I have been a bird owner since I was in elementary school starting out with canaries. Had them for years and then when I was in my 30's graduated to African Grey Parrots. I have an undergraduate degree as a naturalist (a degree that is no longer available) and took advanced classes in ornithology, so the idea of continuing to maintain birds in my home was not a big stretch. Having the luck of being on a ranch in the arid Hill Country of Texas, then, reminded me that it was not that much different than the savannahs of Australia so I decided to purchase a breeder flock of different Australian grass finches that I would ultimately put into an aviary (indoor/outdoor) and that led me to this website.
I currently have three zebra finches (two females, one male) in a cage alone; a pair of star finches with a pair of society finches (cage 2), and a pair of gouldians with a pair of owl finches (cage 3). Since this is all a new adventure for me, I welcome any advice as to what I have not considered and what I might expect from my communities. Each group is in a flight cage that gives them plenty of space, both from a health standpoint, and from a territorial point. Again, I welcome advice.
When I was in elementary school I decided that I wanted a penpal in Australia because it was the most fascinating country that I could ever imagine. I wrote to Gail French in Wagga Wagga for several years, eagerly awaiting those pale blue light letters with Australian stamps; reading and re-reading what it was like on a sheep station there. Now, a sheep breeder in central Texas, I guess I could not help myself in bringing a very little bit of Australia here to me. In a way, it feels a little bit like home.
G'Day, Y'all. (Heh) I look forward to this forum.
Jane
Hey, from Texas
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flywhoaman
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- Posts: 15
- Joined: 16 Jan 2014, 08:21
- Location: Texas USA
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finches247
- ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
- Posts: 2546
- Joined: 04 May 2011, 20:16
- Location: Whangarei Northland New Zealand
Hi Jane & Welcome to the forum 
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KENTUCKY
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- Posts: 218
- Joined: 18 Jan 2011, 12:38
- Location: Frankston Victoria
Hi Jane from Texas,
Kentucky here from Melbourne, we can be an awkward lot at times,
we dont drink too much, we dont smoke too much, our grass is too damp
we also have our funny moments, we fight like cats and dogs now and then,
apart from that we are well behaved and of good Character.
Did you know that our Crows Down Under fly backwards to keep the Dust out of their Eyes?
If we are the kind of Mob you want to hang around with
Welcome to our Forum
Kentucky here from Melbourne, we can be an awkward lot at times,
we dont drink too much, we dont smoke too much, our grass is too damp
we also have our funny moments, we fight like cats and dogs now and then,
apart from that we are well behaved and of good Character.
Did you know that our Crows Down Under fly backwards to keep the Dust out of their Eyes?
If we are the kind of Mob you want to hang around with
Welcome to our Forum
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peterrebecca
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- Posts: 90
- Joined: 03 Apr 2013, 16:37
- Location: Brisbane QLD
Hi Jane,
Welcome to the forum.
Won't be long and the birds under your care will increase in numbers.
Welcome to the forum.
Won't be long and the birds under your care will increase in numbers.
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finchbreeder
- ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
- Posts: 11630
- Joined: 27 Jun 2009, 20:00
- Location: Midwest of West. Aust. Coast
- Location: Midwest of West.Aust.Coast
Welcome to the forum. You may find that your Zebs and Bengos are better together. As both are strong willed little birds who may be too much for the stars to handle. I keep both myself and found they do need watching with other finches. But I wouldn;'t be without them. So maybe rearrange your avairys. Zebs & Bengos in 1, Stars and Double Bars (Owls) in 1 and Gouldians (who can also be a bit pushy occassionally) in 1. Just my thoughts. How big are these avairys by the way?
LML
LML
LML
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flywhoaman
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- Posts: 15
- Joined: 16 Jan 2014, 08:21
- Location: Texas USA
Thanks so much for your warm welcome, everyone. I am here to learn so I'll just stand to one side and not get too much debris on me from those occasional arguments, 
and I am really looking forward to learning from those of you with lots of experience with these birds.
I am in the early stages of designing my aviary but it will primarily be a cage that is 8'x10' inside a 16x20 sun room with windows, not part of the aviary, that will open (well off the ground because boy do we have snakes... Great Pyrenees sheep guard dog was at the vet for months being treated for a rattlesnake bite) and I would like to ensure that they are not exposed to any native bird diseases or parasites. I am hoping to be able to make this room fairly open in the summer when it is blazing hot, much like they would have in Australia, but with enough shade to keep them moderately cool. There will be chairs and a wicker loveseat in the space outside the aviary to allow me to sit with my morning coffee or afternoon "tea" and watch them. I am vacillating about whether there will be planters or individual pots that can be more easily switched out (thinking primarily palms) and am going to research what small tree with loose, light foliage might be effective. The floor will definitely be a terra-cotta tile with sufficient drains to allow hosing the whole place down, or at least allowing a mist from above to emulate occasional rain to wash everything down, including birds. I have designed it so that I can sit in my office and look through a window at them from my desk during the day.
So there is a beginning of the description of what I am thinking about in terms of my aviary. Fire away.
Oh... the size of the flight cages I have now are roughly 27"x37"x47" high. There are three.
and I am really looking forward to learning from those of you with lots of experience with these birds. I am in the early stages of designing my aviary but it will primarily be a cage that is 8'x10' inside a 16x20 sun room with windows, not part of the aviary, that will open (well off the ground because boy do we have snakes... Great Pyrenees sheep guard dog was at the vet for months being treated for a rattlesnake bite) and I would like to ensure that they are not exposed to any native bird diseases or parasites. I am hoping to be able to make this room fairly open in the summer when it is blazing hot, much like they would have in Australia, but with enough shade to keep them moderately cool. There will be chairs and a wicker loveseat in the space outside the aviary to allow me to sit with my morning coffee or afternoon "tea" and watch them. I am vacillating about whether there will be planters or individual pots that can be more easily switched out (thinking primarily palms) and am going to research what small tree with loose, light foliage might be effective. The floor will definitely be a terra-cotta tile with sufficient drains to allow hosing the whole place down, or at least allowing a mist from above to emulate occasional rain to wash everything down, including birds. I have designed it so that I can sit in my office and look through a window at them from my desk during the day.
So there is a beginning of the description of what I am thinking about in terms of my aviary. Fire away.
Oh... the size of the flight cages I have now are roughly 27"x37"x47" high. There are three.