Zebra finch vs society finch3/9/2024 If you do not wish to take on the responsibility of hand-feeding young at all hours for weeks, keeping almost constant vigilance to ensure your flock is both healthy and compatible, and daily maintenance of water and food sources then breeding is not for you. The big time breeders with dozen and dozens of breeding pairs are the only ones that can hope to make any real profit.įinches do not “need” or “want” to breed, it’s in their DNA. All Finches will breed if they are presented with a member of the opposite sex and adequate resources to raise babies (i.e. In the USA it is fairly impossible to make a profit off of breeding Zebra Finches anyway, and as any good breeder will tell you – if you’re in it for the money then turn back now! The best you can hope for is enough to cover your feed costs, if that. Finches should be treated with respect and as caring, feeling animals and not a way to make money. Finch keeping isn’t about finding out how many birds you can fit in your home or how much you can charge for them, it’s about challenging yourself to provide the best diet and living environment for one of the world’s most amazing creatures. To prevent this takes well-developed systems of housing, exercise, breeding, breeding seasons and diet. ![]() all of the time (sometimes without any visible reason) and should never be left to die.Ī breeder also needs to be able to accommodate anywhere from 4-6 babies (or more) from each clutch after they are weaned, which will mean more cage space and more food items need to be bought.īreeding puts a lot of stress on Finches and can drastically shorten their life span if done improperly. Babies are sometimes abandoned, pushed out of the nest, etc. ![]() All of which need to be gained well before the first egg hatches.Īny breeder must also be able to hand-raise any (and sometimes all!) of the clutches that your birds will lay around the clock for weeks on end until they are weaned. It’s not always fun and easy! Breeding takes years of commitment, knowledge and lots of space, not to mention money for cages and food that need to be bought in advance. They always find out just how difficult it can be soon enough and sadly many will then sell or give away all of their Finches altogether. Often times people adopt Finches and become so excited with keeping them that they decide to venture into breeding. I hear all of the time how pet store Finches have died suddenly and this only emphasizes the need for more quality breeders. Often times even the chain pet stores will blindly buy from craigslist breeders and their inbred or sick stock because they are cheaper than quality stock from certified breeders. Adopters easily recognize this which is why major pet store chains have phased out a lot of their Finch sections and hobbyist owners with decades of experience are still going strong. The difference between quality and craigslist is the difference between a healthy decade of companionship or having dead pets within a year (in some cases). Yet it is not a responsibility to be taken lightly as so many find out. This is especially true with every year that passes as long-time breeders retire from keeping Finches. There are far too few quality Finch breeders presently and there is always room to welcome another or for someone to become well-known for their superior care. ![]() I usually leave the question of whether or not to breed to be answered by the asker, letting people decide for themselves while trying to educate them on just how much responsibility breeding entails when I can. ![]() However, I have seen the damage one person can do when hoarding or neglecting Finches and I have learned to be more cautious of people trying to become breeders or supplement their inbred stock. My first reaction is to shout an excited yes to everyone that asks and welcome them with open arms into the world of breeding. A LOT of people have asked the same question: Can/Should I breed my Finches? I have always had mixed emotions about answering this question from others myself.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply.AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |