When canary breeding is organized according to all the rules, there is every chance of getting healthy and strong chicks without compromising the health of the parents. You must be able to properly select birds for breeding. You will also have to create ideal nesting conditions for them: choose a suitable cage, set up a nest, make up a diet, and much more.

For breeding to be successful, you need to carefully select future parents. If the bird looks lethargic, weak, does not eat well, its feathers stick out in different sides, the look is extinct, which means she either feels unwell, or has recently experienced serious stress.

If a bird sits motionless in one place most of the time, or vice versa, it constantly flies around the cage, beats in hysterics, it has obvious mental disorders. You will not get healthy chicks from such a canary, if it can lay eggs at all.

Even if the bird is absolutely healthy, but has external defects, it cannot be used for breeding. There is always a risk that physical defects will be inherited by the chicks.

Healthy canaries are the key to success

Only healthy birds, without physical defects, can be allowed for breeding. Careful appearance combined with an active lifestyle and a good appetite - these are the parameters a healthy canary should have. It is very good if the bird likes to bathe and clean its feathers. If she knows how to take care of herself, then she can take care of the chicks.

The physical form of canaries is also important. Males should not have subcutaneous fat, which can be recognized by yellow bumps on the abdomen.

We cook ourselves

In addition to grain and seed feed, you can prepare a healthy mixture for canaries, the approximate composition of which is indicated in the table:

Grind tablets and Hercules or dry sticks separately from each other. To the resulting powder, add a hard-boiled and chopped egg. Grate the carrots, squeeze the juice and mix with vitamin E solution. Mix everything together. If the mixture is dry, add the remaining carrot juice. Instead, honey or rosehip extract is suitable. If the mixture is liquid or sticky, dilute it with Hercules.

Give the mixture to each canary one teaspoon every other day. The rest of the time you can diversify the main food with white bread. It must be soaked either in tea with honey or in diluted dry milk. In addition to bread, give each bird a teaspoon of germinated grain.

Diet changes

When the first egg appears, exclude all protein foods from the parents' diet: eggs, cottage cheese, insects. Otherwise, the female will lay too many eggs, most of which will be unfertilized. In addition, a large clutch will deplete the body of the female. Protein products can be returned when the first chick arrives.

During hatching, feed the canaries with grain-seed and germinated food. This will encourage the birds to eat the extra food when the chicks are born. One or two days before the first chick hatches, start supplementing the grain and seed menu with the indicated products.

During mating, add poppy seeds to the mixture - a tenth of a gram per canary. Eliminate it from the diet when the female lays her second egg. Do not give the birds too much poppy. The opium it contains is harmful to bird health. Hemp, flax and canary seeds are also useful.

Preparing the nesting site

For each pair, prepare a nesting cage - a special nesting cage sixty centimeters long, thirty-five centimeters wide, forty centimeters high. The cage must have at least two doors: one on the side under the ceiling, the second below.

The bottom door should be wide enough for feeders, drinking bowls, and bathing places to pass through. A wire basket is hung on the side door in the shape of the future nesting base, in which the female will build a nest.

Before you start canaries in the nesting cage, treat it with boiling water or steam. You can use "Disinsectal", but it must be washed off well with warm water. Choose the brightest part of the room for the cage, but not in direct sunlight. After the male and female have settled, it is impossible to rearrange the nesting cage.

The nest base can be bought or ordered from a pet store. However, please note that if you place an order, this does not mean that it will arrive on time. Delivery may be delayed, and without a nest base, the female will not start building a nest and laying eggs. The base is easy to do with your own hands.

We make a nesting base ourselves

To make a nest base, prepare the tools:

• rope;
• food film;
• flax fiber;
• hot glue gun;
• construction heat gun.

Be sure to select a round base that matches the parameters of the nest base: diameter - seven to eight centimeters, depth - four to five and a half centimeters. A light bulb or a large Christmas ball might work. Let's say you chose a light bulb.

Wrap the light bulb in cling film so that you can easily remove the nest base later. Squeeze a drop of glue from the gun into the center of the bulb and glue the end of the rope. The rope should be thick, so twine is perfect. Twine will make an excellent nesting base, because it retains heat well.

Start winding the twine around the light bulb in a spiral motion. Apply glue to the rope every one or two centimeters. Thanks to such retreats, the canary will be able to stick into the twine construction material.

When you reach the desired depth, make two or three additional turns on top of each other to strengthen the nest base. Carefully remove the light bulb and remove the cling film from the base. Melt the remaining pieces of film with a hot air gun. Additionally, insulate the nest base with a small amount of flax fiber. You can do this on the outside as well, to decorate the nest as "natural". Ready.

When Canary Behavior Changes

You will notice that canaries are ready to breed by a change in their behavior. The song of the male becomes short, sharp and loud. The female squeaks him in response. Birds become nervous, cannot find a place for themselves, flap their wings and jump from perch to perch.

The female is especially restless. She is constantly busy looking for building material, stuffing her beak with everything that comes under it: feathers, threads, grass. A canary can tear paper to shreds. Her belly grows bald, the so-called "honey spot" appears.

The female begins to crouch while the male sings, tries to build a nest from improvised material anywhere: in the feeder, in the bathing suit, in the corner of the cage. As soon as you notice a special eagerness for nesting in a female, transplant her into a nesting cage and place a male next to her.

The female will continue to imitate the structure of the nest in the new cage. But before you make a nest, she will begin to collect building material, which you must provide in abundance.

The future nest for canaries may consist of blades of grass, pieces of paper, pieces of lint, a piece of cotton thread, small shreds. You can use an old washcloth by cutting it into eight-centimeter pieces. Lay the material at the bottom of the cage and slide it between the bars.

