Breed Zebra Finches

Zebra finches are delightful birds and are fairly easy to breed. They make good parents, breed year-round and are easy to look after. Don't forget their colourful feathers. Continue reading if you are interested in breeding these funny, little birds.

Steps

Preparing to Breed

1. Think about the process of breeding finches. Breeding finches takes time and you will need some space, the necessary equipment and some extra money on hand. Be sure you are dedicated to breeding finches and before you do start breeding, plan out everything including what you're going to do with the baby finches once they have grown.
   
   
2. Buy a cage to breed your finches in. A {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} long and {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} wide cage is good. You must purchase a larger cage than expected since the finches will be breeding which means you will have quite a few birds in the cage. Add perches, bird toys, feed and water containers, and bedding at the bottom of the cage so that it is suitable to house finches in it.
   • The perches should be as thin as your finger and not too close together, otherwise the finches will jump from perch to perch and not get much exercise since they need to use their wings.
     
     
   • The feed and water containers should be large enough to fit four finches in it. The finches will be taking baths in the water container which is why they should fit. A Tupperware container is best to use for this.
     
     
3. Place the cage in a suitable environment. Since the finches will be breeding, you won't want to place the cage in a room that gets disturbed often. Instead place the cage in a low-traffic room with no pets (or predators) about.
4. Provide a nest for the finches. Finches prefer a covered nest to raise their chicks in. You will need one nesting box for each pair of finches you plan to breed. Nesting boxes can be found in most pet shops.
   
   
5. Add nesting material to the cage. Finches particularly like dry grass and will not hesitate to use it as their nesting material. Provide somewhere in their cage so that they can make a nest out of it.
   
   
   • Finches will also pick up feathers lying about in their cage and use it as nesting material.

Caring for Your Breeding Finches

1. Buy a pair of Zebra Finches. You must purchase one male and one female finch in order for them to breed. To distinguish males from females, observe the finches. Male zebra finches have red markings on their cheeks whilst females do not.
   
   
   • The pair of finches must be at least six to nine months old and in good condition to be able to breed. Remember, you don't want to inbreed because it often leads to unhealthy chicks so make sure the pair of finches you choose are in no way related to each other.
   • Finches can be bought from a pet shop, online, or from a reliable breeder. You should choose a pair of finches that are alert, active and making some noise.
2. Feed the finches properly. Since the finches will be hard at work caring and feeding their baby chicks you must make sure they are getting a proper diet. The female finch should also get some source of calcium such as crushed oyster shells or cuttle bone. The usual finch diet is good for your breeding pair. Finch seed mixtures can be found in most pet shops and grocery shops.
   
   
3. Provide plenty of sunlight. Don't hide the finches away in a shed or garage, instead make sure they get plenty of sunlight. Around 14 to 16 hours of sunlight a day is needed.
4. Wait. The finches will build their nest, start breeding, lay their eggs and sit on them. All you have to do now is wait and leave the finches undisturbed. Remember, continue caring for them properly to make sure they are happy and healthy.
   
   
   • After the finches sit on the eggs it will take them about 14 to 16 days to hatch so be patient. If the eggs show no signs of hatching after the 20th day you must discard them.
5. Do not handle the chicks. The chicks are very fragile, don't handle them unless necessary. You may cause stress upon the parents.
   
   
   • Zebra finches make great parents and will care for the chicks themselves. Caring for the chicks is not necessary but you must provide the food and water. When the baby finches are six weeks old you must separate them from their parents or the parents will peck at them.

Tips

• Thankfully Zebra Finches are actually quite good parents. You will not need to do much when raising them.

Warnings

• The young should not be removed from the parent until they can feed themselves (about six weeks).
• Zebra finches are very territorial. If two males are put together they may fight and end up killing each other, if they are in a smaller cage.

Related Articles

• Raise Zebra Finches
• Choose a Finch

See also

• Care for Newborn Birds
• Use an Incubator to Hatch Eggs
• Determine the Sex of a Lovebird
• Breed Lovebirds
• Tell if a Bird Egg Is Infertile
• Find and Take Care of Wild Bird Eggs
• Attract Yellow Finches
• Raise Zebra Finches

What links here

• Breed Canaries
• Raise Zebra Finches