Hope you don't mind me butting in on your post. I haven't been on in awhile, thought I would check the forum, and sure enough there was a post about some things that have been troubling me.... Glad there is some people out there with advise who care more about the birds then the bottom line.
So here's the situation. I want to build a community aviary. Been tossing around which birds to put in it. Thought I would get some finches- came home with grass keets :) (Had some before and really missed them) I currently have 16 bird cages in the house. Yes, obviously they can't all go in. I was hoping to maybe put the diamond doves, ring neck doves, zebra finches, canaries, bourkes, and torquoisines in? I figured there was no way the red rumps and Kakarikis could go in? I would love to give the Kakariks more room to fly-they are let out of their cage-but it is not the same.
My plan was to build a kinda "L" shaped aviary, with the inside corner of the L being more on a 45% angle making it more like a triangle and therefore a fairly large area where I could actually go in and sit among the birds. I was hoping that way there would be 2 hallways where the birds could claim as some of their territory or I could close off if I have a breeding pair.
My stress lately has been I will be away in July for a few days. I am worried about the birds. Even if I can find a sitter I am not sure if they can keep track of what goes where and who gets what with the 16 cages. Plus I have lots of escape artists. It would be nice to get some of them together- and not a week before, but in time for me to watch them settle in.
My cages/aviary can not go outside. I easily see -45C in winter :) I can build the aviary different sizes, but I was thinking roughly 1.2m wide x4m on the long part and maybe 3m on the short part and just under 2m high.
Any thoughts? Oh, and I still want to get some finches, or some others to put in the aviary????
Just went and remeasured. My conversion from feet to meters was wrong. I can only go about 2m on the long side(not 4) and maybe 1.5 on the short side. That changes a lot Hmmmmm.....
Dont converet....I still work in metric and omperial
The only thing i cant get my head around is milage in metric
Can you email me a diagarn?
I would make so that portable partions with doors in to divide into sections if need be.
Quote:
Yes, obviously they can't all go in. I was hoping to maybe put the diamond doves, ring neck doves, zebra finches, canaries, bourkes, and torquoisines in? I figured there was no way the red rumps and Kakarikis could go in? I would love to give the Kakariks more room
We havnt kept doves, but seen know ppl who have mixed without any issues
We have mixed Zebra finches and cannaries in the past, and again seen know poeple who have even mixed breed in large flights with yellow crown kakariki.
We keep burkes and turq with kakariki in a community flight.....burkes and turq CAN get territorial even quite agressive when breeding.
Currently we have a couple yellow crown breeding with a couple burkes ..no nesting box and a couple turqs no nesting boxes, 2 button quail (vaccuum cleaners)
Flight is 2.4m W x 1.2M deep 1.8M H
I find communty/'dispay ' flights are far better for interaction/veiwing side on rather than deep.
I believe another couple birds would be ok ..like finch in that size.
The thing about number of birds in a flight is not so much size (within reason) but maintaining pollution levels....fresh water change, size of fresh water basins, keeping floors clean etc
Very, Very similar in principle to a tropical fish tank. _________________ My Spelling is Not Incorrect...It's 'Creative'
Finally figured out how to find the old posts.
But can't figure out how to post pictures. Tried to change my avatar(?) says files are too big?
We ended up having to sell most of our birds since we could not find anyone to take care of them. Its been a heart breaking year. Kept my Kakarikis, turquiosines, bourkes, cockatiels, greencheeks and a pair of lovebirds, loaded them up with food and water, and prayed they would be okay.
I have never felt so loved and as I did when I walked in my door the other day. They were all fine and glad to see us. All of them were ready to breed before we left, but I pulled all nestting material. The lovebirds do have eggs at the bottom of the cage. I figure it will be a little while before I allow any to breed- might even be next year. Need to get them on a good diet since they didn't get any veggies in a while or free flying time.
Still plan on the aviary and would like to replace some of my smaller birds. I am worried that if I put the larger birds in now though that I might have trouble introducing the smaller, less agressive later? Still want finches, doves, canaries, quail..... Also plan on replacing my red rumps, but they might be too much for in the aviary?
Yes, it is going to depend on size. Figured I better add to this since everyone is going to come back and ask me the size. It has not been built yet, so really I could make it fairly large if I could fit more birds in. I would rather clean one large area then 20-30 small cages.
I have a very good plan in place for the bottom etc. for maintanance. I will post pics once we get started and I figure out how to post.
I would just like imput on what could go in together and then how big it would need to be. Don't want to start construction only to find out if we had gone a different route we could put more birds in.
I have always kept birds in cages in the past. This will be our first aviary. Excitting, yet unexperienced.
Dont even consider breeding in a communty /display type avairy/flight.
The best display type flights are those that one looks side on into, rather than length ways into.
A good mix and what we have and have done....in a small flight about 2.5 W, 1.5 D 2m H
A couple burkes, couple turqs, couple kakeiki and a king or crimson wing.
Couple button quail on the floor
But mixed avairies are like a tropical fish tank....
start to breed all hell breaks loose
Population and health is very dependant on polution levels...fresh water, floors clean, food debrie etc
Birds (/fish) able to roost, and have their own personal terrortries, branches at different heights places, and more than enough to do so.
The above example u will need automatic watering every day, without failure....careful rationing of fresh food every day...seed tray to last 2 weeks.
Will need floors raked and water trays 3" Hx 20" L x 12" wide, cleaned once a week...seed replenished every 7 to 10 days. _________________ My Spelling is Not Incorrect...It's 'Creative'
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