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im thinking of maybe keeping a small aviary


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Scothunter like many things in life the British Birds are a learning curve, and bloody addictive! :icon_eek: But if you're going to do it, you have got to do it right. Personally i would start off with a couple of easy breeds such as siskins and greenfinches. Maybe some chaffys too.

Forget all that old fashioned nonsense with trapping, make sure your birds are captive bred. Not just for the legal side of things but so you have a better chance of breeding them. Believe me when i say those wild birds will just spend all day bouncing off the wire. They can't be observed acting naturally and they won't really breed.If you buy a bird have a look at its ring, see if there is signs of damage on it. If there is and you get a visit you will be prosecuted.

Contary to popular belief it is not illegal to own or breed or give away unrung birds. But if the shit hits the fan the RSPB will try every trick in the book to get some sort of conviction and you will have to prove that not only is the parents of your birds captive bred but also the grandparents too. So sometimes ringing is the easiest option but acccidents do happen with rings getting caught in the wire. I lost my female Blackcap through such an injury. Believe me whenii say i was gutted. I was devestated. And that was down to rings.

Im sure if you have any questions there are some knowledgeable people on here that will give you sound information. Good luck... :victory: JD

british birds are not really worth all the hassle that goes with them imo

everyones entitled to an opinion :thumbs: my opinion is that british birds are worth all the hassle,its the same with owt,theres good times and bad times but in my experience the good ones far outweigh the bad,i have 3 large aviaries and i breed bullys,chaffys,goldies,greenys,linnets,siskin,yellowhammer and lesser redpoll and i also keep a few fifes.i started out with chaffys and greenys but like darcy said its fecking addictive,give it a go mate you wont regret it :thumbs:

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Scothunter like many things in life the British Birds are a learning curve, and bloody addictive! :icon_eek: But if you're going to do it, you have got to do it right. Personally i would start off with a couple of easy breeds such as siskins and greenfinches. Maybe some chaffys too.

Forget all that old fashioned nonsense with trapping, make sure your birds are captive bred. Not just for the legal side of things but so you have a better chance of breeding them. Believe me when i say those wild birds will just spend all day bouncing off the wire. They can't be observed acting naturally and they won't really breed.If you buy a bird have a look at its ring, see if there is signs of damage on it. If there is and you get a visit you will be prosecuted.

Contary to popular belief it is not illegal to own or breed or give away unrung birds. But if the shit hits the fan the RSPB will try every trick in the book to get some sort of conviction and you will have to prove that not only is the parents of your birds captive bred but also the grandparents too. So sometimes ringing is the easiest option but acccidents do happen with rings getting caught in the wire. I lost my female Blackcap through such an injury. Believe me whenii say i was gutted. I was devestated. And that was down to rings.

Im sure if you have any questions there are some knowledgeable people on here that will give you sound information. Good luck... :victory: JD

british birds are not really worth all the hassle that goes with them imo

everyones entitled to an opinion :thumbs: my opinion is that british birds are worth all the hassle,its the same with owt,theres good times and bad times but in my experience the good ones far outweigh the bad,i have 3 large aviaries and i breed bullys,chaffys,goldies,greenys,linnets,siskin,yellowhammer and lesser redpoll and i also keep a few fifes.i started out with chaffys and greenys but like darcy said its fecking addictive,give it a go mate you wont regret it :thumbs:

 

cheers mate and yea im gonna get a wee aviary going.prob be next year or maybe early winter before i introduce birds to it.its the british birds i have an interest in.if i stick with the law i shouldnt have anything to worry bout.once its built ill be looking for some birds so if anyone sells them gimme a pm neare the time. :thumbs:

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i would advise a beginner to start of with zeabra finches some bangalese good wee birds to start of with before you get any other types :thumbs:

second that opinion, start with zebra finches then after a year or two of keeping them, then try harder birds to keep. i started with zebra finches about 5 years back and still have them, now i manly only breed rare colour mutations now. all the best

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i would advise a beginner to start of with zeabra finches some bangalese good wee birds to start of with before you get any other types :thumbs:

second that opinion, start with zebra finches then after a year or two of keeping them, then try harder birds to keep. i started with zebra finches about 5 years back and still have them, now i manly only breed rare colour mutations now. all the best

i disagree,if you want to have a go wi british then start wi greenys or chaffys,i dont think theres any need to start with foreign unless you want to,my bull x could breed zebras,they breed like fecking mice and sing like em :thumbs:

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i would advise a beginner to start of with zeabra finches some bangalese good wee birds to start of with before you get any other types :thumbs:

second that opinion, start with zebra finches then after a year or two of keeping them, then try harder birds to keep. i started with zebra finches about 5 years back and still have them, now i manly only breed rare colour mutations now. all the best

i disagree,if you want to have a go wi british then start wi greenys or chaffys,i dont think theres any need to start with foreign unless you want to,my bull x could breed zebras,they breed like fecking mice and sing like em :thumbs:

hes only starting out keeping birds mate zeabras are good wee birds 2 start of with and ill agree with they breed like mice but good for any beginner :thumbs:
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Werll there not the easyest to start with but youl get out what you put in, they arent always the cheepest.

