Cheerio, our rescued canary

[Shirley]

This is Cheerio. Someone left him at a pet supplies store, and they gave him to us (they know us well). His feathers are in very poor condition, but are improving nicely with a much-improved diet. He wasn't sick, just a victim of very poor nutrition, I believe.

http://shirleymorgan.com/misc/Cheerio/105.jpg

He has a beatiful soft song!

Here's the story, from 4/5/05:

Well, we went into the Pet Products Plus near our house where we get our dog/cat/wild bird food, and there was a forlorn yellow canary in a not-so-clean cage on their counter. It's wing feathers were very dry/brittle/sparse and the feathers were gone from the nape of its neck, yet it's a male, not a female, and appears to have been living alone, although there is a bare nest in the cage. It was given to the store. I told them to keep it away from their parakeets and cockatiels, and that I'd bring my SCATT over and put a drop under each wing just in case it had air sac mites or scaly mites or something. It was hopping around and very alert and cheerful and mainly looked liked it had been on a very poor diet for a very long time. Before we left, I looked it over, and its sides were bare of feathers under its wings -- just bare smooth skin. I used their disinfectant on my hands and then scrubbed before leaving.

We returned later with the SCATT and they just handed the bird, cage and all, over to us, with a bag of canary seed, and asked us if we'd just take him home. Hmmm. Where to put it that it wouldn't be near any of our birds...... Well, we put it in the garage, switched it to a different cage, put his cage in the yard to disinfect tomorrow, put the stuff under its wings, then gave it Feather-Up on its food (which I have but never use) along with Calci-boost, and another probiotic/vitamin in his water (all this stuff I got that I never use) and Petamine molting food in a cup, tiny sprouts, blue mineral grit, the canary seed, new cuttle bone, and tomorrow grated veggies. He's on the bench just inside the front door in front of the Fish-only tank. I hope that's far enough away from everyone. He is cheerful and alert and chirps and hops all around, but has these very thin wispy wing feathers that are sort of split and broken, and bare areas under the wings on his sides and nape of its neck. I have no clue if he was in with another bird. ??? Yes, he's a male. His vent is very much male. And they claim he sang for them. He was there 24 hrs. http://9.forumer.com/html/emoticons/sad.gif

~ Shirley http://9.forumer.com/html/emoticons/bof/smile.gif Hope this has a happy ending...

[Shirley]

http://shirleymorgan.com/misc/Cheerio/107.jpg

http://shirleymorgan.com/misc/Cheerio/110.jpg

http://shirleymorgan.com/misc/Cheerio/118.jpg

http://shirleymorgan.com/misc/Cheerio/120.jpg

Left wingspan - feather damage and new feathers coming in
http://shirleymorgan.com/misc/Cheerio/left-wingspan.jpg

Nape of his neck -- not sure if he was with another bird, or if he had parasites... but I treated him for parasites. Hope it's not a skin disease/fungus. The location is indicative of another bird and there was a nest in his cage.
http://shirleymorgan.com/misc/Cheerio/nape-of-neck.jpg

http://shirleymorgan.com/misc/Cheerio/neck-sideview.jpg

Under each wing:
http://shirleymorgan.com/misc/Cheerio/under-left-wing.jpg

http://shirleymorgan.com/misc/Cheerio/under-right-wing.jpg

His feathers look like he's calcium- and protien-deficient to me. He's getting lots of both.

[harleybaby]

Shirley, how is Cheerio doing? Is he singing?:)

[Shirley]

He has sung beautifully since the morning after the day we brought him home! That's the beauty of animals -- They show their inner beauty even when they are recovering from their non-sickness-related physical problems! :dance:

[harleybaby]

Awwwww that's wonderful!!!! I'm happy he is doing so well, it's amazing what a good home will do!!!!!:goodjob:

[Shirley]

Thanks so much! And he's eating so well, and taking a big splashy bath every day! His cage is on top of the dog's crate :rolleyes: right next to the patio door with lots of sunlight. Neither he nor the dog minds. :cool:

[harleybaby]

