Aussie Finch Forum

Yesterday my dad and i saw a large brown snake sliding around the outside of the finch aviary. There is a small hole in the corner of the aviary that i think was dug by mice, i blocked up with stones because a snake may have been able to get in. I have had a snake in my budgie aviary before. Would a snake eat a finch and what other precautions should i take to keep snakes (and for that matter, mice) out of my aviary?

A snake would definitely eat a finch.
Check out these links on keeping mice out of aviaries.
I know this one reads "ants" but we did cover mice too!
viewtopic.php?f=45&t=2866&hilit=mice

If you are tech minded
viewtopic.php?f=45&t=2840&hilit=mice

MOST IMPORTANT......for your own safety get rid of the snake, but dont try to catch it, maybe the council or a call to a local herpetologist (? spelling) they might be able to help out.

When the very large snake (see links) had me climbing the walls of my avairy, it crawled over the sitting quail hen without her moving, so did not touch her, then past a young Zeb on the floor, which fluttered and was promptly swallowed. So yes they will happily have finch as an alternative to mice for their dinner.
LML

when I was growing up (still got a long way to go, according to she who wants to be obeyed) seeing a snake meant I got to play with the shotgun, usually meant a sore shoulder for me and a lot of mess to be cleaned up from the snake leftovers.

if your able to post a pic of your aviary some members may be able to suggest things you could do to help beat mice & snakes

Other half tells me that he sells quite a lot of bird netting to property owners as a means of catching snakes .....dont know how well it works but it worth keeping in mind.

I remember getting an Eastern Brown in my aviary back in the '70s and yes it ate finches. Lots of them. Here in the Philippines I'm running a constant battle to keep the red-tailed green rat snake out of my main aviary and they love finches. With these buggers all gaps greater than 6mm are a problem. I use 6mm welded mouse wire and it also keeps out the mice and lowers the attractiveness for the snakes because of this. Luckily for the native finches the RTGRS seem to be forest dwellers which is no consolation to the small birds that live in the forest. Most wild finches here are found in open grasslands or paddy but any shrubby areas where they are likely to nest must be death traps.

For your problem I'd suggest a 60-70 cm deep concrete footing (that's below ground) or a concrete floor for the aviary. The brown in my childhood aviary got in under the corrugated iron roof as it was coverd in creepers so be aware of possible access points and block them off. Good luck

other than getting a pic so we can see what are dealing with. like greg h said a concrete footing all round or corigated iron running as a kicker all way around the base of the aviary so the snakes have to climb a bit to get in, a cheap way in stead of a concrete footing is to get mouse and snake wire dug in around the cage . u can buy it in 30cm wide rolls. there are no real deterants for snakes but keep the mice well baited and changing the type of baits used evertime so they dont become immune to it will help in the long run , other than having good house keeping to keep the waste seed of the ground, all helps when it come to mice and snakes.......pete

My snake episode was the year we had a mouse plague (well almost) in this area, and it followed the mice into the avairy through the mouse hole. In from outside and up through the dirt floor.
I do have tin sunk into the ground round the avairys, but obviously not deep enough.
LML