[AMERICAN CAGE BIRDS.]
BY JAMES STEELE.
The rules for keeping cage birds well and happy are few. Cleanliness is the first requisite; then temperance in feeding, fresh air, and exercise, in the order mentioned. But these rules should be followed with care and intelligence if you would keep your birds in good condition.
Some people have an idea that all that you have to do is to get a bird, put it into a cage, and give it food and water as directed. This is very far from being enough. The habits of your bird must be studied; the climate of the room in which it lives, the amount of daylight which it should enjoy, the atmosphere which it breathes, its freedom from sudden alarms, all have to be considered if you wish your bird to be happy, and without happiness there is little chance of its being a pleasant companion.
Canaries are not included in this article, because they are bred in captivity, and have inherited the capacity for living in cages.
In a state of nature small birds flit about and sing only during daylight, and they always retire to rest at sundown. You must look out for this if you keep your birds in cages. They do not understand that they had better keep silent after the lamps are lighted. They instinctively keep on singing, as if it were still daylight. The immediate effect of this is that the birds become over-fatigued; they are apt to moult, grow thin, suffer from exhaustion, and quickly perish. The cage should be removed to a darkened room at nightfall; or, if this is not convenient, cover up the cage with a dark cloth before lighting the lamps. In covering the cage care should be taken so to arrange the cloth that the bird can have plenty of air. In removing birds from one room to another it is important to see that there is no change in temperature. If removed to a different temperature there is a strong chance that they will begin to moult, which generally leads to something serious. Remember that Nature supplies a coat to suit heat or cold in which her creatures are placed, and that sudden and frequent changes in temperature are a severe tax upon a bird's vitality.
The object in the construction of a bird's cage should be to furnish plenty of light and air, and the cage should always be kept perfectly clean. It is well to have a night covering of dark cloth, which should cover the top of the cage and extend half-way down the sides, as many birds are likely to take cold.
It is almost impossible to rear woodpeckers and fly-catchers, for they live on a special kind of food, such as grubs and other insects, seldom touching seeds and fruit; and there are some birds that it is exceedingly difficult to keep in a small confined space.
Birds of the thrush variety—and this of course includes robins and blackbirds—are hardy and docile pets, and will live in a cage with varied food from seven to ten years. The principal disease to which they are subject is consumption, and this should be guarded against with care. Of the thrushes, the robin finds it most difficult to accustom himself to cage life, and in the spring, at pairing-time, he usually pines for freedom. I cannot bear to see robins caged, although many people have succeeded in keeping them happy and contented.