Visiting My Canaries and New Finches
My vibrant and melodious red factor canaries are thriving and filling my home with song.
As many of you know, I keep a number of birds as pets, including a couple dozen or so red factor canaries, which live with me inside my Winter House. They have a large wooden cage I designed after one that came from France, built around 1900 - probably to house doves or quails. The canary cage is one of two located on my enclosed porch. In the other cage, I now have a pair of beautiful Combassou finches given to me by Ari Katz, a very passionate and knowledgable avian enthusiast. These small, friendly finches are native to South Africa and are dark in color with orange feet and pinkish-white bills - such wonderful additions to my flock.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
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- I have several of these large cages for my birds. Two black ones fit perfectly on my porch – one at each end.
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- These are my new Comboassou finches – members of the Whydah family of birds. This male and female are both two years old.
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- The male looks jet black, but under light or in the sun its glow appears deep royal blue and green – so handsome.
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- The males molt in late fall to early winter and come into their “dormant” feathers which are more brown than black.
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- I am hoping this pair will breed during the next mating season – we’ll see. To keep them healthy, they are fed a variety of foods, including vitamin-fortified seed mix, dark green, leafy vegetables, yams, carrots, hard-boiled eggs, and fruit.
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- These two are quite active – they did not want to stay still for any photos. The male loves to fly from perch to perch.
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- Although Combassou males are not classified as such, they make beautiful songbirds.
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- These finches love their large cage. Here is the female looking out the window at the horse paddocks.
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- My beautiful canaries are on the opposite side of the porch. I love visiting them early in the morning before I leave for the office – they are always so cheerful.
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- The red factor canary, Serinus canaria domestica, is one of the most popular canary breeds. They are prized for their color rather than their song, but they are also very melodious singers and enjoy singing. My canaries also love to listen to classical music, which I keep on for them during the day.
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- First bred in the early 1900s, this canary is the only color-bred variety with a “red factor” as part of its genetic makeup. They were originally developed by crossing a red siskin and a yellow canary.
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- The bold colors of these red factor canaries can range in shades of light peach to apricot to orange to red.
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- I always provide natural cut branches in the canary cage for the birds to sit on – they love perching on them. These canaries do not need special toys like some other birds, but they do need strong perches with multiple branches.
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- To keep my birds looking and feeling their best, I make sure their cages are cleaned daily. They also get lots of water and food. A canary’s metabolism is very fast, so it’s important to be observant of their eating needs and habits.
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- Red factor canaries need certain nutrients to maintain their bold, colorful plumage. Fresh foods containing beta-carotene, canthaxanthin and carotenoids along with greens and the appropriate canary seed make up a good well-balanced diet.
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- Seed blends are designed to support the birds’ seasonal needs with a wide range of micronutrients for resting, breeding and molting seasons.
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- As these red factors grow, they develop more red coloring from the beta carotene in their foods. On this canary, you can see three pretty color shades – peach, red and orange.
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- In general, canaries don’t like lots of handling, but my canaries are used to all the activity around them, so they are never scared when visitors approach.
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- If you choose to keep canaries, remember to get the largest cage your home can accommodate, and the nicest cage your budget can afford – canaries need room to flap their wings and fly from perch to perch.
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- This canary is taking a bath in one of the water dishes. These birds are generally good-natured, social creatures. Healthy canaries will always have clear, bright eyes, clean, smooth feathers and curious, active dispositions.
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- These birds also love sitting on the side ledges, so they can see outside the window. My porch has floor to ceiling windows all the way around.
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- The corn cob litter on the floor of the cage is changed daily, so the birds are always in a fresh, clean environment.
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- These birds are also quite active and are constantly flying from perch to perch, level to level.
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- I find these birds to be so photogenic no matter what they’re doing. This canary stopped during his mid-morning snack to look at the camera.
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- They are all so beautiful and striking in color. Healthy and well-cared for canaries can live at least 10 to 12 years.
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- These canaries will often recognize regular visitors to their cage.
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- It makes me so happy to hear the males singing throughout the day.
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- And look at their view outside my Winter House – a beautiful late afternoon sky. This photo was taken with a Google Pixel 4. Such a gorgeous view of the paddock and my four chicken coops in the distance. In my next blog – how my birds and birdcage inspired a young friend – be sure to visit tomorrow.
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