All About Your Canary

by George Jackson French

EGG FOOD

Egg food is a required food supplement at mating and moulting. It is made by mashing a 30-minute hard cooked egg with enough toasted whole wheat bread crumbs to give a crumbly moist mixture. Crushed cracker crumbs, Pablum, chick starter mash, or French’s Nestling Food may be substituted for the whole wheat bread crumbs to provide variety. Egg food spoils quickly. As a precaution, any remaining in the cup or scattered on the cage floor should be removed within two or three hours.

Egg food can be kept a short while under refrigeration, but it should be fed at room temperature, rather than cold. At the first off taste or odor it should be discarded, and a fresh lot prepared. French’s Nestling Food moistened with water or scalded milk makes a reliable egg food substitute for occasional feeding.

COLOR FEEDING FOR CANARIES

It has long been the custom for bird fanciers to add certain substances to the diet during moulting which will tint the bird’s plumage to colors ranging from deep yellow to orange or red.

To do this, start feeding color food at the beginning of the moult. The food is prepared as follows: to a hard boiled egg add two or three crackers and a half-teaspoonful of fresh paprika. Mix well together with two or three drops of olive oil to form a paste and supply each bird with a teaspoonful of the mixture daily. Each morning give a fresh supply. After the first week gradually increase the amount of the color food until the desired color is reached. The amount may then be gradually decreased until the end of the moult, when color-feeding should be discontinued, as it is effective only while feathers are growing. French’s Moulting Food and this color food in equal amounts, moistened with a drop or two of olive oil, is an effective mixture relished by canaries.

Once or twice a week, a small portion of flaxseed should be mixed with the regular seed. Other delicacies should be withheld, as they may induce the birds to neglect their color food. Use great care to exclude drafts. Avoid keeping the birds in a strong light, as this may fade the tints you are trying to obtain. It may be well on very bright days to lay a cloth over the bright side of the cage. French’s Iron Compound should be given in doses of 8 to 10 drops to the drinking-cup, if your bird seems off its feed.

BATHING

A bird should be trained to bathe in a regular bathing dish at least three times a week. Any small, shallow dish may be used for a bathing dish. If the cage bottom is not removable, the dish should be small enough to pass through the cage door. The outside baths that hang over the cage door opening are practical and easy to use. Fill the dish or bath with about one half inch of cool water.

Many owners have found that birds can be tempted into their bathing dish by floating a small bit of green food or a few seeds on the surface. The bird picks these out of the water, finds it is rather pleasant, and is soon enjoying his bath. If this is not successful, try placing a small mirror in the bottom of the bathing dish. Sometimes the bird is attracted into the water when it sees its own image.