However, not everyone is suitable for building a nest. You can not give the female pieces of hemp. Chicks can get entangled in them and suffocate. It is not recommended to use hygroscopic cotton wool - it blocks the access of oxygen. You can give the canaries some gray cotton.

The male can help the female in building a nest, but does not do it rarely and reluctantly. But he feeds the hard worker and wonderful songs to her.

If the female is ready to breed, it takes her no more than a week to build. A canary, dissatisfied with its work, can tear up an almost finished nest and correct the shortcomings by rebuilding it.

Relationship between male and female

Friendship between a male and a female does not come immediately. Initially, the canaries pretend not to notice each other. They jump from perch to perch and study the cage. Over time, anxiety about the sudden relocation disappears, and the male begins to sing. However, the "nested" song, like the behavior, is not similar to the "single".

Kenar stretches out, begins to step from paw to paw, the feathers on his head stand on end. Swinging in different directions, the male gradually brings the song to the highest tones. After that, he rushes at the female, and she runs away from the boyfriend. So they run around the cage until they get tired. Such races speak of the sexual arousal of canaries.

On the day of acquaintance or a little later, the male begins to feed his partner. She flaps her wings and opens her beak like a baby bird. After some time, the female takes an unambiguous position, inviting the male to copulation, which occurs several times a day.

Mating games indicate that the pair has developed for the entire nesting period. However, this is not always the case. Sometimes there are very selective canaries that cannot converge with the proposed partner immediately or do not converge at all.

If the female and male constantly quarrel, seat them in different cages for two to three days. Then repopulate the canaries in one cage. If the quarrels continue, you will have to select other partners for them.

And now the female has testicles

Two days after the nest is built, the female begins to lay one egg per day or every other day. It most often occurs early in the morning and can last four to six days. As a result, four or five eggs are found in the canary clutch. In rare cases, the female is able to lay six to seven eggs.

Before laying an egg, the female's breathing quickens, and the tail rises slightly. If the female does not succeed, she leaves the nest and sits on the bottom of the cage. Keep a close eye on her - if the canary sits too long, fluffed up, she needs help.

Warm it up with a heating pad attached to the bottom of the cage from the outside. Put a few drops into the bird's cloaca sunflower oil using a syringe without a needle. If after two hours the female does not lay an egg, contact your veterinarian immediately.

The last testicle differs from the others in a light blue color, while the others have a blue tint with a grayish sheen. There are dark specks on every egg.

Females sit down to incubate eggs after laying two or three pieces. Because of this, the chicks do not hatch together, but with a difference of two to three days. This leads to the fact that the last chicks are stunted. They can die from exhaustion, as they begin to ask for food late. And the female feeds those who actively ask for food.

To avoid the death of chicks, replace the first three or four eggs with labeled dummies. Put them back in place, removing the dummies, when the female lays the last egg. It is better to do this in the morning. Don't worry - canaries don't react in any way to changes in the number of eggs.

All this time, store the eggs in boxes, on the bottom of which put sand and cotton wool, and cover with cardboard on top. Do not forget to mark when the egg was laid, and if necessary, from which female.

Hatching time

The female spends most of her time on the clutch, only occasionally leaving it to eat. At such moments, it can be replaced by a male. A caring male also feeds a laying female. The female periodically changes the position of the eggs so that the embryo does not stick to the shell. These movements evenly distribute the heat between the eggs.

After a week, you can inspect the eggs to make sure they are fertile. Eggs with an embryo darken and acquire a bluish-gray tint, empty ones remain transparent. To be completely sure, take the egg and inspect it under the weak light of the lamp.

Do this carefully so as not to chill the embryos and damage the shell. seen in a fertilized egg dark spot germ. Check the eggs when the parents are not around - do not disturb them once again.

Sometimes the female laying eggs for the first time, the entire clutch is empty. Do not remove the eggs - give the canary the opportunity to sit out the allotted time. Otherwise, she will lose her rhythm or even stop sitting on her eggs.

If the female does not bathe during incubation, on the twelfth day, gently wipe the eggs with a piece of cotton wool soaked in warm water. Wet eggs are easier for the female to shift. Eggs stained with litter are washed in the same way. The litter needs to be soaked. In no case do not peel it off with your fingernail, otherwise you will damage the shell.

Do not take the eggs out of the nest for more than two hours. During this time, they will finally cool down and the embryos will die.

The Miracle of Chicks

Two weeks after the start of incubation, chicks appear, which are usually released on their own. While in the egg, the chick tries to straighten up and scratch the shell with a horny tubercle, which is called the egg tooth. It breaks through the shell and keeps moving. Gradually, the egg becomes covered with cracks. Soon part of the shell falls off and frees the chick. The female eats or carries away the shell.

Chicks are born blind and deaf, completely dependent on their mother. She continues to heat the babies for two weeks until they have a constant body temperature. Follow the female. If she gets away from the chicks ahead of time, they will die.

Sometimes females accidentally drop defenseless babies from the nest. They quickly cool down and show no signs of life. Try to warm the chick with your hands. But don't blow on him - carbon dioxide formed during exhalation will kill him. If the baby moves, return it to the nest.

Feeding the chicks

For the first three or four days, the female feeds the chicks with goiter milk. Then he begins to regurgitate semi-digested seeds and grains, which the male feeds her. After eighteen days, the chicks begin to climb out of the nest.

After two or three days, the female proceeds to the next clutch, continuing to occasionally feed the chicks. But the main breadwinner is the male. Parents feed the babies for up to forty days, after which fully grown chicks can be placed in a flying cage.

