CANARY AND CAGE BIRD NOTES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19952, 20 November 1926, Page 24

CANARY AND CAGE BIRD NOTES.

By Feathers. How t>„i ,n should a hen feed her young ones? 11 we were to believe all that scientists have told us, then I would say that it is murder not to allow a hen to feed her chicks until tl o' are 48 hours old. We are told by these same people that a young canary or chicken has been given enough food by Nature to sustain it for 48 hours. A young canary just previous to hatching draws the remaining part of the yoke into its system just the same as other feathered animals do. We are given to understand that such is the case, and I do not know of any reason to doubt it. It may be possible for the youngster to live or 48 hours after having extracted the remaining part of the yoke into its system. But —and a big but, too—who will say that a young bird would not be wearing a different pair of wings at the end of 48 hours if it did not receive any food from its mother before then? Even supposing it did live the 48 hours, it is far better, stronger, and bigger in that time if it has been fed from the time of hatching. Nature provides the yolk food as a precaution against accident, which may happen when the hen cannot get the natural flow of rood. As soon as a young bird gropes for food it should be fed. Why does it hold its head up and open its mouth, and is it reasonable to suppose that a little mite like that would be able to do that at four days old? Certainly not. It would (if not consigned to the ash tin before then) be in too weak a state even at 24 hours to hold up its head. Some hens will feed as soon as they hear the cheep-cheep of the youngsters. Others are slow-motion mothers, and these are the birds with which a breeder should have patience. Should you have such a hen then it would be necessary to hand feed the chicks or give them to another hen to rear. , , , When a hen hatches her brood give her a little bread wl ich has been soaked in scalded milk and leave her alone tor the first day, but if you do not know your bird and if she is a young hen with her first nest examine the young in the evening to see 1 they are all huddled together like a ball of fluff and with their crops full. Then all is well, and disturb them afterwards as little as possible. It often happens that unnecessary interiorence by a novice will cause a hen to forsake her brood. Being continually driven off the nest must certainly make a bird afraid. "Tf you are certain that tne nen is not feeding tht brood as she should, then put her mate in with her to feed. Some fanciers have hand-fed and reared a brood of youngsters to strong, healthy birds, but for a novice to do so is very risky unless he is or she has secured advice from some fancier how to proceed. Then, again, if you have an old hen that has finished laying, ery often she would rear a brood by herself if it were given to her, or if you were lucky to have several hens feeding young ones, the young from the non-feeding hen could be distributed amongst them. Never handle voting birds in # the nest, but always use a spoon if it is necessary to shift them. , . . , More than one advantage _ is to be gained by the cock bird assisting to feed the young, the chief of which is that it conserves the strength of the hen from her strenuous duties in rearing a nest of four strong, healthy youngsters from 14 to 21 days old. Her strength is fully taxed, and it must not be forgotten that at the time just stated she is beginning to manufacture the eggs for the following nest, and it is only natural to expect that she would slacken off in the feeding, as nature compels her to do so. Probably a good nest of birds has been lost by a hen’s mate not being in with her to carry on. With wild birds, when the young are getting well feathered, the duty of feeding them is left to the male, as the hen is busy making a new nest elsewhere. I could not be otherwise. The hen makes her own nest, therefore the male bird must feed the brood while she is busy preparing again to help to stock the bashes. The male bird must be trained to feed the young canaries. This is done by letting him in to see his family for half an hour ekeh evening after they are two weeks old. Keep a close watch on him, and when he starts feeding the chicks leave him with them. The hen will set to make another start. The cock will see that they get plenty of food, and t - youngsters will be far bigger and stronger than if all were left to the hen. If the hen is feeding alone (unless she is an exceptionally good feeder) you will often see the youngsters looking anything but pleased with themselves. Their feathers are standing out, and one cannot but help feeling a little sorry for them. They get restless, and very often leave the nest before their time. Instead of the hen taking them food, she has a feather in her mouth and drops it in the nest. She has not forsaken them, she is simply obeying the dictates of Nature as she is not able to reason things out for herself. It is therefore necessary to have the male bird in to do the feeding, but do not put him in too soon. Wait until the twelfth or fourteenth day. The novice may not see the advantage of this until it is too late. If the male bird is left in from the beginning he will fc-d the hen on the nest, which makes her lazy. She will not come off for exercise and allow the brood to get fresh air. When the young are hatched he will feed her on the ..cst, and she will stop there to the detriment of the youngsters. At 14 days old the young are getting well feathered, and are able to keep themselves warm. They are also getting too big for the hen to sit on them. This is the time for the proud father to be taught his duty and show how to exercise his skill and ingenuity of rearing the family. A bird of his disposition should never be parted with, as he will often rear other than his own family if put in with them. A good sign in'healthy youngsters is a full crop and a shiny greasy appearance of the skin. Should the colour of the skin begin to darken, replace the egg-food with bread and milk immediately. Soaked seed occasionally is very much relished by the feeding hens, and is easily digested. Watch for any red-mite now that the weather is becoming warmer. I '1 birds should now be nesting, and they should continue on until thq end of January.