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Basic Canary Care For New Owners
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CAGING YOUR CANARY - Canaries are a delightful caged bird and make excellent pets for small homes and apartments. Unlike finches they do not require a large cage or a companion bird to thrive. They do however need a cage roomy enough to spread their wings and have at least two perches placed a minimum of 12” apart so your canary can hop across from perch to perch. A good choice for minimum size would be 18” wide x 18” deep x 18” high, of course any size larger is always preferred. The perches should be wooden, 1/2” to 3/4” diameter. A natural branch from an apple tree is also a good choice. Situate the perches so that your canary does not soil it’s water or food containers. Of course a clean cage is a must as birds can get sick and even die from bacteria and molds forming in a filthy cage. Bedding for the cage can be newspaper, wood chips, corn cobs, or wood pellets. My personal preference is the wood pellets as they smell good, absorb dropping odors and moisture, and it lasts longer than the other bedding which means the bedding doesn’t have to be changed as often.
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LIGHTING AND TEMPERATURE - Canaries require adequate lighting to ensure good feather conditioning and proper molting. A canary kept in poor lighting will molt more often and stop singing. Your canary’s cage should be placed where the light enters the room at least 9 hours a day, preferably by a south window. The cage should be in a secure area high enough to avoid problems with other house pets and small children. Usually the temperature and humidity in your home will be ideal for your canary, even if the heat is lowered at night. Canaries can tolerate daily temperature fluctuations between 50 - 90 degrees as long as there is no drafts.
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CANARIES ARE HANDS OFF PETS - Canaries do not like to be handled or petted, and rarely get tame enough to sit on your finger. Because they are happiest left in their cages busy families do not have to worry about their canary getting lonely or upset from lack of owner interaction. Not to say they don’t enjoy a little hands off attention, talking and whistling, but as long as they have food, water, and a clean environment they will not pine away while the owners are at work or play.
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CANARIES DO NOT THRIVE ON SEED ALONE - It is a common misconception that seed eating birds eat only seed. The fact is most birds require a varied diet of seed, greens, vegetables, fruit, protein added vitamins and minerals, along with cuttlebone. grit and oyster shell. Below is a list of nutritional foods and treats for your canary. Seed and water fresh daily, cuttlebone, grit, eggshell, and oyster shell offer free choice. Greens, vegetables, fruit, and boiled egg should be offered weekly.
- Seed - a good quality canary seed mix is essential. The seed does not need to be a fortified blend if you supply a vitamin-mineral supplement and greens, vegetables, fruit, and other essentials to your canaries diet. And please note just because you do feed a fortified seed blend does not mean your canary will not need a vitamin-mineral supplement. A finch seed mix can also be fed but the canary mix is best as it contains a higher ratio of canary and rape seed. One canary will eat about 3 to 4 oz of seed per day, or about 1/4 cup. Be sure to check the seed daily as seed hulls left in the feeder look like unused seed when in fact there is nothing left to eat.
- Water - Clean fresh water daily is a must. My opinion is more cage birds die of bacterial infections from dirty water than any other cause. A water fount that attaches to the outside of the cage is one way to keep the water clean as your canary can not bath or foul the water in the narrow spouts.
- Cuttlebone - Egg shell - Grit - Oyster shell - should be available always. All of these supplements provide needed calcium and other minerals. Calcium is very important to your canaries health and must be replenished often by the body to ensure strong bones, and overall health.
- Greens - fresh greens are essential to your canaries dietary needs. Broccoli, spinach, fresh or dried alfalfa, leaf lettuce, chickweed, dandelion, and clover are a few good choices of greens.
- Vegetables - raw or cooked vegetables should be a staple in your canaries diet. Carrots, green beans, cucumbers, broccoli, cauliflower, corn, cabbage, and peas are usually excepted with relish.
- Fruit - raw apples oranges are high in essential vitamins. Other fruits are cantaloupe, watermelon, and grapes.
- Boiled Egg - a hard boiled egg is an excellent source of needed protein and should be offered weekly. The shell can be left on if you break the egg in half. Remove after 1 hour to prevent spoilage.
- Millet Sprays - millet sprays are an excellent treat and readily consumed by all caged birds. Millet sprays are especially handy when you are planning an over night stay as one or two sprays will last one canary for three to four days when provided along with the regular seed mix.
- Charcoal - charcoal aids in digestion and stomach problems and may be added to your canaries diet as well. Feed as a treat once a month.
- Sprouts - canaries love sprouts and they are a great source of vitamins but use great caution here as sprouts sour fast. Use only fresh refrigerated sprouts throwing out any leftovers within 1 hour.
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