When the chicks are a week old, you should start feeding them. Composition sample menu listed in the table:

Is ringing necessary?

If you decide to start breeding canaries for sale, exhibitions or competitions, then be sure to ring the chicks when they are six to seven days old. You can’t put on a ring before - it will fall off, and later it won’t fit. This is necessary in order not to confuse the birds.

It is necessary to mark (engrave) on the rings the number of the canary - the number of the ring, the country of birth, the year of birth - the last two digits across the ring. The color of the ring can also indicate the bird's year of birth. Each ring is deaf, the material is duralumin. The sizes of rings for all birds are different. For canaries, this is G, with a height of five millimeters, with an inner diameter of three millimeters, with an outer diameter of four millimeters. Example: 147 EN 09 G.

Of course, you can ring the canary with split rings or colored tubes, which are sold in pet stores and bird markets. But such birds will not be able to participate in exhibitions or competitions.

A very important factor in the maintenance of canaries is the correct mode. Inadequate and malnutrition often leads to various diseases, and sometimes the death of birds, therefore, the correct and especially high-quality feeding of canaries plays a major role in their life, breeding of young animals, as well as canaries.

Many canary breeders, especially beginners, sometimes simply do not know how and what to feed the birds, and some of them feed their canaries with a mixture of millet and hemp in unlimited quantities. They do not include soft and green-vegetable-fruit food in the daily diet of birds. And as a result, birds get sick and sometimes die. Therefore, every lover, acquiring a bird, must know how and what the bird was fed before. It is better to stick to the diet already familiar to the bird and only if necessary transfer it to a new one. And this should be done very carefully. A sharp transition to the new kind nutrition can lead to overfeeding, resulting in gastrointestinal spasms and the bird may die, sometimes to premature molting and to a number of other diseases. It also happens. Canaries are kept in the most favorable conditions: bright sunny room, clean air, proper diet. It seems that all the rules of care have been followed. And yet, the birds still get sick. Why is this happening? It turns out that they are given either dusty food or bitter turnip seed, which is very harmful.

Turnip seed is a necessary ingredient in a general grain feed mix, but should be used with care.

For proper metabolism and other physiological processes, canary food should consist of a grain mixture, soft food, green-vegetable-fruit and diet food. Grain feed in grams:
Rape (colza) - 100 (1 part)
Oatmeal (oatmeal) - 150 (1.5 parts)
Millet - 100 (1 part)
Canary seed - 25 (0.25 parts)
Flaxseed - 15 (0.15 parts)
Hemp seed - 10 (0.1 parts).

This mixture is given to the canary one full teaspoon per day. If during feeding grinding of the husk of grains is observed, then the rate should be increased to 1-1.5 teaspoons. Hemp seed is given no more than five to six grains per day per bird. From immoderate feeding of hemp, canaries grow fat, males stop singing, females, mating with difficulty, lay the so-called "talkers" (unfertilized, "fat" eggs). There are times when birds become deaf or blind from a large amount of cannabis.

It is desirable to include white salad seed in grain feed at the rate of 5-10% in relation to the total weight. It is also recommended to give a small amount of buckwheat groats. Canaries willingly eat sunflower seeds. One bird can be given five or six grains of raw seeds. They are especially useful for malnourished canaries, because, in addition to other nutrients, they contain vegetable fat. Given that the shell of seeds for canaries is quite strong, it is advisable to crush them before feeding. During the mating season, it is recommended to add a small amount of poppy seeds (0.2 g per bird) to the grain feed.

Poppy is given every other day, until the female lays two or three eggs, after which it is excluded from the diet. In large quantities, poppy should not be given: the opium contained in it can cause the death of birds.

An experienced Leningrad canary breeder, I. A. Rozin, advises excluding flaxseed from the normal diet of birds, because it acts as a laxative. However, practice and long-term observations have shown that the absence of flaxseed in the grain diet often causes constipation in birds. Therefore, it is advisable to include a small percentage of flaxseed in the food of canaries. You can only give it fresh buying in pharmacies.

It is useful to include sesame and camelina seeds in the grain mixture at the rate of 10-15% of the total weight of the feed. When buying grain feed, check that it is not musty (smell), moldy and rancid (taste), etched with formalin. To remove dust and debris, the grain mixture must be sieved. This food is given once a day so that the bird, waking up, does not rush around the cage in search of food.

soft food. These types include various cereals: buckwheat, semolina, rice, barley and millet, which contain a lot of phosphorus, calcium, iron, carbohydrates and nitrogenous substances. Porridges are boiled in salted water to a state of medium density. You can add a small amount of sugar to the finished porridge. Give porridge only in the morning or afternoon. For very emaciated birds (lactating females and chicks), porridge is boiled in milk. Porridge is given two to three times a week, a teaspoon per bird. Soft foods also include fresh cottage cheese (no more than twice a week), a white stale bun soaked in boiled milk and well squeezed out (once every seven to ten days).

Canary

When birds are given soft food or eggs, the rate grain feed cut in half. Green-vegetable-fruit food. These feeds include leaves or seedlings of cabbage, beets, radishes, lettuce, spinach, boletus sprouts, dandelion leaves and seeds, tradescantia, seedlings of oats, rapeseed, wheat, fresh sweet bell peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, cabbage, apples, pears, peaches , grapes, watermelon, melon, as well as all sorts of berries and fruits, if the birds eat them. The most useful and favorite vegetable food for canaries is fresh carrots. It is given daily. It should be cut or grated and squeezed well, it can be mixed with crumbs of white crackers and semolina. Some canary breeders do not recommend giving dill, parsley and green onion. But our practice has shown that this green food is well eaten by canaries and nothing bad happens from it.

