# What is the best diet for Canaries?



## LennytheGecko (Feb 26, 2008)

Hey everyone
Thanks for taking the time to read my post.

I have just been given a large avery which i have filled with canaries.

I have seed available all the time for them aswell as cuttlefish to help clean their beaks. I also give them fresh fruit and veg each day. So far i have given them lettuce, carrot, apple, celery(leaf and stalk) and basil. 
What else i can give them and is lettuce ok to give them.... they love it.

Thanks


----------



## pbolomey (Feb 26, 2008)

put a sanke in there, they will love it


----------



## ishka (Feb 26, 2008)

may sound like stating the bleeding obvious here but maybe try a bird forum?


----------



## Hetty (Feb 26, 2008)

I had some for a while, just fed them seeds.

I agree with pbolomey


----------



## froglet (Feb 26, 2008)

Lettuce (iceberg, cos ect) is not good for birds.
Try darker greens like endive (curly type of lettuce), silverbeet. ect (they tend not to go so much for the bulkier fruits & veg. maybe if you grate them they might eat them better.
Maybe try some egg & biscuit mix when they are breeding.
If you have some red factors give them a colour supplement to keep them nice and bright.

hope this helps

megan


----------



## LennytheGecko (Feb 26, 2008)

Wicked! Thanks for the responses!

Lol Pbolomey, yes i can imagine a very very content resting with 10 little lumps in its belly.

Spent 1 hour searcing for agood bird forum and kept getting redivirted to adult sites and weight loss sites.

Hetty, love the avatar.... all bird are apparently meant to have fresh food as well as seeds 

Froglet , thanks heaps, i have been feeding them the darker leaves from an iceberg lettuce but will swap them over to spinach or silverbeet. Cheers for your help 

DO canaries like mealworms?


----------



## JasonL (Feb 26, 2008)

did you want to gut load them?


----------



## imalizard (Feb 26, 2008)

They will eat mealworms


----------



## Hetty (Feb 26, 2008)

Thanks Lenny 



JasonL said:


> did you want to gut load them?



:lol:


----------



## feathers (Feb 26, 2008)

Canaries are from the finch family and as such are large eaters of insects at breeding time. They require a varied diet for the rest of the year and benefit from a good quality mixed canary seed NOT the type you buy from woolies. Merrylands Produce in Sydney supply the best mixed canary seed. All green leaf vegies are important but do not feed large quanties of lettuce as it is too high in oxycylic acid leading to intestinal and kidney problems. They will enjoy chop bones after you have eaten the meat, cuttlefish, tonic mix, green seed heads from seeding grasses and winter grass, chickweed, and fruits. In breeding season they need extra protein, from egg & buscuit mix, insects and green seed heads. This is what ensures the young grow well and have good feather development. Good luck, any prob get back to me. I breed canaries for show some years back.


----------



## Tsubakai (Feb 26, 2008)

Sprouted seed is good. Speak to your local petstore about stocking the correct seed if they don't already. Basically you soak the seed thoroughly to start, then wash it two to three times a day. In about 3 or 4 days the seed will sprout, feed it to the birds when the sprouts have gotten to about 10 to 15 mm long.

This is just a brief overview but you can look it up if you want to do it.

Its good for feeding to chooks, quail etc as well


----------



## LennytheGecko (Feb 27, 2008)

This is great feed back guys.... thanks heaps!!!!!

Im having more fun with my canaries than i thought i would... they have started to come down and eat the fresh food when im still in the cage next to the food  didnt think they were that friendly. 
Thanks Imalizard, mealworms are in there atm.
Thanks heap feathers, and i think i might contact you if i have any more questions. (breeding season coming up and all)
and Thanks Tsubakai, i started growing the seeds in potting mix so i will start agian, do i just soak the seeds in a bowl with nothing else? (soil, cotton buds ect.) ?

Ummm and can some one explain the 'gut load' joke, completely went over my head and now i feel stoopid >< hmmmm


----------



## Tsubakai (Feb 27, 2008)

Just soak them in a strainer thingy, makes it easy to rinse them. Only soak them for a little while (??an hour? can't remember) then just rinse them a few times a day until they sprout. If you leave them soaking continuously they'll end up rotting.


----------



## =bECS= (Feb 27, 2008)

Hmmmmm first cat names, now bird seed! Whats next, rat toys?





LennytheGecko said:


> Ummm and can some one explain the 'gut load' joke, completely went over my head and now i feel stoopid >< hmmmm


^^^^^^^^^^^^





Oh and keeping in line with site rules, what your feeding them is fine, fatten them up and then feed them to snakes or in otherwords 'gutload'  .....


----------



## DiamondAsh (Feb 28, 2008)

becswillbe said:


> Hmmmmm first cat names, now bird seed! Whats next, rat toys?


 

Next we'll start with a bit of "does my bum look fat in this?" :lol::lol:


----------



## Tsubakai (Feb 28, 2008)

DiamondAsh said:


> Next we'll start with a bit of "does my bum look fat in this?" :lol::lol:



No more than usual.


----------



## trader (Feb 28, 2008)

Besides cuttle fish they need and LOVE 'shell grit'. It helps with digestion. It comes in varying sizes depending on what size bird you have.......enjoy!


----------



## =bECS= (Feb 28, 2008)

DiamondAsh said:


> Next we'll start with a bit of "does my bum look fat in this?" :lol::lol:



Hahahahahahaha, dag!


----------



## LennytheGecko (Feb 29, 2008)

Thanks everyone for the help... i have 10 very happy ,and never hungry, canaries. I'll post a new thread when i get some hatchlings. 

Sorry to everyone who thought this thread was a bad idea, being on a reptile website and all, but i felt a forum titled "other animals" might include birds 

Ta


----------



## DiamondAsh (Feb 29, 2008)

LennytheGecko said:


> Sorry to everyone who thought this thread was a bad idea, being on a reptile website and all, but i felt a forum titled "other animals" might include birds


 

Nar, your post was fine, just having a little fun after all the cat threads that get deleted.


----------

