by Carole Meisenhelter

Created on: March 20, 2010

Full of action and with a delightful song, owners of pet finches get much enjoyment from one of the most charming little birds there is to keep at home.  Once you have a few, it’s not at all difficult to indulge further and add to your collection.  Building new aviaries to accommodate finches with differing colorings and markings becomes a very pleasing project, with the vision of what it will be housing.

The foundation of any bird’s diet is going to be seed based.  Relating to seed especially, don’t ever accept substandard quality.  A healthy finch needs to be fed the right foods, and finding a reputable pet-store outlet is going to make this part easier.  Knowing that their supplies are turned over on a regular basis means “fresh”, and fresh is always best when keeping finches. 

*Seeds

A basic blend for finches will generally contain a specific percentage of several seed types which most likely include:

Millet   (also, finches love sprays of the dried seed-heads)

Canary

Panicum

Japanese Millet

*Greens

Add to their diet some fresh greens for variety and extra nutritional value.  Grasses should only be taken from a safe source, meaning to be sure it’s not from a roadside verge or other location where it could possibly be contaminated.  They should be checked also for any sign of fungus or mildew i.e. it should be “clean”.  Where possible keep any greens up off the floor of the aviary or cage, and remove before it spoils.

Millet, fresh sprays

Endive

Summer and winter grasses

Chickweed

Silver beet

Lebanese cucumber

*Live food

Finches especially get excited when live food is offered to them! 

White ants/termites

Meal worms

*Calcium

Calcium is a necessary dietary addition.  It is also especially helpful when breeding fiches, to promote strong egg-shells.

Cuttlebone (being the skeletal bone from the cuttlefish)

Shell grit or Crushed Stone:  serves a two-fold purpose.  Not only for calcium intake, but also very importantly for their digestive system.  It is most essential that finches have this available in a larger, coarse size, as well as the more recognized smaller grade shell-grit, to aid in grinding up all foods in their crop.  Check with your pet-store owner or other finch breeders as to which size grade is most valuable.

*Water:

Empty water dishes daily and clean with a soft brush.  Rinse containers and re-fill with fresh water.

If at some stage, you intend to breed finches, consider gaining membership to a finch group or society.  These clubs offer many benefits to source not only new birds, but also very helpful information, directly with other finch breeders.

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