Very an important factor in the content of canaries is the correct mode. Inadequate and malnutrition often leads to various diseases, and sometimes death of birds, therefore, proper 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: a bright, sunny room, clean air, and the right 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 onions to birds. 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 have appeared 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.
On summer days, to avoid spoilage of such food, it is necessary to put it in the feeder more often and in small quantities so that the food 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, we have cayenne pepper in Central Asia, are not cultivated, and, in all likelihood, it is not in our other union republics either. Hence the forced color change.
Literature: B.A. Simonov. Singing and ornamental birds
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). German canary usually yellow color, is 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 ancient 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. Drinkers and feeders should also be washed every day, and the cage is washed hot water with 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. The percentage ratio 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, it is imperative 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, crushed apple. It is advisable to enrich the egg feed with fish oil every two weeks (20 drops per serving). As mineral additives, well-ground eggshell, glycerophosphate or calcium gluconate. Sand and small stones are needed.
When breeding canaries, several rules should be followed. Be sure to ventilate the rooms where the canaries are. Domestic gas is unacceptable, canaries are very sensitive to it and die even from its slight content 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 woolen 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 a more successful rearing of the brood, a pair of canaries needs to create good conditions: an abundance of food and an 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 a grain mixture, egg food with the addition of fish oil, then egg food 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.
domestic canary- a subspecies of the finch from the Canary Islands. The bird is found in the Canary, Azores and Madeira Islands. More than 5 centuries have passed since man tamed the bird. As a result of selection, the vocal apparatus of the finch has changed. The singing of the domestic canary differs from that of the wild species.
Canary: maintenance and care at home
Varieties of canaries
In most cases, yellow canaries are taken as pets. But this does not mean that the plumage of a bird has only a yellow color. There are three main types of domestic canaries.
Colored canaries. The color of colored canaries is diverse: yellow, red, green, gray, white, mottled. Gray canaries are especially remarkable, they are born from the combination of green and yellow breeds. As a result of crossing, the color of birds varies from dull black to silver. Red canary is the most catchy, this color is rarely found in nature. Pied canaries have a wide range of colors, their common name is harlequin.
decorative canaries. Distinctive features of birds are unusual plumage and body shape. The names of some breeds of ornamental canaries speak for themselves, for example, curly and hunchbacked.
Singers. Canaries of all kinds sing. The singers have beautiful overflows in the melody, their voices are more musical. Soft birds are traditionally considered the best singers. Kenar breeders especially distinguish green and yellow individuals. Red birds are spectacular, but their voices do not caress the ear. Variegated ones without scarlet shades in feathers sing wonderfully. The arias are performed only by the male. The bird sings throughout the year, with the exception of the molting time. The most remarkable performance is in February-March, when the mating season is underway. The female only sings along: short, rare, less melodious. Caring for canaries of any kind is the same. Everyone who decides to have a bird should know the conditions for keeping a pet.
Canaries are quickly tamed, trusting, and amenable to education. They easily get used to the owner, under comfortable conditions they breed without problems.
Canary cage size: length 35 cm, width 22 cm, height 29 cm. The distance between the bars of the cage should not exceed 1.5 cm. Otherwise, the bird may stick its head between the bars and get stuck. Door on the side, stainless steel double bottom - the characteristic of a good cage. The double bottom will allow you to easily clean the cage, changing the sand in it, and will facilitate the necessary regular disinfection.
The place where the cage stands should be well lit: a dark corner will not work, a direct hit sunlight also not allowed. It is necessary to install a perch in the cage - round perches 1.5 cm thick. Perches with a rough surface are best suited. They are set at such a distance from each other that the bird jumps from perch to perch with a flap of wings.
Cage cleaning requires careful approach. All the contents of the cage: pallet, feeders, perches, drinkers, are cleaned at least 2 times a week, doused with boiling water several times. The next step is treatment with a disinfectant solution, for example, chamomile infusion or potassium permanganate solution. Dry after treatment with solution. The pallet is covered with white paper, it is changed every 2-3 days. Clean, river, dry sand is also applicable as bedding.
