Finches are among the most popular caged birds. Spice finches come from India, China and Malaysia. they are undemanding, peaceful and easily adjust to a cage. They are soft singing and hardy, but need to be kept active.

Average Size

4 inches in length.

Life span

6-8 years with proper care.

Feeding

Specialized pelleted diets are highly recommended and should consist of 60%-70% of the diet. If your bird is used to a seed diet, convert to pellets gradually; fresh pellets or seeds and fresh, clean, chlorine free water should always be available.

Give fresh fruits and vegetables daily; discard uneaten food before it spoils; finches appreciate quality and variety in their food.

Housing

Perches should be at least 3” long and ½” in diameter; a variety of perch sizes and materials to exercise feet and help prevent arthritis is recommended. A metal grate over the droppings tray will keep the bird away from droppings; line the droppings tray with cage paper or appropriate substrate for easier cleaning. To avoid contamination, do not place food or water containers under perches.

Maintenance

Provide filtered, chlorine-free, lukewarm water regularly for bathing and remove the water when done; as an alternative, mist the bird with water or a grooming spray. Nails should be trimmed by a qualified person to prevent injury to the bird.

Clean and disinfect the cage and perches regularly; replace substrate or cage liner weekly or more often if needed; replace food and water daily.

Replace perches, dishes and toys when worn or damaged. Always wash your hands after touching your bird and cage.

Temps

Birds acclimate well to average household temperatures; be cautious of extreme temperature change; cage should be placed off the floor in an area that is well-lit and away from drafts.

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Humidity

No special requirements

Lighting

Well lit rooms.

Water & Accessories

Install a bird bath, food and water dishes and a variety of perches. Also include toys for your finch to play with. Don’t forget about adding treats and grit as well.

BASIC REPRODUCTIVE INFORMATION

Each cage measures 18 inches across, 12 inches tall and 12 inches deep. There are 2 perches per cage, a feed dish, an egg shell and grit cup, and an egg food cup. A plastic water dispenser is added to the outside of the cage. The nest box measures 3 inches tall, 5 inches wide and five inches deep. It is also attached to the outside. The top of the box flips up so that I can easily inspect each box without removing it from the cage, and this also facilitates cleaning the nest box when needed. Most of the nests are home made out of plywood, some are commercial plastic nest which are a bit smaller. I try and sex my societies as best I can, but often a cage will contain 3 adults if I have any question on the sexes. They breed quite well in this way. I use a nesting material called Siscal, or Jute, it is a fine fibrous plant material, that I can easily shape to fit the entire floor and corners of the nest. I build the entire nest for my Spice Finches and generally do not allow the birds to build, although I may ad some nesting material to simulate them to explore the nests. I often put a sprinkling of 5% Sevin dust in the bottom of each new nest, to prevent insects or other pest from making their home in the box. Each nest is cleaning after each clutch fledges, and sometimes during the breeding cycle, if there are many young in the nest box and it appear overly soiled.

NOTES AND COMMENTS

Spice finches do well in a large flock. They are frequent, pleasant chirping birds, but they do not like to be handled. They definitely need room in their cages to fly.

Spice finches sleep only at night in sleeping nests and climb on reeds or tall grass during the day; they need plenty of room in their cage to fly

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