yucca666: How to Breed Canaries

Keep canaries separated until time to breed.

Unless actively breeding, canaries must be kept in their own cages. Males will fight and a male might kill the female if she is not ready to breed. Their cages can, however, be kept in the same room.

Watch for signs that they're in condition.

Male canaries will usually come into condition before the female. Signs that they're in condition include dropping their wings when they sing, their song becomes harsher and louder, they may dance around on their perch and they may appear to be more territorial when other males are nearby.
Females will most often begin to tear paper, as if readying a nest, when they come into condition. The most certain sign of their readiness, however, is when their vent appears red and swollen. They may also raise their tails and appear to squat when males are nearby.

Introduce the male and female canary.

There are special breeding cages available that allow the male and female canary to become accustomed to one another without allowing the male to hurt the female. These cages have 2 dividers in them. One divider is wire and one is solid. Do not remove either barrier until the hen has built her nest.

Add a nest.

Wire or plastic fabricated nests are available at your local pet shop. They can be lined with special canary friendly liners in the case that your canary doesn't build a proper nest. Once the canary hen has begun adding to her nest, you may remove the solid barrier from between the cages.

Feed a proper diet.

Nesting canaries should be fed a proper nesting diet that consists of enriched seed. They should also have access to a small piece of fruit daily. A cuttle-bone or grit is also recommended to give the hen the additional calcium required for producing healthy eggs.

Watch for kissing.

It may happen right away or it may take a few days, but if both are in condition your male and female canaries will begin to "kiss" through the bars of the wire partition. Once this occurs you can remove the wire partition but watch for any fighting. If they begin to fight, separate them immediately and watch for signs that they're still both in condition.

Observe the nest.

The female canary can lay up to 8 eggs, though 5 is a more common number. It typically takes 14 days for canary chicks to hatch and they should hatch without any assistance.

Separate the chicks.

Once the chicks begin eating on their own and are fully fledged you may remove them to their own cage. This usually occurs around 3 weeks of age.

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