Feeders are most convenient if they are hinged and retractable. Putting the feeder on the bottom of the cage is not practical, as birds scatter food. Mounted feeders allow the bird to eat in a comfortable position, and the owner to clean up less.
Canaries love water. Bathing is good for birds. Water cleanses skin and helps to strengthen the feathers. Bathing requires a special container and water at room temperature. The water container cannot be left in the cage for a long time; after bathing, the container is removed. Bathing suit must be washed every day. A month after birth, the pet is ready to get acquainted with water procedures. Accustom the birds to bathing gradually. The sooner the process starts, the better. After all, then the pet will be spared the fear of water.
A drinking bowl is installed in the cage, filled with water at room temperature. Drinking bowl material - porcelain, glass. The drinking bowl is installed between the bars of the cage in any place convenient for the bird.
It is useful for a bird to arrange flight walks around the room. In this case, a number of conditions must be observed to ensure safety.
- close all doors and windows;
- remove hot, sharp objects;
- remove pets from the premises.
While creating comfortable conditions for a bird, you should think about good lighting and a long daylight hours. In winter, you can provide additional lighting by installing a lamp next to the cage. The birds wake up with the sunrise, so at night in the summer the cage is covered with a cloth. This measure will allow the owner of the pet to sleep longer.
Feeding
In conditions wildlife the Canary finch, following instincts, feeds on greens, grains, and insects in the right proportions. Home conditions of detention oblige the owner of the bird to take care of a balanced diet.
reproduction
The female lays her first egg 10-12 days after intercourse. Further laying occurs every day, usually a couple has up to 5 testicles. After the appearance of the first egg, it is replaced with a wooden one. This is done with each next testicle until the last. When the female lays the last egg, all previously taken ones are returned to the nest. If the eggs are not replaced, the chicks will appear on different days, which will lead to the risk of death of the youngest.
Eggs should be taken out of the nest with a spoon, and not with your hands, so as not to crush. Store in a soft box. The female incubates the eggs for two weeks.. Birds begin to feed their offspring in a day, some, especially caring parents, in a few hours.
The food for the chicks in the first days consists of a hard-boiled egg, finely chopped and mixed with white grated breadcrumbs. After 3-4 days, porridge is added to the diet. Porridge is cooked from rice and millet in milk with the addition of an egg. Food must be stored in the refrigerator.
Cooking porridge is easy:
- boil a glass of water;
- pour a teaspoon of cereal into a glass and cook until the cereal is boiled;
- add 150 gr. to boiled cereals. milk;
- after boiling milk, add 3 teaspoons of cereals and boil;
- salted into boiled porridge and pour an egg into it.
As the chicks grow, the amount of food prepared increases..
A week later, the kenar joins the care of the offspring. On the eighth day the chicks open their eyes, on the twelfth day the chicks try to fly out of the nest. Then the kenar takes full care of the children, as the female must prepare for the next laying and incubation of eggs.
After the ability to fly is established, the chicks are fenced off from their parents with bars. In this case, the female and male will feed the young through the grate. The need for separation is due to the fact that, remaining all together, adults pluck the babies. After two weeks, the chicks are completely independent: they can fly and eat a mixture of grains. Kenars are placed in one cage, females in another and transferred to a normal feeding regimen.
In three weeks kenara begin to try to sing. The songs of the young are not as beautiful as the trills of adult birds, but they allow you to separate males from females. The females do not sing.
One way of breeding is to keep one male with two females. This option creates a serious burden on the female. Breeding in pairs produces healthier offspring and is easier on the birds.
Colored canaries are bred in the same way as songbirds, but they need more attention. Attention should be paid to the selection of individuals for mating. For example, two intensely colored red birds will produce weak offspring with sparse feathers. On the contrary, individuals with a pale color will give birth to healthy chicks with a bright color and beautiful appearance.
