| If you're considering sharing your home with | | | | canary's cage, then you've picked a spot |
| a pet canary, it's probably because you've | | | | that's too drafty for your new feathered |
| heard so much about their nearly constant, | | | | friend! As far as cages go, your canary |
| bubbly singing. Join the club! Since the | | | | doesn't require anything too spectacular-just |
| seventeenth century, pet owners the world | | | | enough room to hop about and stretch his |
| over have kept canaries for nothing more than | | | | wings. Make sure you purchase a cage that is |
| the sheer pleasure of birdsong filling their | | | | at least two feet wide and three or four feet |
| homes. A canary is not merely a feathered | | | | tall. Get a cage with a tray in the bottom to |
| music box, though, and pet canary care is so | | | | make for easy cleaning, and make sure that |
| much more than the gilded cage of old. A | | | | the bars of the cage are not coated with |
| canary is a living thing, dependent on you | | | | toxic paint or other chemical sealants. You |
| for food, shelter, and love, and canary care, | | | | should clean your canary's cage thoroughly at |
| while not rocket science, involves a certain | | | | least once a week, washing perches, food and |
| level of avian expertise. Ready to become an | | | | water containers, and toys in a mild bleach |
| expert? Study hard! | | | | solution, and washing down the rest of the |
| | | | cage with dish soap and warm water. |
| Thanks to selective breeding, there's quite | | | | |
| possibly a canary out there to suit every | | | | While they can't stand drafts, canaries do |
| personality and desire. Some canaries are | | | | love indirect sunlight. A good supply of |
| bred for their coloration, some are bred for | | | | natural light will keep your canary singing, |
| their shape, and some, of course, are bred to | | | | and will also interest him in breeding should |
| produce a very specific song pattern. What | | | | a female be present. If a draft will kill a |
| kind of canary you purchase will depend on | | | | canary the fastest, a second runner up is |
| what canary resources are available near you. | | | | dehydration. Because of their speedy |
| If you can find a reputable canary breeder, | | | | metabolisms, canaries require a lot of water |
| that will be your best option. Many pet | | | | and may die if they go as little as a day |
| stores now, however, commit to purchasing | | | | without it. Change your canary's water daily |
| healthy birds only from reputable breeders, | | | | and never leave for more than a day without |
| but check first to make sure that your canary | | | | asking someone to water your canary for you. |
| was not wild caught or raised in | | | | As for food, seed is the mainstay of a |
| less-than-desirable conditions. If the pet | | | | canary's diet, and there are many good |
| store manager can not account for where your | | | | commercially available seed mixes made |
| potential canary came from, don't buy a | | | | specifically for canaries. You should |
| canary from that store! Oh, and be sure that | | | | supplement your canary's seed with a little |
| the canary you purchase is a male, if it's a | | | | fresh fruit and boiled egg every day. An |
| strong singer you're after. The females are | | | | apple slice and a fourth of a hard boiled egg |
| incapable of producing the characteristic | | | | is enough. You should also provide your |
| long trills and melodies that made canaries | | | | canary with a cuttlebone, as he will gnaw on |
| famous. | | | | this to attain necessary calcium. |
| | | | |
| Canaries can be quite delicate, so a primary | | | | With these basic rules and supplies of pet |
| part of learning to care for a pet canary is | | | | canary care well in hand, you're ready to |
| to realize that prevention is key. If there's | | | | seek out the perfect canary for you. Will you |
| a number one rule of pet canary care, it's | | | | choose a rosy red colorbred canary, an exotic |
| that you absolutely must keep your canary | | | | Persian Singer, or something in between? |
| away from drafts at all times. A drafty room | | | | Whatever your decision, your canary will |
| can kill a canary without any warning | | | | thank you exuberantly for the next ten to |
| whatsoever, and even a slight draft can | | | | fifteen years the best way he knows how-by |
| prevent your canary from warbling. If a lit | | | | singing his heart out. |
| candle flickers when held outside your | | | | |