Abstract
The month of January ends the show season, and preparation for the next breeding season is the next major project. Assuming you have acquired your breeding canaries, the remaining time until breeding season is to be enjoyed with not much to do. Giving your canaries ample room to fly and a good diet are the priorities to be observed.
In my last article, I wrote about my way of providing the basic diet needed during the time of rest. The same diet should continue until breeding season. I also mentioned small flights (48" x 23" x 2 3 "). This size will suffice in giving canaries enough space to exercise. If room and budget will permit, a larger flight such as one 8' long, 4' wide, and 8' high would be the largest you might consider. Keeping canaries in large flights offers less work. A greater number can be serviced at one time, and there is more room for them to exercise their wings.
On the other hand, canaries kept in large flights have the tendency to become obese. The opportunity for more exercise gives them a larger appetite, and competition adds to the problem. Canaries are very aggressive and competitive. They will compete for food: the greater the number, the greater the competition. In a large flight, canaries become more aggressive. They fight and damage their feathers. Also, large flights offer a great opportunity for spreading infectious diseases among greater numbers of birds.
SMALL FLIGHTS
The smaller flights (48" x 23" x 23")
are easier to construct because they don' r require frame-work. Also, they are more readily available already made. I used to be a proponent of larger flights, but my attitude has changed and I now favor smaller flights.
Small flights will lessen all the disadvantages of the large flights except in the area of rime for maintenance. Using small flights, I can now house more canaries in the same room. Recently, I have constructed several small flights. I would like to share this experience with you and provide you with some guide lines on how to build them.
GALVANIZED WELDED FABRIC Galvanized welded fabric is the material used to make small flights. A four foot wide and 100 feet long roll is available from several outlets advertised in Watchbird. One inch by half inch (1 x 1/z) is the most convenient and practical mesh to house canaries and finches.
SPECIAL PLIERS
Flush-ground cutting pliers (Figure 1) are necessary to cut wire. The pliers are flush ground on one side to cut wires smoothly, a necessity to eliminate the sharp wire ends.
CLIP PLIERS, OR RING PLIERS
To fasten the wire fabric cages together, clip or ring pliers are necessary to apply clips or ring fasteners. I have used both. The rings are more convenient because they are easily removed in case of a mistake. The rings and ringpliers are available from the same place where you purchase your wire fabric.
To construct the small flight, you
simply begin by cutting the panels to proper size. I have chosen a size mar will give the lease amount of waste. Galvanized welded wire is expensive, and careful planning will give you maximum economy. If you follow my plan carefully, you will save rime and have less waste.
You begin by unrolling the 4 feet wide roll long enough to cut the panels. To make one flight, you need five 48 x 23 inch panels. The 4 foot length (48 inches) is the width of the wire roll. All you need to do is cut 23 inches from the end of the roll for each panel. Each consecutive panel will have a half inch of waste which must be trimmed to make the edge smooth.