tappajabba
08-01-01, 05:05 PM 08-01-01
Canaries
Canaries have been kept as pets since as early as 1478,when the Spaniards conquered The Canary Islands, which are off the coast of Africa. What enchanted the sailors most then, is the same as todays canary owners, their ability to ‘sing’ and mesmerise new owners with the depth and perplexity of these songs.
Most canaries kept as pets are cock birds, as the female, although just as pretty, is definitely no songbird in this case, at best she’ll ‘cheep-cheep’ as good as the rest of them, but is no comparison to the cock bird.
This is again, where the natural instincts of the birds take over. The song is used to entice the hen for breeding purposes in the wild, and this explains why your pet canary stops singing between October and March. At this time you’ll notice that all the feathers appear to be falling out of your bird, he is going through a moult and when breeding season comes around he’ll be in fine fettle again and will need to advertise his availability, usually around late March / early April.
Another noticeable thing about the canary song is that it’ll change from year to year as he has to relearn his song, and this will account as to why no two canaries sound the same.
The cage or housing should be spacious enough to allow the canary exercise and because he is not a climber, perches should be placed at an even level to allow a hop from one to the other. The cage should be kept draught free and although they can withstand low temperatures around them, draughts can kill!
Fresh food and water must be offered daily, with cuttlefish and grit readily available at all times for the birds to use when required. Fresh greens and vegetables should be offered as an important vitamin and mineral supply.
Tappajabba©2001
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Tappajabba....
helping to promote healthy pet keeping worldwide...
Canaries have been kept as pets since as early as 1478,when the Spaniards conquered The Canary Islands, which are off the coast of Africa. What enchanted the sailors most then, is the same as todays canary owners, their ability to ‘sing’ and mesmerise new owners with the depth and perplexity of these songs.
Most canaries kept as pets are cock birds, as the female, although just as pretty, is definitely no songbird in this case, at best she’ll ‘cheep-cheep’ as good as the rest of them, but is no comparison to the cock bird.
This is again, where the natural instincts of the birds take over. The song is used to entice the hen for breeding purposes in the wild, and this explains why your pet canary stops singing between October and March. At this time you’ll notice that all the feathers appear to be falling out of your bird, he is going through a moult and when breeding season comes around he’ll be in fine fettle again and will need to advertise his availability, usually around late March / early April.
Another noticeable thing about the canary song is that it’ll change from year to year as he has to relearn his song, and this will account as to why no two canaries sound the same.
The cage or housing should be spacious enough to allow the canary exercise and because he is not a climber, perches should be placed at an even level to allow a hop from one to the other. The cage should be kept draught free and although they can withstand low temperatures around them, draughts can kill!
Fresh food and water must be offered daily, with cuttlefish and grit readily available at all times for the birds to use when required. Fresh greens and vegetables should be offered as an important vitamin and mineral supply.
Tappajabba©2001
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Tappajabba....
helping to promote healthy pet keeping worldwide...