Aviary Birds & Silkie Chickens Lovingly Raised & Sold
Madera, California

Frequently Asked Questions

We hope you find this info helpful. Best of luck with your birds!  :o)

Click on a topic below or scroll down to browse the entire page.
Supplies, Diet, Quarantine Procedure, Handfeeding Finches.

  • Q: What supplies do you use?
    A: Supplies - Here is a list of everything we use for our birds. 
    Products marked with * are now available for sale at Deb's Birds on our Products page.
    • QUARANTINE & FIRST AID SUPPLIES
      AIL (Avian Insect Liquidator)*
      Scatt*
      Guardian Angel*
      bleach solution (1 drop regular bleach to 2 oz. of distilled or bottled water)
      Worm-Out Gel* strawberry Nestle's Quik Syrup
      Ronivet-S*
      Bio-Plus*
      styptic powder*
      bird claw clipper
      band cutter
      hydrogen peroxide
      sterile gauze
      bandages (variety pack)
      Bioclusive tape
      small scissors
      Q-tips
      pipettes
    • FEED & SUPPLEMENTS
      • CLEAN WATER:
        Lix-It water bottles* (yes, the kind for hamsters & rabbits -- they are best!)
        Saniclens*
      • SEED:
        Seed (finch mix)*
        Zu Preen finch pellets*
        Hulled sunflower seed (during winter)
      • FRESH GREENS:
        Spinach, romaine lettuce, broccoli, carrots, corn, peas, celery, etc.
      • EGGFOOD:
        boiled eggs w/ shell
        Petamine Breeding Formula*
        Calci-Boost*
        Trace Minerals*
        Daily Essentials 3*
        Feather-Up*
      • ALSO AVAILABLE:
        Insectivorous Feast*
        spray millet*
        mineral block*
        grit with oyster shell*
        cuttlefish bone*
    • MY AVIARY SUPPLIES
      wooden parakeet nest boxes
      wooden Gouldian Finch nest boxes 
      coco fiber*
      jute fiber*
      sisal fiber*
      bands ( www.redbirdproducts.com )
  • Q: What is that used for?
    A: Most products have a good description at the stores' websites. You may also wish to review our Diet and Quarantine Procedure below to review our procedures.
  • Q: I am overwhelmed by this huge list!  Where do I start?
    A: It's really too much $$$ to get everything at once, so just add to your supplies little by little. We have accumulated our supplies over the years. Here's what we recommend as you begin:
    1. Start with your bird's diet of clean water, a quality seed mix, fresh greens, & boiled egg. These basics are most important.
    2. Keep your bird's environment clean by removing droppings and seed mess often. For dishes, etc; hot water will do a fine job of cleaning, but you may wish to add a bit of chlorine bleach or white vinegar for added cleaning power.
    3. Plan your own Quarantine Procedure and make the purchase of those supplies a priority. Use your procedure EVERY TIME you bring home a new bird.
    4. Add supplies to make up your own Health Program, First Aid Kit, Breeding Supplies, etc. as you are able. Give yourself time to find out what products you like as you create your own procedures.
  • Q: What do you feed your birds?
    A: Diet - This is what we feed our birds:
    Products marked with * are now available for sale at Deb's Birds on our Products page.
    • FRESH WATER
      in Lix-It bottles* with; liquid GSE (grapefruit seed extract) or Saniclens*.
    • FINCH SEED MIX*
      often mixed with one or more of the following; Zu Preen finch pellets* or hulled sunflower seed (in the winter).
    • FRESH GREENS
      spinach, romaine lettuce, broccoli, carrots, corn, peas, celery, etc.
    • EGGFOOD
      My recipe; 1 boiled egg w/ shell, 1/4 cup Petamine Breeding Formula* and the following supplements; Calci-Boost*, Trace Minerals*, and Daily Essentials 3* or Feather-Up*. Chop all in food processor. Feed small amount in shallow dish. Do not allow to spoil! Make large batches and freeze for daily use.
    • ALSO AVAILABLE; Petamine Breeding Formula* (dry) , Insectivorous Feast*, spray millet*, mineral block*, grit with oyster shell*, & cuttlefish bone*.
      • NOTE TO THE OVERWHELMED: Please don't let this list overwhelm you. Start with the basics in your birds' diet of clean water, a quality seed mix, fresh greens, & boiled egg. These are most important. Then you can add variety and supplements to your birds' diet as you create your own feeding procedure.
  • Q: What do you do with new birds?
    A: Quarantine Procedure - Before entering the aviary, new birds go through this extensive quarantine procedure:
    Products marked with * are now available for sale at Deb's Birds on our Products page.
    • Day 1:
      FOR BUGS: Mist birds & carrier with Avian Insect Liquidator* and apply 1 drop Scatt* to each bird
      FOR STRESS: Guardian Angel* in water
    • Days 2-3:
      FOR BACTERIA: Bleach Solution: 1 drop regular bleach to 2 oz. of distilled or bottled water. (For explanation, refer to "Problems With Finches" by Robert Black)
    • Days 4-5:
      FOR WORMS: Worm-Out Gel* in water (add strawberry syrup so they will drink it)
    • Days 6-12:
      FOR PROTOZOA: Ronivet-S* in water
    • Days 13-14:
      ADD BENEFICIAL BACTERIA: Bio-Plus* in water
    • Days 15-28:
      Plenty of R&R and TLC! :o)
  • Q: Have you ever handfed a day-old finch?
