WANTED 2 x CANARIES

[jenny@jenniferparker]

:grin: I would love to find a local breeder of canaries. I live in Banbury - Oxfordshire But could travel. Many thanks Jenny :grin:

[cooltom28]

i have a pair for sale they are borders im asking £40 for the pair i may be able to deliver to oxford soon as well. im just outisdeof sotuhampton so only about an hour from you

[jenny@jenniferparker]

8-) Thanks for the reply. I was really hoping to make contact with a breeder in my area. Although at first I want 2 canaries I may expand my numbers and would be extremely interested in having someone near by that I could learn from. The canaries I would really like as well are red factors. I have been researching them on the internet. Although I have lots and lots of questions about the colours. Like I said thanks ever such alot anyway. Jenny 8-)

[chris]

Hi Jenny,

if you plan on keeping red factors and only have one avairy/cage, then it would be easier to keep only red factors. the reason being not that they don't get on with other canaries, as they get on well, but that when it comes to the moult and you need to add a colour feed to maintain the red feathers, the other canaries in the aviary will also get at it and will turn themselves a weird orange colour as they moult which will last until the next moult. the other extreme is if you dont colour feed, while the other canaries will look the same after moulting, the red factors will go a place orange, even white, depending on the quality of the birds.

trust me about the other birds going funny colours, i made the mistake myself!! :lol:

are you after a particular breed/type of canary other than red factors? if not then the pet shop is always a good bet. our local usually gets red factors in during february/march just before the breeding season.

Chris;-)

[jenny@jenniferparker]

:smile: Hi Chris,
Thanks so much for letting me know about the canaries I really am a novice. I did have an aviary when I was about 15 and I did breed a few chicks but I didnt really know what I was doing. I now want to start again but do it with a bit more thought this time. Last time I just bought the canaries I liked the look of and didnt really think much about the type/colour. This time I really do want to do it properly. I would like to breed the red factor canaries although I have seen on the CCBA website that their are so many different types of colour I really didnt see much difference in some of them. This is why I would really like to speak to someone locally and view their canaries and ask them all the questions that I have. I have been to our local pet shop and seen 2 canaries that I really like the look of one is definately a red factor but whether it is an Intensive Red, Non-intensive red, Intensive red ivory or non-intensive red ivory I wouldnt have a clue and the other one is like a Mosaic (pinkish with orange, white and small bits of grey on its head) but again I am not sure whether it is or whether it has just been fed some of the colour feed. They are only very young so the pet shop owner does not know what sex they are yet either. She has not heard any of them singing. The aviary I have bought is a hexagonal one which could hold 1 pair easily which is all I want to start with. But again I was thinking perhaps I could get 1 cock bird and 2 hens. What do you think. I really need advice. many thanks Jenny :smile:

[dave85]

hi jenny,

my advice to you regarding canaries is - read up and come to set colour/type you want - then put off buying any til late summer then you will be guaranteed young birds of the desired colours and type.

whereas now most people will only be selling sub standard birds or older birds they wont be breeding with and most petshops just sell cross breeds.

join - www.british-birds-in-aviculture.info

im a member on that site too, there is a few members who breed nothing but coloured canaries who can give you good advise.

Thanks
Dave
p.s - usual breeding season is - march til june/july

[cooltom28]

does the pet shop in didcot still have a good array of birds? they used to order loads. if your stuck im sureif you were to go and see john he would help you and probably be able to get the new colours from his business partner in belgium

[chris]

Hi Jenny,

what size aviary are you planning? it's quite possible to keep several pairs together with no problems, even breed them in the same aviary. the only touble with breeding them in one aviary is that you have no control over what bird breeds with who. i had one cock that mated with several hens who were already paired themselves (as was he to one of them). then when the eggs started to hatch i noticed some weird colours popping up, such as yellows in a red factors nest:lol: the other thing was the culprit only fed one of the clutches and not the others.

it is quite possible to breed one cock to 2 or more hens, however i always prefer to run them in pairs that way you have 2 adults feeding the chicks, so it's less strain on your hens and you know the chicks are being well fed. the last 2 years instead of aviary breeding i removed the chosen pairs into cages for breeding and so any of the above problems were eliminated.

i think your best bet with talking to a local breeder would be to buy C&A birds magazine, then check out the various bird clubs in your area. give them a call and see if they can help you out. you might have to pay a small fee to join but the advantage is that you then get into the bird sales they put on and get a load of contacts and information

Chris;)