Parsley and dill are rich in carotene, which is the basis for the formation of yellow and red pigments during feathering. Therefore, colored birds are recommended to give greens in unlimited quantities.

Diet food and treats. Adult canaries are given finely chopped hard-boiled eggs in the following cases: when exhausted and during molting, 1/2 teaspoon daily three to four times a day. Make sure that the eggs in the feeder are fresh; when mating - 1/4 teaspoon every other day; for all other adults, instead of soft food, 1/4 teaspoon can be included in the daily diet once every six days; in winter, crushed multivitamins A, B, C, D should be added to chopped chicken eggs. From frequent feeding with eggs, healthy birds get fat, as well as from hemp, especially if they are given without a norm.

Treats include fresh figs, oranges, tangerines. Slightly incised segments of oranges and tangerines are placed between metal rods in order to enable birds to freely peck at the citrus pulp.

Canaries are very fond of sugar, for which the Spaniards called them "sugar" birds. White sweet crackers and refined sugar are placed between the bars of the cage and left for two to three days. Feeding the chicks. One or two days before the appearance of the chicks, green-vegetable-fruit and soft foods are excluded from the feed ration of the female, only grain is left.

Chicks that appear from the first to the third day are given chopped yolk of a hard-boiled chicken egg, from the fourth to the eighth day - chopped yolk and protein, from the ninth to the tenth day - chopped eggs mixed with semolina or grated white cracker.

IN summer days to avoid spoilage of such feed, it is necessary to lay it in the feeder more often and in small quantities so that the feed is always fresh. The rate of egg feed may be different, depending on the number of chicks. In the early days, chopped eggs are regularly given to the feeder - one teaspoon. With the age of the chicks, this rate is increased, bringing it to three or four spoons. It is advisable to give chicken eggs for feeding chicks, for a long time. Some canary breeders recommend giving egg food to chicks up to six months of age, that is, until the end of the first molt.

In addition to eggs, it is recommended: from the tenth day - boiled carrots, from the twelfth day - grated or finely chopped raw carrots, from the fourteenth day - grated carrots mixed with crushed white breadcrumbs, various cereals, fresh cottage cheese, sometimes small pieces of fresh unsalted butter, from the 15th day - separate apple slices, and then gradually diversify the fruit food. From the 30th day, the chicks are transferred to the food of adult birds. It is useful for females and chicks to give porridge with fish oil, at the rate of one drop per teaspoon of porridge.

At the same time, it is necessary to carefully monitor how birds eat it. If willingly, then from the 20th day in the winter-spring period, the chicks are given fortified cereals, alternating them with simple ones. In England, Belgium, Holland, to preserve the color of the plumage of red canaries, they also feed cayenne pepper, which is mixed with chopped egg and bread. All this is given in portions, gradually increasing and reaching one teaspoon per bird. This supplementary food is given to birds at six to eight weeks of age, and then each time during the molt.

The author and other amateur canary breeders have repeatedly happened to buy freshly brought bright red canaries from England, Belgium, Holland. Each time such a colorful beautiful canary turned from bright red to light orange over time. Unfortunately, cayenne pepper is not cultivated here, in Central Asia, and, in all likelihood, in our other union republics he is not there either. Hence the forced color change.

Literature: B.A. Simonov. Singing and ornamental birds

Canaries - singing, breeding, care and maintenance, photo - 4.2 out of 5 based on 86 votes

canaries

Canaries are one of the most musical and unpretentious poultry.

For more than one century, canaries have delighted their owners with pleasant melodic singing, a variety of colors and unusual shapes.

The body length of the indoor canary is 12?14 cm. The wild species is slightly smaller than the domestic form (12-13 cm long) and differs greatly from it in color. Male from above green color with black longitudinal lines, top part head, throat and rump are yellow-green, the color of the chest turns yellow posteriorly, the belly is white. The color of the female is paler due to the grayish edges of the feathers, her back is brown-gray with black lines. Captivity has greatly changed the canary, and its color has become a solid yellow. A mixture of a wild canary with a domestic one is very beautiful, it is colored with a mixture of green and yellow.

And it is not surprising that all over the world canaries enjoy great and, undoubtedly, completely deserved popularity, which is constantly growing.

According to information that has come down to us, already in the 14th century, Spanish and Portuguese sailors began to gradually bring the singers who had so fascinated them to their homeland. Most likely, these were canaries already accustomed to captivity, bought from local residents, who were happy to keep little singers at home, in cages woven from twigs. Thus began the proud "march" through the world of discreet, but so generously endowed by Nature island birds.

The canary is easily tamed, quite trusting, amenable to "education" and successfully breeds at home. Canaries can live at home for 15-18 years, they are kept in cages and aviaries.

The size of the cage is 30-35 cm long, 20-22 cm wide, height 27-29 cm. The distance between the twigs is no more than 1.2-1.4 cm. The door in the cage should be located on the side. The bottom must be double, preferably made of thin stainless steel (inner bottom) and always retractable, so that it is easier to clean the cage, change the sand in it and disinfect.

Feeders can be placed on the bottom of the cage, but this most often leads to an unsanitary state of food and cage. It is desirable, however, that the feeders in the cages be retractable. In this position, it is easy to get them when feeding and the birds will have less anxiety.

The cage should have a perch for a bird, which is a round perch with a thickness of not more than 1.5 cm. The surface of the perch is left rough, not cleaned. The distance between the perches should be such that, jumping from one to the other, the bird can freely flap its wings.