You may find it may be worth keeping a few canary hens to put eggs under in spring when there on nests this way you can maximise you numbers off one pair of british birds but dont forget they have to be close rung.

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Werll there not the easyest to start with but youl get out what you put in, they arent always the cheepest.

You may find it may be worth keeping a few canary hens to put eggs under in spring when there on nests this way you can maximise you numbers off one pair of british birds but dont forget they have to be close rung.

 

ok im a complete novice and what do you mean put eggs under.cant i just buy a few finches i like,then if they breed they breed.im guessing this is a complicated hobby.

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Werll there not the easyest to start with but youl get out what you put in, they arent always the cheepest.

You may find it may be worth keeping a few canary hens to put eggs under in spring when there on nests this way you can maximise you numbers off one pair of british birds but dont forget they have to be close rung.

 

ok im a complete novice and what do you mean put eggs under.cant i just buy a few finches i like,then if they breed they breed.im guessing this is a complicated hobby.

Well its all up to you realy dont plundge in at the deepend.

With the eggs again up to you, basicly its the same as you do with chicken eggs you can swap them under a broody bird so the british will then lay about 4 more this would increase your numbers the canary will rear the chicks as her own.

And when you buy any ritish birds make sure they have been ringed.

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Hello Scothunter, if you have your mind made up about British (we call them Natives in Ireland) start off with a pair of greenies because after nearly forty years of selective breeding in captivity they are nearly as prolific a breeder as most breeds of canary with the exception of Norwich which have had the rearing of chicks instinct bred out of them for various reasons.

Siskins & Lesser Redpolls are also a good bird to start off with as they tend to rear their chicks without much bother.

Chaffinch's have been mentioned in previous posts and if you get a pair house them on their own and not in a mixed flight because when the cock chaffie is in top breeding condition he can in some instances become very aggressive and will kill other birds in the flight, also chaffies need live food like mealworms or waxworms to rear their young and if in a mixed flight it will cost you keep up the supply because the other natives will eat them as well.

I always let my natives rear their own young but a lot of people use 'feeder canaries' to rear them usually fife's or Irish fancy canaries who are great feeders.

Keeping natives is a huge learning curve and can be very challenging at times even for the most experienced breeders, I've being keeping them for nearly thirty years and would never profess to be an authority on them but as anybody who keeps them will tell you when things go well it is very satisfying.

If you go ahead and decide to keep natives the best time to buy them is in autumn after the breeding season when lads are moving on surplus stock if at all possible buy current year/ unflighted birds as these will give you the best oppurtunity to breed from.

Best of luck to you with them...

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Hello Scothunter, if you have your mind made up about British (we call them Natives in Ireland) start off with a pair of greenies because after nearly forty years of selective breeding in captivity they are nearly as prolific a breeder as most breeds of canary with the exception of Norwich which have had the rearing of chicks instinct bred out of them for various reasons.

Siskins & Lesser Redpolls are also a good bird to start off with as they tend to rear their chicks without much bother.

Chaffinch's have been mentioned in previous posts and if you get a pair house them on their own and not in a mixed flight because when the cock chaffie is in top breeding condition he can in some instances become very aggressive and will kill other birds in the flight, also chaffies need live food like mealworms or waxworms to rear their young and if in a mixed flight it will cost you keep up the supply because the other natives will eat them as well.

I always let my natives rear their own young but a lot of people use 'feeder canaries' to rear them usually fife's or Irish fancy canaries who are great feeders.

Keeping natives is a huge learning curve and can be very challenging at times even for the most experienced breeders, I've being keeping them for nearly thirty years and would never profess to be an authority on them but as anybody who keeps them will tell you when things go well it is very satisfying.

If you go ahead and decide to keep natives the best time to buy them is in autumn after the breeding season when lads are moving on surplus stock if at all possible buy current year/ unflighted birds as these will give you the best oppurtunity to breed from.

Best of luck to you with them...

 

cheers mate and a very good imformative post.got your email aswell and appreciate it :thumbs:

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