isobea » Thu Jan 15, 2015 11:46 pm

GlennO - Thanks for the video. He certainly is a pretty bird and I think his repertoire should be a lot greater than what you have heard until now. Enjoy him!
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Re: Green Singing Finch as an alternative to a pet canary?

Post by metinemre » Thu Mar 26, 2015 3:45 pm

GlennO

Hi, did you house green singer and goldfinch together?
pair of green singers
had to give away everything else due to allergies :(

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Re: Green Singing Finch as an alternative to a pet canary?

Post by GlennO » Wed Apr 01, 2015 7:23 pm

metinemre

Hi, no I didn't buy a green singer. At this point I just have the goldfinch mule housed separately.

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