Canaries love to swim. Bathing cleanses the skin and strengthens the plumage. Bathing water should be at room temperature. The bathing suit is attached to the outside of the door so that water does not get into the cage. After each bath, the bathing suit is cleaned and the doors are closed. Bathing suits should be washed daily. Canaries must be taught to bathe with early age, i.e. from the moment of their jigging from the female - after 30-35 days of age.

Cages should be cleaned at least twice a week. At this time, the bird needs to be transplanted - overtaken to another cage, placing the cages with open doors to each other. The entire inventory of the cage - a pallet, feeders, drinkers, perches - must be taken out and rinsed well hot water.

Drinking water should be at room temperature. It is poured into glass or porcelain dishes. small size(height 3-4 cm) and put on the bottom of the cage in a place convenient for drinking birds. Between the twigs of the cage, you can insert small feeders in the form of a thimble or a plastic cork for periodic feeding with honey, grated carrots, and yolk in addition to the main food.

The cage is placed in a well-lit place, but not in the sun, not on a window and not in a draft. If the room closes, you can and should let the bird fly. Initially 5-10 minutes, and then up to 40-45 minutes. You can teach a bird to sit on your hand, on your shoulder, but this requires a lot of patience. Cages with canaries should be approached so that the birds can see you: talking to them in an even, gentle voice will win the bird's trust.

Feeding canaries

Feeding canaries is not difficult. The main feed is grain mixture.

In order for canaries to eat all the food offered to them, and not choose especially favorite components and at the same time not get fat, you must strictly observe its daily rate.

On average, one bird relies daily on 1-1.5 teaspoons with a hill of grain mixture. This rate may vary somewhat depending on the breed and physiological state birds.

So, during the molting period, the norm should be increased, since the phenomenon of hyperphagia occurs in birds, that is, a large consumption of food necessary for the formation of new plumage. At this time, obesity cannot occur.

It should also be remembered that the bioenergy metabolism of small birds is very high, so they should not be left without food in the daytime, even for 1-2 hours.

In addition to grain, canaries need soft and green food.

Soft food for one serving is prepared from half a boiled egg yolk, grated, with the addition of one teaspoon of ground crackers, semolina or better baby food (such as “baby” porridge) and a pinch of poppy seeds.

A good source of vitamins and carotene are various vegetables and fruits. They are cut into slices and strengthened between the bars of the cage near the perch.

From green food, canaries should be given: carrots, bell peppers - a wig, cabbage, lettuce, spinach, celery and dandelion leaves, parsley, apples, pears and strawberries. Like other birds, canaries need mineral feed. They should always be in a separate feeder. These include crushed eggshells, chalk, charcoal, coarse sand or shell rock.

Non-carbonated mineral water can serve as an addition to mineral dressing.

Birds need to be accustomed to new feeds gradually. An abrupt change can cause intestinal upset in birds, forced untimely molting and other diseases, so when buying birds, ask what the previous owners fed them.

Crushed nuts and sunflower seeds should also be added to the bird menu.

Canary breeding

In their homeland, in natural conditions, in wild canaries, the breeding season begins in the 2nd half of March. Best time for mating and breeding chicks in our conditions - spring (March, April, May). During this period, there is a longer daylight hours, and the female can feed the chicks longer. To obtain good offspring, it is necessary to carefully select the male and female. The male must be large interesting song, beautiful plumage, active. Age - not less than 1 year. The female must also have the appropriate qualities. It is advisable to pair males from one and a half to two years and even up to five years, and females - from 11 months to three to four years. The coloration of the offspring is influenced by both producers, and the male influences the vocal qualities, susceptibility to the song and hearing. This should also be taken into account when choosing a pair.

Some hobbyists practice breeding one male with two or three females and still get normal broods, but this requires a lot of experience. A more accessible way is to bring one male to one female. Before mating, a cage with a male and a cage with a female are placed side by side so that the birds can see each other and begin to show mutual interest. The male during this period daily, for 5-6 days, is given soft food in addition to grain. Increase the diet and females. Ready for mating birds are planted in one cage. The male is planted first, and after a day or two, the female is planted next to him. The female released to the male quickly mates with him and proceeds to build a nest. From the start of mating and nest building to the laying of the first egg, it takes from three to ten days.

The mating cage can be regular or slightly larger. The nest can be hung in the corner of the cage from the inside or outside, in a quiet place.

So that the female can safely build a nest, she needs to put pieces of chopped cotton or linen threads 2-3 cm in size, small shreds of linen or cotton fabric and even well-dried small hay collected in a ball into a cage. Within 6-7 days, the female builds a nest, after which she begins to lay eggs. After the female lays 3-4 eggs, the male is removed from the cage, as the female herself can feed the chicks. But you can leave the male, and he will actively help the female in hatching and feeding the chicks.

The female canary incubates the chicks for 13 days. Males also take part in incubation of eggs. At the moment when the female leaves for feeding, he replaces her. On the 14th day, the chicks hatch from the eggs. 3-4 hours after the appearance of the chicks, the female begins to feed them. Both parents also feed the chicks from the beak.

Lovers of bird singing like the canary, keeping and caring for such a feathered friend is a special responsibility. Melodious voice, colorful plumage, the ability to duplicate various sounds brought her worldwide fame. good care And correct content will help to have in the house always a cheerful and cheerful singer.

Canary birds - species

Birds belong to the order of passerines, they come from the Canary Islands. Breeders have bred a huge number of their species with a variety of colors and manner of singing. The canary bird has a body size of 12-14 cm, often has a yellow color. There are three main types:

How many years canaries live at home?

