Green singer, other pushy compatibility and mixed flights

[metinemre]

We are going thru big changes with our cages and flock. Wife wants a mixed flight cage instead of separate multiple cages. She says it is too hard to keep them clean and maintain, can`t blame her we both work and i can hardly help her.
Anyway; new cage(s) will soon be on the way. Still working on order process. We will either get
one 60x30x30h custom flight cage from qualitycages.com
Or two 48x22x24h semi custom eurocages from cornerslimited.com (super easy to clean since 3 walls are solid and only front is wire so she doesn`t mind 2 of these cages)

We are also selling our ob waxbill pair and gs pair. Which will leave us with our baby boy kyper gs male.

So i know it is better to keep green singers in pairs in their own cage but

If we get one large flight cage 60x30x30h can we keep gs pair plus any of the 2 below?

Lavender waxbill red tail (pushy)
Strawberry finch (passive)
bc or rc cordon bleu (passive)
green singer (pushy)

or is it better to get

two 48x22x24h cages
cage1 strawberry + bc or rc cordon bleu
cage2 green singers + lavenders

edit: This chart says i can keep gs pair with rc cb hmmmm http://www.ladygouldianfinch.com/features_chart.php

I need all the input from everybody who can help. I really don`t want to make any mistake and end up with birds that will pluck and hurt each other, i wouldn`t forgive myself if that happens.

[metinemre]

So far i am leaning towards

48x22x24h
fic says 4-5 birds so 4 should be fine i guess.

cage1: rccb + gs in pairs
cage2: strawberries and lavenders in pairs

a little scared off lavenders.

[MiaCarter]

This is a tough one!

There are a couple schools of thought.
Some pair passive with pushy, with the thought that the pushy will dominate and the passive will just let it slide without stressing over it.
But you can end up in a problem if one of the pushy birds is an antagonist and the passive birds are passive to the extreme. Some won't defend themselves and they can get badly hurt and even abused chronically.

Others will pair pushy with pushy. So they can stand up to the other birds, but if you have more than one antagonist, you can end up with constant battles where nobody backs down.

So it really comes down to your unique dynamics. You know your birds better than we do, so you're probably best positioned to decide.

I will say that my lavenders were always more on the passive end of the spectrum (though they wouldn't back away if confronted. They'd defend themselves.)

My singers weren't overly aggressive. No more pushy than an average zebra finch. So that just illustrates some of the individual variations you can see.

If necessary, I would try a couple different combinations with the singers and just see how they do. (Of course if they play nice in the first arrangement you try them in, then no problems! You're golden.)
I wouldn't give them away unless they make it clear they're not willing to play nice.

There are a few things you can do to lessen aggression.
- no nests (or perceived nests) at least in the beginning. Nests put them in aggressive breeding mode.
- add them all at the same time so nobody is defending an established territory. If you can't add them all at once, you'll need to re-arrange the cage contents to erase territory lines, putting them all on equal footing so you don't have someone actively defending their territory.
- Break up the cage visually with fake foliage and give them something to do, like a foraging bin (a shallow tupperware - the type used for cupcakes - with timothy hay, small stones, and goodies like bugs and millet sprinkled in there. They'll spend all day playing in there!) This is KEY. Firstly, it makes them feel more comfortable since it's more like what they're used to in nature. With the foliage, they're not so out in the open and that reduces stress. Less stress = less aggression.
It also gives them a visual barrier so you don't have two aggressors sitting there staring at each other the entire day.

Think of it like this: You've got a bunch of testosterone-fueled men in a big room. There's no cubicles, activities or other visual barriers. Just chairs. Those guys are going to sit around all day staring at each other. Boredom leads to stress and stress leads to fights. Before too long, one guy is going to give another guy "a look" and they're going to fight it out. Everyone picks sides and suddenly, you've got a divided, warring culture with dynamics that are super hard to change without changing the involved people or the setting. (That's why switching up the cage arrangement and moving birds around is the best solution to a bunch of fighting birds.)