It is allowed to cross a pale individual and a brightly colored one, no matter who more intense color in a female or male. Part of the brood will take the data of the father, part - the data of the mother, there is a possibility of the birth of defective chicks.
Life span
The average lifespan of a canary is about 10 years., with good care, the birds live up to 15 years. good care includes:
Canaries are beautiful birds that improve their singing skills throughout their lives. Birds are able to bring joy as pets, live soul to soul with the owner.
The domestic canary is a subspecies of the Canarian canary finch from the Canary Islands (Serinus canaria). The Canary Canary Finch inhabits the Atlantic archipelagos of the Canary Islands and the Azores, as well as the island of Madeira. It feeds primarily on seeds and parts of plants, and during the nesting period also on insects. For more than 500 years, man has tamed this songbird, making it a pet. The canary is the only pet whose vocal apparatus has changed, and thus its singing. This singing made the canary famous, especially the Harz Roller breed.
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 should be large, with an 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.
The cubs that have flown from the nest initially seem clumsy, inept. On the 24-28th day after hatching, the chicks separated from their parents find and eat soft and grain food well.
Well, if you decide to have a canary in your home, you should know that these birds are easily and quickly tamed and get used to the owner, they are very trusting, breed well at home and even lend themselves to education. With good and proper care the bird can live up to 15-18 years. The main thing is to create the most comfortable conditions for this.
Canary nest
For a canary, you should choose a cage, the size of which would be up to 35 centimeters in length, up to 22 centimeters in width, and up to 29 centimeters in height. At the same time, the distance between the bars should be no more than 1.2-1.4 centimeters, so that the bird does not inadvertently stick its head between the bars and get stuck. The cage door should be placed on the side. It is better to make the bottom double, and it is desirable to make the inner bottom of stainless steel. Such a bottom should be retractable, then it will be more convenient for you to clean and clean the cage, change the sand in it and carry out periodic mandatory disinfection.
Cage accessories
Feeders for feed can also be placed at the bottom of the cage, however, as practice shows, birds often scatter food, so it is better to make the feeder retractable and hinged. In this position, the bird will be comfortable to eat, and you will have to clean up less.
Be sure to make sure that there is a special perch in the canary cage - it is a round perch, the thickness of which is at least 1.5 centimeters. The surface of such perches should remain rough and not cleaned, and the distance between them should be such that the canary can flap its wings while jumping from one perch to another.
You should be aware that canaries love water, so they love all kinds of water treatments. By the way, they are useful for birds, cleanse the skin and strengthen the plumage of canaries. The main thing is that the water for such bathing is not cold and not hot, it is better to take it at room temperature, it should be poured into a special bathing suit, which you attach to the outside of the door in the cage so that water does not enter the cage. However, the water bath should not be kept in the cage all the time. After the bird bathes, the bathing suit should be removed and the cage doors closed. These bathing suits need to be washed every day.
In order for your canary not to be afraid of such water procedures, accustom it to them with early age. When the canary is 35 days old from the moment of birth, you can begin to introduce it to the bathing suit and water.
The cage should also have a drinker for canaries. The water in it should be at room temperature, and the drinker itself should be better made of glass or porcelain. It can be installed at the bottom of the cage, in a place convenient for your feathered pet.
Between the bars of the cage, you can also install small feeders or plastic plugs into which you will periodically pour bird feed.
What to feed
The basis of the diet of canaries is a grain mixture. Her daily need is from 1 to 1.5 teaspoons, and during the period of molting and feeding chicks, this amount is slightly increased. It is not worth overfeeding the bird - it gets fat very quickly, which is fraught with health problems, and in order for the food to be better absorbed, it is necessary to give the canary the opportunity to fly around the apartment.
In addition to grain, 2-3 times a week, the bird should be given soft food, consisting of eggs, soaked crackers and carrots. A day later - greens (dandelion or lettuce leaves). Sometimes greens can cause indigestion, so you should not get carried away with it and it is best to give the one that is grown in your own garden or windowsill.