On average, at home it is 10 years, with impeccable care, a bird can reach a 15-year milestone. The fundamental factors of a long life are quality food and a suitable environment. In the old days, it was believed that singing signals the health of the singer. The more beautiful and longer the trills, the more comfortable the feathered friend lives in captivity.

Canary - conditions of detention

Birds need care from the owner. Keeping canaries at home is most comfortable in small cages. They are placed in bright places where there are no drafts and scorching sunlight. Canary - maintenance and care:

• placing them together with other brothers (especially with large ones) in the same room is undesirable - songbirds are very shy;
• feathered trapping, sudden movements, screams are very afraid. From this they experience stress and may die;
• the bird is released to fly around the room. At the same time, the windows are curtained with a cloth, basins of water are hidden so that the pet does not drown, as well as hot irons and pots;
• at night the dwelling can be covered thick cloth so that the pet is not disturbed by extraneous noise;
• daylight hours for them should be 14-16 hours - then the birds eat well and sing. If the birds are kept in shaded places, they do not have time to eat the daily ration of food, their feathers fall out. In winter, songstresses include lamps that provide additional lighting.

Canary - keeping temperature

In the room where canaries live, it is necessary to maintain a constant temperature of 16-18 ° C, it is better to position the cage so that the birds do not lack fresh air. High humidity, a sharp change in heat and cold are dangerous for the body of birds - they can fall ill. Therefore, keeping canaries in the kitchen is not recommended. In summer, it is advisable to move the birds to the loggia or to the garden - they like to take air baths.

Cage for keeping canaries

To accommodate a single bird, you need a small metal cage with dimensions of 45x30x25 cm. The dwelling for breeding individuals should be larger - 70x30x40 cm. It is better to choose a square or rectangular shape of the house - in a round shelter, the singer feels unprotected. A canary bird cage should contain the following equipment:

1. Retractable tray. It helps to clean up and not disturb the bird during the procedure. Otherwise, the pet is stressed and worried.
2. River sand. Imposed on the bottom of the dwelling, it promotes excellent digestion.
3. drinkers 10 cm in diameter and 5 cm high.
4. Three feeders. For grains, mineral supplements and soft foods.
5. 2-3 perches with a diameter of 1-1.5 cm from branches fruit trees, which must first be doused with boiling water.
6. Flat bowl for bathing. Singers love water sessions. The bathing suit is attached from the outside of the cage, after each procedure it is removed.

How to care for a canary at home?

A room canary does not require much care, care and maintenance consist in feeding, disinfecting the home. Without proper cleaning of the home, the singer can get sick and die. Caring for canaries at home should be as follows:

• drinkers and feeders are washed daily and wiped dry;
• once a week, the cage is cleaned with detergent;
• once a month, the dwelling and inventory are disinfected with kerosene;
• water is changed 2 times a day;
• they give feathered baths twice a week, there should be fresh water in the vessel;
• dirt from the perches must be removed with a knife and hot water.

Canary - maintenance and care of birds:

• the tips of the claws for pets are shortened with manicure tongs by 2 mm as they grow;
• in July - September, the bird molts, while it may stop singing. At this time, she needs care - a menu enriched with vitamins and an abundance of sunlight. Birds are placed on a balcony or in a summer aviary.

How to feed a canary at home?

Feeding canaries at home is simple, the basic part of their menu is grain - seeds, oatmeal, flax seeds or dry mixes, which are in a specialized department. The daily volume is 1-1.5 tsp per individual (during the molting season - 2 tsp). Periodically, boiled cereals are introduced into the menu - rice, millet, mixed with grated carrots, chicken egg, bread crumbs.

Shells, chalk, calcium gluconate, charcoal are suitable as mineral supplements. Additionally give green fodder:

• lettuce, spinach;
• parsley;
• apples;
• cabbage;
• bell pepper.

Diseases of canaries, their treatment

With poor care and nutrition, birds can become ill. – symptoms and treatment:

1. Inflammation of the eyes. Manifested by secretions, the eyelids are washed with a solution boric acid or infusion of chamomile, in severe cases, you need to prescribe antibiotics.
2. Diarrhea. Diarrhea occurs after an overabundance of soft food. Care is to use strong tea, activated charcoal, antibiotics with boiled water (supronal, terramycin).
3. Cold. Manifested by coughing, shortness of breath, nasal discharge and cloudy eyes. Treatment is carried out with infrared radiation, heat, drinking with antibiotics.
4. Obesity. When overeating, songbirds become inactive, they shed poorly. It is necessary to provide them with a diet - a week on millet, to give them the opportunity to fly.
5. Smallpox. A dangerous virus, recognized by yellowish nodules on the head, intermittent breathing. The bird is removed, the dwelling is disinfected, there is no chance to save the pet. Vaccination is given as a preventive measure.
6. Diseases of the legs. Manifested by white growths on the paws. The legs are lubricated with streptocid or tar ointment.
7. Ticks. Birds constantly clean their feathers, weaken. Removed with insecticides.

Reproduction of canaries at home

Before breeding canaries at home, they select a pair of energetic and mobile birds aged 1-4 years. They are strengthened by feeding, they are given eggs 2-3 times a week, a lot of greens. Straws, blades of grass to build a nest are placed in the mating house and a couple is planted. After a week, the female will begin to lay one egg per day (there will be 3-5 in total), hatching them. Chicks appear on the thirteenth day. The mother starts feeding them egg food. On day 10, their eyes open, on day 12, feathers unfold, on day 18, they leave the nest. A month later, it is already possible to distinguish females from males.

A canary is a bird that can make even the most indifferent person fall in love with itself. In terms of color) it has no equal among birds. And if he sings, snapping and whistling, bursting into a trill .... You will listen.