If you put that same group in a room that's divided up with cubicles, perhaps a couple televisions and tablets, then there's something for them to do and they're not sitting there staring at each other all day. Birds work the exact same way.

So that's my sage advice. LOL I'm sorry I couldn't be more helpful. I know it's annoying to hear, "Well, it depends on the individuals and they're unique dynamics." But it's really true.

And as I mentioned, I wouldn't give up the singers until you give them a chance (especially if you enjoy them.) You'll have 2, perhaps 3 different cages where you can try them so I'd see how they do. Sometimes it takes a bit of trial and error to get a group with good dynamics. But it's usually possible in my experience.

Keep us posted!

[lovezebs]

metinemre

Mia, pretty well covered it all

When I had my cople of GS' s, I had them in a flight with Zebras, a Shaft Tail, and a Cut Throat.

When my pair got broody, the male became aggressive, both with his mate, and with everybody else. Finally I had to put the two of them in a seperate cage, until things calmed down..

I have since rehomed my Singers, his song was super loud, just too loud for my kitchen.

That's just my experience with housing Green Singers.

~Elana~

[metinemre]

lovezebs

Elana how big was your flight when you housed these gs`s and 3 pairs?

Right now my baby gs male is living with a pair of ob waxbills in a 30x18x18 and he is super fine, it seems like they are ignoring each other and he usually shooes them away if they are too close. He is with them since weaned.

Once my 60x26x30h cages arrive i am planning to get a female for him and put them in one of the cages with a pair of rccb or long tailed(shaft tailed) finch pair.

Lady gouldian compatibility chart says ok for both but i am really wondering what would be the better try.

By the way what do you think about shaft tail behavior in general with other species?
Also are they as loud as gs`s? I couldn`t find a nice song video anywhere

[lovezebs]

metinemre

I couldn't give you the measurements of this particular flight right off the top of my head, but it's approximately 32 or 34 in wide, and about 6 feet tall, give or take.

The pair of Green Singers, were housed with several Zebras, a pair of Shaft Tails, and a lone male Cut Throat.

As to your question about Shaft Tails. They got along fine with the above mentioned. Sadly when I lost my female, my male was absolutely devastated. I couldn't find another female for him, so ended up getting another Shaft Tail male as company. Initially this was fine, but within several weeks, problems popped up. The new male was attacking my old male, and it was getting really ugly. I had to seperate them. The new, more aggressive male, remained with the Zebras, while the older male moved into a Community flight, containing Gouldians, and some other species. There have been no problems since.

Regarding Shaft Tail song.
They really don't have so much of a song, but rather whistles and calls, which are rather pleasant. My older fellow and I whistle to each other back and forth quite often.

Back to Green Singers.
There wasn't really any problems, untill they went into breeding mode, at which point my male became aggressive with everyone. I actually had to remove the Green Singers into a seperate cage away from everyone else.

Let's see, if I can find some pictures. ..

~Elana~

[metinemre]

Very pretty birds. Thanks for the reply.
My head is full of information and debating nonstop for the 2nd pair to be housed with gs. I know; i can`t do without them. Also, i see 60"x26"x30"h cage `a big waste of space` if i only house a pair of gs in it. :s

[lovezebs]

metinemre
You can definitely house more than two birds in a flight that size. I would just have an extra breeding cage or what not set aside for breeding season, so that you can pull a pair out if need be. After breeding season, you can return birds to large flight, they will love being able to stretch their wings in that size of an enclosure.

~Elana~

[vienneparis]

metinemre
Hi, are you still looking to sell your orange breasted wax bills? If yes, could you post a photo of them? Also, what are you asking for them?

I'm in Mesa and can pick them up.

Thanks.

[metinemre]

vienneparis

Hi Vienne, yes i am still selling them. My asking price was $80 but i`ll be ok for $60 for the pair. They are sleeping now but i can post some pictures or email to you tomorrow afternoon. You can pm me your email.