    Canary ChickA: Handfeeding Finches - On Thursday, February 28, 2002 two tiny canary chicks hatched under Gabrielle, a lovely first-time canary mom. On Friday, March 1st, Gabby left her infant canary kids for some reason. When I found them, they were ice cold and still. I cupped them in my hand and breathed warm air over them, and the white one stretched it's tiny leg and thus began my first adventure on handfeeding finches...
    • THEY WERE ALIVE! I quickly took them and laid their cold bodies over my heart. Wiggling and gasping, they came back to life. Using a plastic pipette, I fed their little gaping mouths a few drops of warm water mixed with a tiny bit of Nutri-Start hand-feeding formula by Lafeber. Warm and fed I returned them to their momma, but she was done with them. After 2 hours they were hungry and a bit cold, so I took them and warmed them, and then fed them again. This time I put them in my incubator (which was half full of button quail eggs) to keep them warm. After that, I continued to feed them the thin solution of formula every 2 hours from 6am to 12 midnight. I added a light sprinkle of Ornabac (beneficial bacterias) to the solution a couple times daily. I used a whistle to get a feeding response out of them, since I have never been able to whistle myself and the parents whistle and peep to their chicks to get them to gape their mouths for feeding.
    • On March 4th, the gray one stopped eating. I used a crop feeding syringe to feed him during his morning feedings, but sadly he died just after noon. I buried his tiny body in the front flower bed under the shade of the Petunias. The white one continued to eat heartily. I thickened the formula so that I was able to spoon it with a flat tipped toothpick. I also began using infant electrolytes (generic Pedialyte) instead of water. Since the electrolytes must be used within 48 hours of opening, I froze it into ice cubes so that I could use just a small amount each day. I also moved "Peep" to an old incubator set with a temperature of 85-90 degrees F and covered him with a piece of dark fleece between feedings.  
      • My hand feeding supplies (from left to right) paper towel pieces to line nest, paper & pencil to record each feeding time, whistle to get feeding response from chick, bowl of hot water to warm formula, metal bowl with formula, "Ornabac" beneficial bacterias, Nutri-Start hand feeding formula, flat toothpicks to mix & spoon formula, and small Tupperware with infant electrolytes & plastic pipette. (Also Enviroclens as a disinfectant, not shown.)
      • Peep at one week old  *I guess I should note here that as we got into our routine, I began to chirp in a high voice "Peep! Peep!" while feeding instead of using the whistle, and so he was thus named "Peep."  :o)
    • On March 8th, Peep's right eye began to open. By the next morning both eyes would open just a bit each time I would wake him for his feedings, which were now about every 3 to 3 1/2 hours. White feathers began to show on his wings. On the 9th, I banded Peep with a closed band.
    • As his eyes continued to open, Peep began looking around more and more. On March 13th, I moved Peep out of his canary nest in the old incubator and into a clear plastic tub (shoebox sized) with a bed made of pine shavings in a volcano shape and a paper towel over that for easy clean up. I put the tub on a heating pad set to low, covered it with a dark towel, and continued to monitor the temperature. During the day I folded one end of the towel up so that Peep could look out and see what was going on around him. However, most of the time he just slept.
    • On March 14th he began showing a dark patch below his right ear. It seems he will have some blue feathers like his daddy. He also began to peep more when I would wake him for his feedings. The whistle was no longer needed, as it seemed my voice and the sight of me was enough to get him to eat.
    • My, how he grew! The prickly quills began opening into soft, white feathers. He was just amazing! On March 16th, he stood and stretched and flapped his wings for the first time. What a big kid!! On March 17th, he continued the stretching and flapping before each feeding. Later in the day he crawled up out of his little "crater" over to the edge of the clear container he lived in and was looking out. I smoothed out the shavings under the paper towels for him so that there was a trench that went to the edge. He seemed to like that he could see out and began exploring his little living space more.
    • It seemed like overnight and my Peep was all grown up! I offered him water, Petamine Nestling Formula, eggfood, fresh greens, and a mixture of finch and canary seed daily. In no time at all he was eating on his own. He still begged for food a few times a day, and I continued to feed him, but not because he was really hungry anymore... mostly just because we both loved it so much. He begged less and less until finally the toothpick was not something he wanted any longer.
    • As an adult, he was so curious and playful! He wanted to taste just about everything he saw. He was into everything and I really had to keep an eye on him. What more can I say? He completely stole my heart! My sweet baby canary!!!  A HUGE THANK YOU to all who gave advise and encouragement and to God who gave life to that tiny miracle in the first place.  What a blessing it is each day to have the privilege to work with these lovely birds!  Smiles, Deb :o)

 

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