Yellow, white, red, orange, colors Ivory and pink (light lipochrome), completely monochromatic, without the slightest dark spot and dark (melanin), from which black, agate, brown and isabella stand out, which in turn are green, gray, bronze, copper (black canary) colors , agate has a lighter than black stroke pattern of the pen, brown has a brown pen pattern, and isabella has a barely noticeable pastel pattern - and this is not all the colors are listed, there are up to 150 different shades.

Canaries are divided into two types: decorative and singing. Decorative canaries are large, they have a special body structure and unusual plumage, the main types are curly, humpbacked, figured, crested and painted. Painted canaries come in the most unexpected original colors, curly ones are different in size, but all with smooth thick plumage, crested ones have a lush tail and thick “eyebrows”, and curly ones have long feathers, as if curled. Very funny humpbacked canaries - they sit very straight, and lower their head on an outstretched neck down to shoulder level.

Among the singing canaries, three breeds stand out: German (Harz Roller), Belgian (Malinois) and Spanish (Timbrados). The German canary is usually yellow in color, distinguished by the richness and variety of beautiful, low tours, which received poetic names: deaf peal, knorra, murmuring peal, deaf bell, shockel, clucking and others (bred in the old town of the Upper Harz-Andreasberg). The Belgian canary (bred more than 100 years ago in the area of ​​​​the ancient Belgian city of Malina or Mecheln, for which it received the name of the Malinois canary) is larger than the Harz canary, it should be pure yellow in color, there may be one brown spot, and its singing resembles various sounds of a moving, running over water pebbles. The Spanish canary (the oldest breed, obtained by crossing a wild canary with a European canary finch) or timberados can be green, yellow and variegated in color, its song consists of loose trills.

There are also Russian canaries, among which a variety of singing canaries stands out, called the oatmeal canary. Most often, Russian canaries are yellow, sometimes with small dark spots on the head or back. All the tribes of their gentle, melodious song they sing with their beak open

Plan. Canaries in cages are a must-have livestock that is traded in bird markets. This is one of the most popular birds that is bred specifically for commercial purposes. In a month, two birds sold will bring income equal to the monthly pension of a pensioner.

Breeding and keeping canaries is considered an easy task compared to breeding other birds.

The indigenous inhabitants of the islands kept canaries in cages long before the conquerors of the islands. In the 15th century, the Spanish and Portuguese conquered the islands. The birds amazed the conquerors with their singing. Almost immediately, they began to import canaries to Spain and Portugal, and even for some time maintained a monopoly on breeding canaries - they sold only males at fabulous prices. Only rich people bought kenars and often kept them in gold and silver cages adorned with precious stones.

First of all, you need to take care of the placement of canaries - about the place where you will have them. Some place canaries simply in ordinary cages (40 x 20 x 25 cm) on specially made racks in the brightest part of the room reserved for growing canaries. But in general, it is recommended to build a long flying cage for young birds (100x50x50 cm) and an aviary (large cage), covered with a metal mesh, which can be installed outdoors.

Cages are usually made of wire, copper cannot be used for this purpose, it can only be painted on the outside with paints that do not contain white (lead white is poison for birds). It is necessary to place the cages in places where there are no drafts, in the summer slightly shading on one side from direct sunlight. Doors are arranged on both sides in the cage, 2-3 perches are attached at the same level (with a diameter of 1.5 cm, it is better from willow branches not peeled from the bark). Ceramic flower pot trays can be used as feeders.

Food and water should be located at different ends of the cage and not under the perches. The bottom is covered with a layer of sand, which must be changed every 4 days. Many of the bottoms are covered with paper (newspaper is not allowed), and the sand is placed in separate bowls, the paper should be changed every day. Drinking bowls and feeders should also be washed every day, and the cage should be washed with hot water and soap from time to time. For bathing canaries, bowls (10 cm in diameter) should be placed. There are special glass or plastic bathing suits that are hung on the outside of the cage to one of the open doors. Food must be kept in the cage at all times.

They say that once off the coast of Italy, as a result of the wreck of a Spanish merchant ship, a large consignment of kenars was released. As a result of crossing with females of the local canary finch, a hybrid offspring appeared, which was not inferior in its singing to overseas birds. Already in the middle of the 16th century, canaries began to be successfully bred in Italy, canaries began to spread rapidly throughout Europe.

For feeding canaries, grain mixtures are used, they can be purchased at a pet store or made independently. The mixtures include rapeseed, flax, millet, canary seed, sunflower, hemp, oatmeal, poppy, noug. Percentage of all components of the mixture for colored and decorative canaries is somewhat different, in particular, for feeding colored canaries, rapeseed is taken almost 2 times more than for decorative ones, more is taken and oatmeal, but poppy, sunflower and flax are taken 2 times less. One bird per day eats 1-2 teaspoons of the mixture.

You can also give untreated seeds of chicory, rutabaga, cabbage, turnip, sesame, Chinese cabbage, garden turnip, young millet, green oat seeds, in summer - dandelion seeds, shepherd's purse stalks in the form of shepherds. Especially canaries love the tender stems and seed pods of woodlice, they can be given in unlimited quantities. Unripe spikelets of plantain, tops of quinoa with seeds, seed panicles of horse sorrel, common lettuce, young, tender leaves and dandelion buds, parsley leaves, watercress, chicory perfectly eat canaries.

IN winter time be sure to give green food: thin leaves of cabbage, fresh shoots of sunflower, oats, rapeseed or peas sown in dice with soil, and even leaves houseplant tradescantia. Canaries also love vegetables and fruits - apples, grapes, figs, apricots. Especially in winter and autumn, it is useful for birds to give grated raw carrots, sprigs of willow, bird cherry, linden, lilac, currant and some other plants.

At the turn of the 16th-17th centuries, the first signs of the domestication of this amazing bird appeared, pure yellow chicks appeared, and by the beginning of the 18th century, up to 30 color forms of canaries had already been bred. The bred canaries differed not only in color from their wild relative, but also in body shape, plumage structure, and size. Soon, thanks to the ease of keeping and breeding, beauty and beautiful voice, the canary conquered the whole world. In the 19th century, it could already be seen in the apartments of residents not only in Europe, but also in America, Australia, South Asia and Africa.

Experienced canary breeders recommend giving chicks and adult birds egg food, and while feeding the chicks, this food should be constantly in the cages. A hard-boiled egg is kneaded with a fork, 1-2 tablespoons of breadcrumbs are added, and you can also add grated carrots or carrot juice, chopped apple. It is advisable to enrich the egg feed with fish oil every two weeks (20 drops per serving). Well-ground eggshells, glycerophosphate or calcium gluconate are used as mineral supplements. Sand and small stones are needed.

When breeding canaries, several rules should be followed. Be sure to ventilate the rooms where the canaries are. Invalid hit domestic gas, canaries are very sensitive to it and die even from a slight content of it in the air.

Birds should have a period of complete rest - the autumn and winter months, so during this period, male and female canaries should be kept apart, and even better - in different rooms.

Birds should be awake from 7-8 am to 5 pm (extension of daylight hours is unacceptable, they should not be excited), green food is required, egg mixture and grain mixture 2 times a week.

Canaries are sexually mature from 10 months to 4 years. Usually the behavior of canaries before breeding changes, it is important not to miss this moment. During this period (late February - early March), birds should receive enhanced nutrition and freedom of movement (to fly in an aviary). Females begin to look for material for building a nest; on the female's abdomen, an area of ​​bare skin - a brood spot - noticeably increases.

By this time, it is necessary to prepare a nesting cage (its dimensions: 60x30x40 cm) and place it on permanent place. The easiest way is to use rope cups sewn for this purpose, which are sold at the pet store. The upper diameter of the cup is usually 9-10 cm, and the depth is not more than 6 cm. The cups are placed in wire baskets with hooks for hanging from the cage wall, and they should be in the light. Soft dry grass, moss, cotton wool, small feathers, short scraps of cotton or wool yarn, torn soft fabric - all this must be placed on the floor of the cage.

The female builds a nest for 2-3 days. After a couple of days, with a successful pairing process, the female will begin to lay eggs (grayish-blue with dark speckles), usually 4-6 pieces. In order for the chicks to hatch at the same time, it is recommended to remove the first eggs (instead of these, you can put an unfertilized chatterbox egg or an artificial one), and return everything when the bird finishes laying.

After 13 days, chicks begin to appear. A dried up chick immediately after hatching asks for food. They are born blind, on the 4-5th day their eyes open slightly, the beginnings of feathers appear - tubules. By the 9th-10th day of life, they have normal thermoregulation, the female stops warming them and only feeds them. After 18-19 days, the chicks leave the nest. At this time, the female proceeds to the second nesting, and the male is engaged in feeding these chicks.

For more successful rearing of a brood, a pair of canaries needs to create good conditions: abundance of food and extended daylight hours lasting 13-14 hours. To do this, the light in the room with canaries must be turned on already at half past six in the morning.

Chicks can be planted at the age of 28-30 days. First they are fed with a grain mixture, egg feed with the addition of fish oil, then egg feed is given every other day, and then 2-3 times a week. The cage should always have a grain mixture, herbs and mineral supplements.

At two months, the first molt begins in canaries and lasts up to 2 months, and they begin to try to sing already at the age of one month.

The nesting period for canaries lasts from March to July. Then there is a molt, lasting 2.5-3 months. During the season, birds can grow 2-3 broods.
Canaries grown at home often imitate even heard human speech. Canaries are most receptive to learning to sing in their first year of life. Experienced canary breeders choose a male with the best singing abilities and next to his cage they place the cages of those birds they want to train, fencing them off with cardboard partitions. Training lasts up to 8 months.

For commercial breeding of canaries, you need to purchase several pairs, you can buy them either from a well-known canary breeder, or in a pet store, or in the market. In a pet store you can buy a canary (average prices) for 500 rubles, a kenar - from 2,000 rubles, the most expensive red kenars - up to 3,000 rubles. From five pairs per year, on average, under favorable conditions, up to 50 chicks can grow.

Recommendations. If you have not been breeding birds, before you start breeding canaries, study the available literature on this topic. In principle, there is nothing complicated, if you strictly follow all the basic rules. Start by purchasing one pair. In a year, you will already have 8-15 chicks, leave some of them for breeding, and you can sell several kenars and females and use the proceeds to buy more expensive kenars and canaries for subsequent breeding.

When teaching young birds to sing for the first time in the room where they are, silence must be observed. A certain mode of darkening and rearrangement of cells helps. To teach birds to sing, you can use a tape (or on another medium) recording with the voices of good canary singers.

Buy only healthy birds, how best to distinguish them from sick ones, look in the relevant literature. It is almost impossible to determine the sex of the chicks; kenars can only be distinguished by singing.

Experts advise grown females, if they look healthy and cheerful, to purchase at a pet store. Singing kenars are also best purchased at a pet store, as you can listen to them and determine which kenar you need.
It is not necessary to sell precisely singing kenars; ornamental birds are readily acquired, although they are very rare.

Sell ​​through pet stores, bird markets, or through ads in the local press.