Helpful Tips For Breeding Canaries
Breeding canaries is actually pretty self explanatory. You are going to place a male and a female bird in the cage together and let them do what they need to do. However, there are some things that you can do in order to make them safe and more comfortable. This article is going to explore some of these tips to help you along the way.
The first thing that you want to do is get to know your canaries. You want to make sure that you actually have a male and a female bird. You will know this because the males will sing and the females will not. You will then place them in the cage together and monitor them. You want to make sure that they are not fighting with one another. Some fighting is normal but you need to be very careful because sometimes the male can actually become so aggressive that it will kill the female. You will definitely want to keep an eye on them if you are not 100% positive that you have a male and a female in the cage. It could be possible that you have two males in the cage and this is not good either.
Be sure that you have a cage that is the proper size for your birds. You want a cage that is 24 X 16X 16 inches. While you are breeding canaries you are going to want to increase the amount of food that you are placing in the cage. You will also want to give the canaries some apples and oranges. You will want to make sure that you have nesting materials for your canaries so that they are ready to lay their eggs. Some people will use dryer lint and others may use shredded newspapers. Some canaries are particular so you may want to talk to someone at a pet store so that you can determine what type of nesting is going to be best for your birds. It is also possible to purchase a plastic canary nest and sew in a breast pad liner. This can be very comfortable for your birds as well.
When breeding canaries you should also think about lighting. This is because canaries are sensitive to light. You will need to be working towards conditioning them for breeding between January and February. In order to do this you are going to need to change the amount of light that your canaries are getting by one half hour twice a month. In January your birds are going to need to get approximately 12.5 hours of light. You will increase this by one half hour twice a month until the middle of March. You will then begin decreasing it again at the same increments you were increasing it.
Breeding canaries is actually very easy, even if someone is new at it. You do need to keep these tips in mind so that you can be sure your birds are safe during their mating. You also want to keep the babies safe and comfortable as well. If you are new to this process you may want to talk to someone who has done it before to be sure that you are prepared. The lighting may be confusing if you are new to this so talking to someone about it may be a good idea. It is always best to know what you are doing before you jump in. Be sure that you have access to different resources that may help you as well so that you can refer to it when you have questions and or concerns.
Related Resources: