Orca

I went to the bird fairy yesterday intending to search for some java finches. I found two venders there who had 2 each. One was selling their pair for $80 and the other was selling her fledgelings for $35 each. I passed them up. For some reason they just didn't draw me in, so I passed them up. I did inquire a little on the fledgelings, but just left it at that.

I saw a lot of lovebirds and a lot of parrotlets. I saw a lot of borques and a lot of budgies. I really don't know why I was there. I guess just to get out of the house for once, or maybe look for a bird harness for Caribou. I was there though.

I then came across a booth who had some parrotlets and...a black masked love bird with crooked legs. I just shook my head and walked away. That poor thing. It really drew me in. I walked away though...and soon found myself returning to the booth. I asked about the little guy. He seemed to have a little bit of trouble perching because his legs were splayed and the perch was smooth without much grip. I asked how much she wanted for him, and she replied  $30.

I watched him for a second. He kept trying to adjust his legs because they kept slipping. He seemed to climb on the cage rather well though...I asked to hold him, and he sat in my hand alright. Seemed a little scared but didn't do anything other than nip once. I caved. Igave her $30 and told her I'd be back to get him when I left.

I was so excited...and I still am. It just seemed to right. I mean, I wanted a black masked lovebird for a long time. I was waiting to find a good breeder and spend whatever I had to, but then Caribou came along and I thought thats all I would need. But here was a black masked lovebird...disabled and cheap as dirt. Maybe its the nurturer in me, but I was afraid for him. Afraid for who he might go to and how they would treat him. He'll be with me for life. Period.

I went and got him a hiding hut, perches with good grips and some toys. Caribou doesn't really play with toys. She's more or less obsessed with just being with me...but this little guy likes them. You can tell he's had a hard 3 months of life. He gets a little stand-offish when you reach for him. He was nipping at me all yesterday and this morning...but I tend to only get him out when I'm offering him food, so I'm sure that will stop once he begins to trust me.

And I was right. I've had him out for a good hour and he hasn't nipped at me once. He's flown away a few times but I just gently scoop him up and keep him with me again. He has a really hard time landing when he flies, so I've clipped his wings to slow him down in flight so he won't hurt himself.

So far so good. I've named him Orca Blue. Orcas have black heads with white rings around their eyes (well near their eyes, but close enough), are clumbsy on land and they have teeth and bite. It fits him SO well. And the Blue part came from his coloration.

So everyone, I introduce to you Orca Blue. My deformed black faced lovebird!



P.S. Caribou is PISSED. She has more cage time now that Orcas here and I have to tame him a little. Her world is crashing!

You Wouldn't Believe It

My computer contracted a horrible virus and so I haven't been updating this too often. You wouldn't believe whats happened in the meantime though!

Valentine's Day rolled around...and guess what my husband got me?

A LOVEBIRD.

Omg, I was so excited. She's a little seagreen peachfaced lovebird and she was about 4 weeks old when he brought her home to me. I had to hand feed her for a while and to be honest, I still sneak her formula every now and again. She's just the best though. I've named her Caribou. I don't know why. It just seemed to fit and she seems very pleased with the name. Everytime I call "Caribou!" and hold out my hand, she flies over to me like she's surprised she even left my side.

Also on Valentine's Day, my husband brought me home two more finches. I recieved a florida fancy zebra hen and a pied society male. I was so happy because I've always wanted a florida fancy so maybe she'll produce some really nice colors, and the society male looks a lot like one of the societies I lost over Christmas. Her name was Gemini and I was devistated when I finally found her. I've named the florida fancy Florida (original, I know) and the society Timber.

I've also got an aviary as well! Its 7ft tall, 3ft wide and 2ft deep. I can fit all of my zebras, societies and gouldians in there with no trouble at all. My cutthroats are still being housed separate as I want them to breed and not hate while doing it. They can become aggressive when breeding. Unfortunately, they've tossed their 3rd clutch of eggs so I just can not wait until my zebras start laying so I can sneak some cutthroat eggs in there with them.

Anyways, theres a bird fair tomorrow! I was planning on getting a pair of javas (again) but um...I kinda wasted my money on a craigslist ad for a Netbook (bad idea) and the guy won't return my calls so I can get my money back for it. What a load of shit, right?