Mineral feed should always be in a separate bowl, it can be purchased or homemade. As an additive, fine calcined river sand mixed with crushed egg shells is suitable. The canary can be fed, especially in winter, with pieces of apples and sweet peppers. The water in the drinker should be clean, so you can and even need to change it several times a day.
How to care
The first thing to take care of is a cage or aviary for a canary. The cages are usually made of hardwood or metal. The most common cell shape is rectangular. The cage should be free enough so that the canary can move and fly freely in it. The length of the cage should be at least 30-35 cm, width - 20-22 cm, height - 27-29 cm. The distance between the bars of the cage should not exceed 1.2-1.4 cm.
The bottom of the cage is usually made double, retractable. Then the cage will be easier to clean. There should be several perches in the cage with a diameter of no more than 1.5 cm. The surface of the perches is made rough so that the bird does not slip off. Place the perches at a distance sufficient for the bird to move freely along them. One canary needs 2-3 perches.
Also in the cage for canaries there should be a drinking bowl, a feeder, a bathing bowl. It is desirable to make these elements retractable in order to cause as little disturbance as possible to the canary. The water in the drinker should be changed frequently to keep it fresh. The feeder should be divided into three parts, or you can purchase three separate feeders. It's for three different types feed: grain, soft and mineral top dressing. The bathing suit must be fixed on the outside of the cage door so that water does not get inside the cage. Bathing suit should be cleaned after each bath. Bathing suit needs to be washed every day. The optimum water temperature for bathing canaries is room temperature.
The cage should be placed in a well-lit place, avoiding drafts and direct sunlight. You can not put the cage in a dark corner. The canary can be released to fly around the room, but the safety of the bird must be carefully monitored. Remove other pets from the room where the canary flies, remove all sharp or hot objects, close all windows and doors.
The cleaning of the cage must be approached carefully. At least 2 times a week, you should clean the cage tray, feeders and drinkers, perches. To do this, you need to take out the entire inventory of the cage and rinse it with hot water. After scalding and disinfecting the cell and its contents with a solution of chlorophos or a solution of chamomile. After disinfection, rinse again and then dry. A clean pallet can be lined with white paper, which should be changed every 2-3 days, or clean, dry river sand mixed with crushed eggshells. This litter will serve as a mineral top dressing for the canary.
You can feed the canary daily, pouring 1-2 teaspoons of food, or once every 2-3 days, but pouring 2-4 spoons. Canaries are fed with a special ready-made mixture, which should always be in the feeder (1.5 teaspoons per day) and given to birds once or twice a week protein food, for example, boiled egg or low-fat cottage cheese. 2-3 times a week, canaries are fed with grated apple or carrots as vitamin supplements.
To ensure the full development of your canary, you should take care of the length of daylight hours. Therefore, in winter, when the natural daylight hours are short, additional lighting can be installed near the cage. If you do not want to wake up early in the morning, then cover the cage at night with a piece of dark cloth.
Approximately 10-12 days after the first intercourse, an egg appears in the nest. Further egg-laying occurs daily and the female lays an average of 4-5 eggs in the nest. Young females have fewer eggs. As soon as the canary lays the first egg, it must be replaced with a wooden one. The same should be done with subsequent eggs, putting them in a box with soft bedding. The eggs taken out must be handled with care, they must be removed from the nest not with your hands, but with a small spoon so as not to crush them with your fingers. After the fourth egg, the wooden eggs are removed and real eggs are placed in the nest. This work is best done in the evening, when the female leaves the nest. If the eggs are not replaced with wooden ones, then the chicks will hatch on different days, and not at the same time, which often leads to the death of the youngest chicks. Two weeks after the start of incubation, chicks will appear in the nest. Their parents begin to feed in a day, and the most caring females and after a few hours.
For feeding the chicks, a feeder is placed with chopped chicken, hard-boiled egg, mixed with grated white breadcrumbs. After a few days, you can feed porridge. It is made from rice, millet, milk and one egg and is stored in the refrigerator. To prepare porridge, you need to boil a glass of water, pour a teaspoon of millet into it and cook until the cereal is boiled, after which half a glass of milk is added. As soon as the milk boils, three more teaspoons of pure millet are put into the saucepan and continue to cook. When the porridge is cooked, you need to put a pinch of salt in it and pour the egg. As the age of the chicks increases, the amount of food should be increased.
From the fifth or sixth day of life, the kenar also takes part in feeding the chicks. By the eighth day, the chicks have plumage and open their eyes, and by the twelfth day they are already flying out of the nest. By this period, almost all care for the offspring passes to the male, because the female is preparing for the second laying and incubation of eggs.
After the chicks leave the nest, they must be separated from their parents by a grate and adult birds will feed them through it, sticking their beak. If this is not done, then the chicks can be plucked by their parents. After two weeks, the young are already feeding on their own and eating the grain mixture well. From now on, they need to be transplanted into common cages - kenars into one, females into another - and gradually transferred to a normal diet.
Young kenara already at the age of 18-20 try their skills in singing. Their song is still far from the song of an adult kenar, but it makes it possible to distinguish males from females that do not sing.
Some canary breeders keep a male with two females. However, breeding in pairs allows you to get better offspring and reduces the burden on females.
Breeding colored canaries is carried out in the same way as singing canaries, only working with them requires more attention and care. For example, mating two dark red individuals produces offspring with sparse plumage. Moreover, some parts of the body remain completely without a feather, the exterior deteriorates, the birds are hatched weak and small. When two pale-colored canaries are crossed, the position changes. Chicks are born strong, with more intense coloration and good external shape.
Good results are obtained when mating a pale-colored female and an intensely colored male. It doesn't matter which one is brighter. In such cases, part of the brood is in the father, the other - in the mother. Of course, with this ratio, defective chicks are also bred, which should be rejected during breeding work.
How many live
The life expectancy of a canary is 8-10 years, in rare cases they live up to 15.
If you take care of them properly, do not put them in a draft (And in general, you can’t open windows near the room where canaries live, they are very afraid of drafts), feed them with food with vitamins, keep the cage clean - up to 15 years.
Canary finch - the progenitor of the domestic canary
photo can be enlarged
Canary- a popular unpretentious poultry. Over many centuries of captivity, it has undergone significant changes and is very different from its wild ancestor - the Canarian canary finch shown in the photo. On this page of the site "" we will consider this bird in detail. The advantages of such a pet are the simplicity and cheapness of maintenance, melodic singing, bright and varied colors obtained by crossing with related species. What this interesting animal looks like is best seen in the photo in the text. The singing of this bird is very melodious and gives great pleasure to the owner. The size of such a pet ranges from 11 to 22 cm, depending on the species.
Domestic canaries are divided into colored, decorative and singing varieties. Colored ones come in a variety of colors (yellow, red, orange, white, brown, etc.), from plain to variegated. There are two varieties of whites: English and German, the latter is not very pure in color and the appearance of yellow canaries in the offspring. The gray variety is a cross between green and yellow canaries, and can range in color from light gray to almost black.
color canary
photo can be enlarged
The yellow canary is the most popular among hobbyists, the brightness of the color of such a pet can vary greatly. The green variety is closest in coloration to its wild ancestor and also has several color modifications. Very popular and red, uncharacteristic for birds, the color of canaries, varying from dark to light. Orange came from crossing the yellow and red varieties. Often there are variegated individuals of these pets, containing all the colors listed above, called harlequins.
Decorative ones include hunchbacked, curly, fife fensi and lizard. These birds differ in non-standard body shape, plumage or size.
Well, the name of the singers speaks for itself. Usually only the male canary sings - the canary and is most active during the breeding season, in spring, from February to March. Singing stops almost completely during molting, in August. Females sing much less often, shortly and less melodicly. Young kenari are easily trained, even adopting songs from other birds or from a tape recording. This is how the oatmeal canaries appeared, using the knees of the song of the wild oatmeal. You can listen to the singing of the canary below.
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singing canary
Usually young males, when kept in the same room, adopt the song of their father. As a singer, the canary is fully developed by the age of 2-3 and is no longer able to copy someone else's song. In the absence of an adult well-singing male next to the young, you can get by with a recording of a good canary singer, for example, by downloading it from the Internet. The canary is even able to copy and memorize a simple melody repeatedly played to it on a pipe or similar musical instrument. The song of the kenar is divided into knees and good singers are able to produce up to 12-14 melodic knees, with smooth transitions without harsh sounds.
Canary - content
yellow canary
photo can be enlarged
The first thing you need to keeping a domestic canary- cell. It is better if it is rectangular or square, the shape of the roof does not play a special role. In order for the animal to feel freer, the dimensions of the sides of the house should be at least 40 - 50 cm. Such a cage is more convenient both for the pet and for cleaning it. There should be several perches in this room, as this breed of bird likes to flutter from one to another. There should be feeders, a drinking bowl and a bathing bowl in the cage. All equipment that does not come with the house needs to be checked for compatibility with it, it will be a shame if the purchased item cannot be fixed and you have to go back to the store and try to change it.
The question immediately arises where to put the bird house. Do not put on drafts, the pet may get sick. Do not put in the kitchen, sudden changes in temperature and humidity, smells from cooking will not benefit the animal. The dog or cat, if you have one, should not get to the cage and scare the pet canary. It is better to choose a place where the bird will be calm. An important factor is the simplicity and convenience of cleaning the cage. The easiest way is to cover the bottom with paper and change it every few days. Since the canary sings and usually does so in the morning, if you don't want him to wake you up on the weekends, cover the cage with a piece of thick cloth in the evening. Regarding the walks of the canary around the apartment, opinions vary greatly. Oddly enough, there are many dangers for such a pet indoors. These are pets (cats, dogs) and hot objects (irons, pans) and a burning gas stove and open windows and even narrow gaps behind cabinets and beds, from which the bird sometimes cannot get out.
Yellow canary on a branch
Proper nutrition ensures good health and the mood of your pet. The ancestors of the canary in nature fed on the seeds of plants with the addition of green parts, as well as a certain number of caught insects. At home, it is better for your bird to buy special feed from well-known manufacturers at a pet store. Please note that this food is specifically for canaries, food for other animals is not suitable. Everyday food should also be basic and not specialized, for example to improve molting or for feeding during breeding.
Decorative (crested) canary
It is better to buy food in the middle price range, cheap options may be of poor quality, and when buying the most expensive ones, you will overpay for the "company". Naturally, the feed should be hermetically sealed and the expiration date should not expire before your bird has time to eat it. And yet, it is believed that the canary gets used to one type of food and hardly switches to another, so it’s worth clarifying when buying an animal what exactly the bird ate before.
Obesity is a common problem in captive animals, so try to avoid overfeeding. For one canary, 1 to 2 teaspoons of grain feed per day is enough. It is useful to periodically add sunflower seeds, buckwheat seeds to it. As a soft food 1 - 2 times a week, you can give hard chicken eggs, adding grated crackers and carrots to it, the latter as a vitamin supplement.
Vitamin top dressing is recommended to be given separately, several times a week. In summer, dandelion leaves, wood lice, lettuce, young ears of plantain, horse sorrel, and other plants are suitable. In winter, you can give a sweet apple, grated carrots, sweet peppers. It should be borne in mind that an excess amount of greenery causes diarrhea in canaries.
Sprouted grain of wheat or rapeseed has a good stimulating effect on animals. Usually it is used in winter, in the pre-breeding period, when there is no fresh greenery. For germination, the selected portion of the grain is thoroughly washed in running water and then left in it for a day. After this period, they are washed again, allowed to drain and laid out in a flat dish, covered plastic wrap to create a humid atmosphere. The dishes are placed in a warm place. After another day, sprouts usually peck at the grain and it can be used for bird feed. First, it is washed again and slightly dried.
Can be bought at the pet store ready mix seeds for germination "rio", instructions for germination are attached to it. It is slightly different from the one described above and is based on moistening the seeds every 6 hours. Please note that wet seeds can become moldy; in no case should you give such food to birds.
Also constantly in the cage should be mineral top dressing. It must necessarily include coarse-grained river sand, after being swallowed by a canary, it is used as a millstone for grinding seeds in the animal's stomach. You also need finely ground eggshells, shell rock or chalk, as a source of calcium.
Canary - breeding
Often it is not enough for a canary lover to keep these wonderful birds. There is a desire to have offspring. In this case, you need to take into account that you will inevitably have a whole economy of several cells. There are several options for breeding canaries. You can create a permanent pair of male and female living in the same cage. You can use one male and several females. In this case, all canaries live in their individual cages, and the male, as needed, sits down in the cages with the females. But with this method of keeping and breeding your pets, a large number of cages will be required. And the third option - the reproduction of canaries takes place in a large aviary, where birds live at the rate of 2 - 4 females per male.
In nature, canaries, like most other animals, begin to hatch the young generation in the spring. This is facilitated by an increase in temperature and the appearance of excess feed. At home, you can breed birds at any time of the year, creating optimal conditions for them is not difficult. Usually, first of all, they pay attention to age, these animals become older than a year old, and they can be used for breeding up to 3-4 years. It is undesirable to use inbreeding and crossbreeding of birds of different colors and breeds. In one breeding cycle, the female can lay several clutches, but it is impossible to let her do more than 2 - 3, the animal's body will be very worn out.
For laying eggs in a permanent pair, you will need a cage with sides of at least half a meter, preferably with a removable partition in the middle. It will allow you to fence off those who are not yet ready for independent living chicks from a newly nested pair. It is also desirable that there be at least two doors in the cage, on one outside there is a special hanging nest, the second can be used for hanging bathing. If there are not enough doors, the nest base can be hung inside, on one of the walls of the cage, but in this case it is less convenient to inspect the clutch and chicks. Cup-shaped nest - the base, should be 10 - 11 cm in diameter in the upper part and 7 - 9 cm deep. The nest must be placed above the middle of the cage. It is desirable to have a second nest base, in case the birds, with not yet grown chicks, lay another clutch.
building material for your pets, trimmings can be used, 1 - 2 cm long, thick, 1.5 - 2 mm. diameter, thread or hemp rope. In longer material, canaries sometimes get entangled with their paws. Well suited burlap, torn into threads.
Close to the nest, you need to place a perch so that the bird can first step onto it, and only then take off. With a sharp departure directly from the nest, the canary can damage the egg or chick.
For older, monthly chicks that have already become independent, you will need a long cage, on one side at least a meter in length, or an aviary. Young birds need to be able to fly, this has a positive effect on their development and health. After determining the sex of the animals, the males will have to be seated in separate cages, as they show aggression towards each other, the females can be kept together.
A sign of the beginning of the breeding season in canaries is a sharp short song of the male, to which the female responds with a squeak, as well as the collection of the latter various garbage and an attempt to lay down a nest somewhere in a secluded place. At this time, your pets need to gradually increase daylight hours, give fresh fruits and vegetables, germinated seeds. High-quality and varied nutrition is necessary for the appearance of full-fledged offspring. If the canaries liked each other, then the first egg appears after 7 to 10 days, and then one more is laid every day. Their number usually does not exceed 3 - 4 pieces, the eggs are small, only 2 grams, bluish with brown specks.
The clutch is incubated only by the female for two weeks. Chicks appear unevenly, as the eggs were laid in turn. At the same time, older chicks can eat younger ones and the latter grow worse or may even die. To avoid this situation, sometimes plastic laying eggs are used when breeding canaries. The postponed ones are removed from the nest and stored in cotton wool with room temperature turning a couple of times a day. As soon as the female lays 3 - 4 eggs, the selected eggs are returned to the nest, and the dummies are removed. Due to the fact that the canary begins to incubate all the eggs almost simultaneously, the chicks also appear at about the same time and therefore grow in the same way.