how can i tell?

[shanny2]

How can I tell if I have some good pairs for zebbies and what are the signs?

[dano_68]

Well Shanny, depends if you want good Zebs for showing, or good Zebs for breeding?

As for show birds, I don’t know much about the show standard for Zebs, but there are plenty of good sites around that will tell you.
As for a good breeding pair, that too is hard to tell. For example, I once had a Ruddy (African Fire Finch) that was the runt of the clutch. Literally scrawny, not well feathered and a bit of an ugly duckling all round. Anyway, he went on to be one of my best breeding cockbirds of all time! All his offspring were perfect, healthy, pretty looking birds!

So I could say they should be well built, firm body blah, blah, blah…but who knows! Lol

I think only time will tell. Let them breed freely for a while and you will soon figure out who the keepers are and who the let goers are…but a pair that looks after their chicks time after time is worth their weight in gold!

[shanny2]

is it a good idea to colony breed them and I have 4males and 4 females will there be a alpha male or female?

[finchbreeder]

Unless you want to breed specific mutations there is no reason not to colony breed with Zebs. And all birds that are kept in colonys work out a pecking order, from the alphas down.
LML