I might bring home a finch, but it probably won't be a java. Theres always next time!

Heres some pics of the new guys!


This is Caribou! Not sure if its a girl or a boy. I tend to refer to her as a she online but a he in real life.


This is Florida, my florida fancy hen


And my pied society male. He looks almost identical to Gemini (RIP) and sings wonderfully!

Getting Real

So, I want to breed finches, right? I want to eventually have a small but decent aviary, right? I want to be as professional as I can, right?

Right.

So lets get real then.

I've been treating my finches as pets instead of "breeding stock". And to a point, thats alright. I make sure they're well taken care of. They're spoiled with a great diet and lots of treats. I never cram my finches into space. They all have enough room..and I'm getting an aviary soon.

But...I'm running into a problem. Their names are Bullseye and Decoy. They're so aggressive that I can't possibly put them with anyone else or they'll attack the other birds mercilessly. I'm even afraid to put a female in with them for fear that she'd get the crap beat out of her. They're currently occupying a cage that I could be using to breed birds in...so really, they're just a dead weight.

And I hate to be like that. But theres a fine line between breeders and pets, and I've been unable to rehome them because I've been considering them "pets" and feel guilty about letting them go because "they don't work out". But anything that "doesn't work out" isn't helping my dream of eventually becoming an aviary, and I really can't afford the extra weight.

I have Native who is my pet and "extra weight", and I MIGHT think about breeding Target...only because he's so docile and enjoyable that I wouldn't mind breeding that into a future generation.

So...getting real. Its kind of hard, but Bullseye and Decoy will have to be sold. I have to finally put my foot down on myself and lay down the typical rules of any breeder. If they hinder the business, they have to go. I'm kind of attached to the guys so it's a hard decision to make, but I can't keep every bird that comes my way.

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Upcoming Events

I've been wanting to build an aviary ...but then we filed our taxes, and it looks like buying one might be in my direct line of site. I've been looking at this beauty:



Its selling for just under $200 and it would generously house the small flock I have right now. Inside height is just a tad over 2ft and its about 5ft long. That, along with the multitude of other cages I've collected, should be enough to really jump start my dream aviary. I know I'm not rich, and I know I don't live in a palace, but it'll be a start and something I can delve into and enjoy.

Theres been a less than exciting update on the eggs. None of them have made it...but thats alright. The cutthroats have been nesting again and I feel another clutch won't be far off. This time I'll be minding my own business and leaving them alone. That way I'll know its nothing I've done...its just that they're inexperienced. Thats alright. I'm in no hurry. They've got the food they need and the space, now it's just a waiting game. They're currently both settled down into the nest and its only midday. I'm too afraid to look.

Mihah has been doing well. I've put her in with Native and Target and she's pretty happy in there. No one picks on her. I know she's in with a male zebra but if they have eggs, they'll have eggs. She's about old enough now. I haven't seen any nesting behaviors though.

A friend of mine knows someone who needs to rehome their finches. I'm very tempted...very. But really, I don't have the room. Ok, thats a lie. I have 2 cages I'm not using...but I made it a point to narrow my birds down to only 3 cages. I still don't know what type of finches they are, so maybe it won't even matter...and maybe they'll be asking too much for me to want them. I'd like another female zebra but I want to be picky about the color.

My husband assures me that I need to leave one cage open because theres going to be a "surprise" coming this Saturday.

I'm wondering what he's been up to!

Try Again

The other day, Reed got out of the cage while I was changing their food and took a few laps around the room with the cats on her tail. I finally had to flush her out from behind the entertainment center with a broom before grabbing her and putting her back in the cage.

She was not impressed, and for the rest of the day she stayed on a perch with her feathers fluffed. She wouldn't incubate the eggs, even with JD pushing on her. He's get on the other side of the perch and try and pet her towards the nest and she'd just peck back. JD would bring up nesting material and go inside the nest and shift things around, but she was still uninterested. By nightfall he had finally coaxed her in, a bit reluctantly, I might add.

I was torn on what to do. Should I remove the eggs? Should I wait to see if she sits again? I had no idea...so I chose to wait. I didn't bother them at all and only came near their cage to change their egg food.

