Canary Care Calendar

At this time of the year, daylight is invariably limited and we can expect cold and damp weather. While birds require a high-energy winter feed, for breeding and show purposes,  we must ensure that they maintain a lean form and do not put on fat. Exercise is therefore most important and aviary accommodation desirable. Haith’s produces a Conditioning seed that includes rape as well as essential vitamins and minerals and is most suitable for aviary-housed birds, especially during the colder weather.

While some keepers prefer to manage their bird’s diet in detail to ensure the very basic necessities, others will stick to the well-proven basic mixtures like Haith’s Super Canary Mixture. Basic mixtures usually consist of various proportions of plain canary, hemp, linseed, niger and rape according to the partiality of the birds and the experience of the owner. Haith’s also produces more exotic mixes that provide additional seeds in the mix as well as a greater variety of beneficial and essential vitamins and minerals. Haith’s Super Canary and Haith’s De Luxe Canary Mixes have been specially developed and well-proven with the aid of Champion breeders.

Additionally and throughout the year, birds need calcium and this vital mineral can be provided by scraping Cuttlefish Bone over the seed or adding liquid calcium supplements such as Calciform to the drinking water.

Our research and development division, Haith’s PRO, has been researching the benefits of calcium for some time and it’s clear that a diet that’s adequate in calcium is likely to lead to:

- Better skeletal development
- Larger broods
- Higher fledgling success
- Eggs with correct shell thickness and less likely to break
- Optimal body condition in adult birds

While the weather remains inclement,  we need to manage our birds in much the same manner as last month but as the end of February approaches it is a good time to introduce small morsels of greenfoods and fruit and even the softfood that is to be used throughout the breeding season. We suggest small pieces of apple and orange with the odd thawed-out and chopped, frozen, garden pea but just once a week at this stage and Haith’s Rearing & Conditioning Softfood is eminently suitable.

For those who prefer something different, Haith’s also produce Egg Biscuit Softfood and Nectarblend Rearing Softfood and can also supply the well-known EMP Softfood and CeDe Egg food.

As the dim winter light begins to brighten so the behaviour of our birds should begin to change. While cock birds may be going through the motions of feeding the cage bars and ends of perch ends, the hens may seen squatting or hovering over the perches and calling as if to demand attention of the cocks. It is a good sign that they are interested in breeding but hold back for a couple of weeks before introducing any nesting paraphernalia. Experience tells us that early clutches are less successful than those that are delayed until April arrives. During this time the softfood, fruit and vegetable routine introduced last month can be increased to once every two or three days.

As the weather warms up and daylight increases in April we should be seeing wild birds feeding on young plant shoots and buds; a combination of factors that triggers their breeding cycle. We have already begun to mirror this behaviour and introduced softfoods to our captive birds but now we must increase the softfood and cut back on the high-energy winter Conditioning Seed. For those who did not pair up their birds in late March, now is the time to do it and we can introduce the nestpans or bowls and ensure that the linings fit snugly in order to prevent mishaps.

The wild common greenfoods normally offered such as chickweed and dandelions,  are ready to be picked as further supplements to their diet and softfood can also be offered daily. Frequently sitting hens will not take softfood, preferring their basic seed but as soon as the eggs are due to hatch, softfood should be available to enable it to be fed to the youngsters.

On hatching, a three-times daily routine for softfood feeding is customary,  with regular removal of any surplus to prevent its becoming rancid. At five days of age, soaked and sprouted seed –like Haith’s Easisoak Seed - can also be given, with some bird-keepers adding chopped greenstuff to the softfood. Haith's Easisoak is a blend of seeds chosen for their ease of germination and suitability for both soaking and sprouting. Continue with this diet until the young are five or six weeks old which is usually just into July. By that time,  the first signs of moult may be evident and it is time to wean youngsters onto hard seed.

July is when we should be admiring our young birds on the perch as they are weaned on to hard seed. Persuading them to change from softfood to seed can be helped greatly by offering a few seeds of Perilla spread over the basic seed or with the softfood. Once they get the idea of taking seed, the softfood may be slowly withdrawn from young birds’ diets over about six or seven days.

After the physiological strain of breeding, parent birds may liable to exhaustion and also will have commenced their moult. This is certainly the most stressful time for them, particularly in the wild as they are inhibited by loss of feathers and their flying ability. Fortunately,  captive birds have fewer threats from predation but, nevertheless,  they still maintain their natural territorial space around them and can still be stressed by their caged colleagues. They will be helped through their moult by offering softfood two or three times a week.