When I was a little'un, I kept....

[COUNTRY CAPITAL]

case's mate used to let his pekins out!!!!! for a feed!! wow
have thought about that too, but too many predators about and not enough cover.
i can remember breeding gouldians and only getting red/black or yellow head offspring!! sad to say those days seem long gone.
i started on the end of the wild-trapped era, so even though inexperienced managed to keep/breed some pictorella's, masked, longtails, gouldians after my zebra and king quail initiation. most were about $10-12.00 pair.
harder to come by and out of my league were bfpf and yellowrumps.
was lucky to grow up on a farm/market garden so seeding grasses have been my mainstay for a long time now.

[Jayburd]

I started with three female zebs, and went from there to longtails, RFPF and gouldians. But that wasn't so long ago!!

[bob21358]

In New Zealand, when I was about 8 or 9 my dad build a 4 section aviary, complete with safety walkway at the front and enclosed shelter at the rear. Looking back now it was a major effort and a great aviary. Each of the children were allowed to choose one type of bird. I chose Zebra finches. My other siblings chose canaries, budgies and cockatiels.

The Zebra finches bred like....well zebra finches. Great success!

I guess that kindled my love for birds.

[TomDeGraaff]

Gee wizz, there are a lot of kiwis remembrances! They must long for the good old days of yore! Wait a minute, they are STILL IN those days of yore, aren’t they !! ;)

I started in 1971. I was keeping all sorts of animals: guineapigs, fish, frogs, lizards, tortoises, insects of all descriptions and I got a lutino Budgie and yellow variegated canary named Buttercup and Rufus respectively. I was and am an animal nut and read all the Gerald Durrell books I could and can find.

Due to some one-upmanship, my cousins got some finches so then I had to as well (being 13yo and spoilt!).Off we went to the local dealer in Ballarat where I purchased 4 zebras – 2 pair: white and normal cocks, fawn and pied hens. Never bred a one for three years!

Won a bet with my parents and got an aviary which was divided into two. The first bird I ever bred was a Bourke’s parakeet. The first finches were fires (ruddies to you people of the north).
I bred Cubans, canaries eastern rosellas, cockatiels, king quail, bengalese, scarlet-chested parakeets and Javas before finally breeding zebs and I kept them all that time!

I haven’t always kept birds but never by choice. Have always loved them and always will. I’ve had aviaries, then not, then had them again, now not, but not for long (I hope)!!!

[Niki_K]

Very interesting to read everyone's recollections! Mine is a lot simpler- I only got involved with finches 2 years ago, and I am now surrounded by zebs 24/7! I use them for research, and ended up taking a few home with me (the bung ones, of course!); I then fell in love with the dilute blue mutation.
Before my zebs, I worked with a few endangered bird species in New Zealand. I grew up in Fiji, so I never felt any inclination to keep pet birds, as we had constant streams of feathered visitors (particularly the Fiji Parrotfinch, Vanikoro broadbills, collared lories and the like) to our yard.

[AMCA26]

Would only seem like yesterday Jayburd.

Started with Zebs after we moved to Melbourne from Sydney. Dad used to show Canaries in Sydney. I had a couple of Budgies still remember the names Ricky ( Green ) and Pixie ( Albino ), then bought some Cockatiels they did nothing. Then i left home and started my own collection with not much success. Moved twice since i left home to now with now being mainly Zebras and Showing them.

[vettepilot_6]

Dad used to show Canaries in Sydney.

Your Dad and mine must have shown them together?

[elferoz777]

started with superbs, budgies, white faced cockatiels and bourkes back in 1999...back when I was 15...

everything bred like mad bar the superbs....was the start of my addiction then I got into canaries at 22....then finally woke up to myself and hit up finches at 29 (this year)

[Brooksy]

Got my first budgie when I was 6 (spike) followed by zebras. Went through a faze of racing pigeons and fantails (lots). Then moved into parrots: cockatiels, lovebirds, red dumps, rainbow lorikeets, galahs, cockys. Now just Aussie finches and quail, plus goldfinches, orange breast, fires, white headed nuns.

[landferno]

Zebs, Diamond Doves, King Quail and Canaries when i was about 10. Then Bengalese, Javas, Gold Finches, Cockatiels and Budgies. Then i had a crack at some of the 'better' finches but as my aviaries all faced south and I was only in my teens i didnt have a lot of success with them. I then was given some lovebirds and they did well in my less than ideal aviaries so I got rid of everything and concentrated on them and churned out loads of peachface mutations, masks and fischers. Once i went to Uni I kind of lost interest and and then went overseas for about 6 years so i didnt keep birds for about 12-13 years. But 6 or so years ago a mate had some spare material laying around and we knocked up a small aviary and Ive loved every minute of getting back into it. I decided id try and breed species which I had kept in the past but had not bred when i was a kid so in the past few years have bred loads of gouldians, br double bars, stars, longtails, cubans and scarlets. still got quite a few to tick of the list