Finally today...well, this morning, I woke up and went to change their food, and one of the eggs had been kicked out of the nest. It lay fallen and broken on the cage floor. It looks like Reed was rejecting the nest. There are two more eggs left in there...and even though the board told me to leave them there "just in case", I removed them. Reed looks as though she has no interest in sitting on them again. I removed them, candled them and then gave them to Mihah. Maybe she'll sit on them, maybe she won't. We'll see.

I'll be looking up candling pictures next to see if they are fertile or just duds. Either way, its a good learning experience for everyone.

In And Out

I've been watching my cutthroat pair since I've noted the eggs. JD seems to want to continue to build the nest, even though there are already eggs inside. I'm thinking this might be his first clutch ever since he seems almost clueless, but is eager enough to move on basic instinct. I can just hear him say "I THINK this goes here..." or "Reeds off the eggs to eat..maybe I should go sit?"

He's being such a good dad though. Right now he's sitting on the water dish, chirping softly every so often and on occasion, warbles. I saw him holding a piece of nesting material early and just waiting...then Reed came out to feed and he dove into the nest to place the material. Its like he wants to help, he just doesn't quite know how.

Reed is doing so well that I'd be surprised if this was her first clutch. She only really comes out to eat and today I don't think I've seen her at all except for maybe a few seconds this morning. She's been in the nest...and I can only assume that she's either ready to lay her third egg, or she's just being a very good mom and incubating the ones they have. JD sits outside the nest and sings to her, every once in a while he checks in to make sure everything is alright.

I really hope they raise these chicks up to thriving fledgelings. I know I shouldn't get my hopes up, but they're doing everything so well...its really hard not to. I'm making sure to keep an extra good eye on Reed just incase she has some egg binding issues. I have a cuttlebone in there, and I scrape cuttlebone ontop of their food to make sure they get it.

Keeping my fingers crossed!

Eggs!!!

I wasn't really expecting much when I put JD Barbados and Reed together. The best thing I really was looking for was them to get along. Well, they certainly got along. They never fought, the groomed each other and JD sang constantly. Reed chirped pleasantly.

Today I got curious and reached my hand inside the cage. They've been really picking up at the nesting material I tossed in there for them and so I had to check it out. I unhooked the nest, peeked inside...and saw 2 eggs! 2 eggs! Oh my gosh! I couldn't believe it. I never expected them to lay this soon. I put the nest back on where it should be and they took to it like water. Right now both of them are in there for the night.

I'm so excited. I mean, I don't want to get too excited because I know it'll be their first clutch and I hear that first time parents tend to screw up a lot until they finally manage to raise a few chicks. I'm crossing my fingers that these eggs are fertile and that they'll at least hatch. If they decide to toss them...then I'll just give them to Mihah to care for. We'll see...but wow, I'm so excited! I know I already said that...but they're my first eggs!

I can't wait to see what happens next! I'll give Reed a few more days to see if she'll lay anymore before I try and candle them.

Cheers!

Maybe An Illness

I uncovered Mihah's cage the other day and discovered that she was fluffed out, her eyes were lazy, and her tail feathers were stained yellow. The most immediate thought to my brain was "She's sick".

So...I did what any normal bird lover would do. I got dressed and went to the store. I picked up a broad spectrum antibiotic from Petsmart and proceeded to make her a little hospital cage when I got home. The hospital cage is actually a really small hamster cage that I was going to sell on craigslist. Well....no one wanted it, so I kept it. Its a good thing, too! I put a clean piece of newspaper on the bottom, supplied the cage with a feeder and poured the antibiotics into the container for the water.

I also mixed some vitamin drops in with the food for some extra good stuff and added a perch.

I then transferred her to the cage. She seemed a little more active when I came back home, so maybe I was just over reacting. I'd rather be cautious though so into the hospital cage she went. She spent the next couple days in that cage with most of it covered to avoid stressing her out any. Today I lifted the blanket to check on her and she seemed bright and happy, so I put her back into her normal cage. The directions on the antibiotic says that if there are no results in 5 days, consult a doctor. She seems a lot better than when I found her the other day, so I'm assuming the antibiotics worked.

I'm keeping an eye on her just in case though.