Breeding Orange-Cheeked Waxbills

Post by **Hilary** » Tue Apr 18, 2006 9:59 pm

Jeannette D and I would both like to know if anybody's bred OCs before, and if you have any advice. I've read that they need live food, etc, and to leave them alone, but it would be nice to hear about somebody's experience with the little buggers. A breeder near me raises them but I don't want to pump him TOO much. He did dispel a worry of mine that the fledglings could escape from a standard breeding cage, but he said he hasn't had any problems. Would appreciate any insight!

Hilary

Crystal · Post by **Crystal** » Wed Apr 19, 2006 3:08 am

I almost accidentally bred some OC's a LONG time ago--they were my first pairs of "non zebras"--I got 3 pairs in total and placed them in a large, circular, suspended flight (outdoors) with a few small wicker nest baskets and a large boston fern. I was just getting into finches and didn't know if the OCs would prefer the nests to roost in; breeding them had not even crossed my mind. Well within just a few weeks one pair stuffed their nest full of boston fern leaves and started laying eggs. I began feeding live food but once again I was so new to their needs that I didn't provide enough (10 mealies a day is not enough!!) and they refused to raise the chicks.

I think the key to breeding waxbills is to provide more live food (and "dead bug food" like bugs'n'berries and avico bug mixes) than you would ever need to feed an army, and to refill the food dishes multiple times per day.

That is what I would do now (knowing what I know now).

The only other thing I learned from those 3 pairs is that it is apparently possible to sex them visually by looking at the richness of the yellow color around their vent. Males have a deeper orange/yellow color than hens (which is more of a pale, creamy color).

And that is pretty much the sum total of my OC experience.

Post by **Hilary** » Wed Apr 19, 2006 8:33 pm

If vent color is accurate then I do have 2 true pairs. One of the cocks has started singing his little heart out about once a day (first time, and I've had them for several months) - I'm hoping to separate them out soon and see what comes of it. Thanks for the warning about the quantity of livefood - I'll see if I can keep up! I work out of the house, so I'll just have to figure out how to leave army rations that won't escape while I'm at work!

For mealies, etc my main problem seems to be that they pick them up and toss them around, so they end up on the floor and under the grate. Maybe put a liner on top of the grate in one part of the cage and put the bowl there?

Hilary

JeannetteD · Post by **JeannetteD** » Wed Apr 19, 2006 8:33 pm

Thanks for including me in your post, Hilary!

Maybe we'll have some luck yet. Know what else? I thought for sure I had picke dup a male and female going by the yellow coloring around the vent. And the one that has very little yellow around the vent SINGS!.. grr..

I think I have two males. Now I need to go out and buy another pair, just in case.

Jeannette

Post by **Hilary** » Wed Apr 19, 2006 8:39 pm

I have the two pairs, and was playing with "just one more pair just to make sure"! If I go by singing I have 1 male and 3 females, if by vent color I have 2/2, and if by head/mandible shape I have 3 males and 1 female, so I know how you feel! Can't wait for little ones, though - they've got to be awefully cute! And I know it can be done since the breeder down the road raises them. Of course, I mentioned them to another breeder (during a conversation about the swees I'm getting) and she thought I should definitely try with the OCs given import problems.

Hilary

JeannetteD · Post by **JeannetteD** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 11:10 am

According to something I read (somewhere?!) they said that Orange Cheeks are one of the more common exported finches from Africa. I shoudl think given that information that Orange Cheeks would not be difficult to acquire.

But then we are dealing with bureaucrats and that might explain everything right there in that single word.

Yeah, I guess next pay day I'll go back and get a few more.

grumbles.. I'm running out of space.

Jeannette

Post by **Hilary** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 11:59 am

They're currently very common, but there's a very real fear that imports from Africa will stop due to the avian flu. Any future OCs will need to be domestically-bred, which means establishing breeding programs.

Hilary

Post by **Hilary** » Sat May 13, 2006 3:55 pm

Update. My pair in the community cage started changing their behavior - chasing the shaft tail that used to chase them, and one started singing his little heart out - so I moved them to their own cage. They ignored the coconut fiber, but LOVED the bermuda grass - stuffed a med wicker nest full! (Ignored the small wicker nest and the "pod" of cotton bedding) No eggs yet, but I'm keeping an eye out!

Hilary

Post by **Hilary** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 9:22 pm

Hey Jeannette, any luck with your OCs? Mine made the most beautiful nest out of bermuda grass and feathers, and haven't laid a single egg in 3 weeks now. Maybe it was just a case of "boy love"?

Hilary

Post by **Hilary** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 10:52 am

Crystal -

Do you remember what your oc eggs looked like? Were they tiny, round and blue? I found one in the bottom of my zeb flight cage, and don't know if one of the zebs laid a bizarre little egg or if it somehow came out of the OC cage above, bounced off the wall and into the zeb's home! Didn't even break.....

Hilary

Crystal · Post by **Crystal** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 10:55 am

They were tiny and round, but they were white to slightly off-white..the same color a normal zebra egg is.

By tiny, I mean they were a little over half the size of a zebra egg.

Post by **Hilary** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 11:02 am

This had to be an oc egg, then, even though it was bluish. I also have a pair of cbs above, but their eggs look just like the zebs. Have to give them credit for a great bank shot! I've never seen any mating behavior with the two of them - maybe I have the two males together downstairs with the beautiful nest and two females upstairs!

I may need to do some rearranging....

Hilary

JeannetteD · Post by **JeannetteD** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 7:26 pm

Hi Hilary..

Nope..i'm sure I have two boys.. they sing all day, but no eggs. They do take turns sitting in the empty nest from time to time though.

Weird.

Jeannette

Post by **Hilary** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 8:50 pm

They're practicing for when you bring in the girls! My two built a beautiful nest, but absolutely no eggs. This is the pair that I took out of the community flight - one was singing, and they were both chasing the shaft tails around. I've started giving them a couple of mealies daily - if they're a true pair, maybe that'll get them started!

Hilary

tursiopschic · Post by **tursiopschic** » Tue Jun 13, 2006 11:56 am

Sounds like you both have soap operas in the making.

Good luck!

~olivia