Awwwww he sounds soooooo happy!!!! I almost bought a canary at the bird fair(he was beautiful red and white mixed) and well uh some gouldian finches, I couldn't decide than I decided not to get any LOL. I think I just got caught up in the moment but I love their song and it would be nice to have a bird I didn't have to dote on. They told me canaries only sing when they are by themselves and that they don't mind but I don't know much about them but it seems so sad to me. Do they do well by themsleves, you can't really interact with them can you? Will they still sing if they are with a female? Sorry for all the questions I just don't know much about these little guys.:) I'm just curious more than anything and yay again for Cheerio! I'm so happy you found him, lucky little guy!

[Shirley]

Well, they are happy with a female when BOTH are in season at the same time, otherwise, someone isn't going to be very happy... and they might squabble. Yes, they sing with the female. They are happy alone. Cheerio is in a room with lots of birds and sings each morning and again in the afternoon. He enjoys coming over to the side of the cage to interact with me.

My first bird was a canary when I was in 4th grade, and his name was Cheerio, named after my grandmother's canary, whom I never met. He would sit on my finger and I could walk him around the house. I worked with him to tame him because I so much wanted a tame bird. He sang a lot, was our only bird, and was quite tame for me b/c I took him out so often.

They don't sing during their molting season, which can last 2-4 months, depending. They molt differently from parrots - they don't molt all year long, but during the hot months they'll molt their feathers and then that's it until the next summer.

Ordinarily, you cannot keep two males together. And, you should never keep canaries and finches together, although some people do so successfully. Canaries and finches usually do not do well together, and the finches can be killed or starved by the canaries.

I used to raise Spanish Timbrado canaries, but quit a year ago for various reasons, mainly because I love the birds and hated that no one wanted femles or only wanted females for breeding in small cages. My three females were also pets and part of the family, in large cages.

[Majj]

What a cute little guy , I bet you will have him look a lot healthier in no time at all...Lucky for him you came along when you did ...What a lucky boy ..

What did you name him ..Lucky sounds just right to me..

[gregt]

Shirley, you don't have an A/C air exchanger in your garage do you?

[Shirley]

No. why? We have a side door and a double garage door.

[harleybaby]

Shirley it's funny you mentioned the Timbrado(sp) canaries. I was just at a petstore and the guy that owns it particuliarly took me over to show me these guys. They were babies about 3 months old and brown, he said they turn a really pretty blue? They were $200 each and said they are very hard to find.

[gregt]

Shirley, I was just concerned that you may be pumping air from that bird into the house where the other birds are.

[Shirley]

Oh... Cheerio isn't sick or contagious or infected w/anything.. he's in the dining room on the dog crate by the patio door, not the garage door... we never brought his old cage in the house... and we kept him in quarantine until we were sure he wasn't "sick" but only malnourished. But thanks so much for your concern! :wub:

[gregt]

Oh, I'm sorry, I thought he was still in Q.

[Shirley]

Shirley it's funny you mentioned the Timbrado(sp) canaries. I was just at a petstore and the guy that owns it particuliarly took me over to show me these guys. They were babies about 3 months old and brown, he said they turn a really pretty blue? They were $200 each and said they are very hard to find.

They are what they are, they don't change color, they should cost about $75-$125, they are usually brownish-green or brown and yellow to mostly yellow with some brown or brownish green, or brown and white, or yellow and white, rarely are they all yellow, but it can happen, they can be crested or not, I've never seen a "blue" one nor have I heard of one; I've been to the judged shows, but I wouldn't call myself a Timbrado expert...

I've not seen them at $200 but then I've not seen them in a pet shop, either... I've seen them at the Chicago bird show and the Indiana shows at $75-$125... usually $100-$125. I've had MANY and never had color change, and you don't give Timbrados color food, and they don't come in red factor. Hmmmm. sounds like he wanted to sell a bird. I've also not seen the females priced less than the males in this particular species.

They do have a beautiful, quite loud, song.

Typical Spanish Timbrado Canary here: (http://www.ambersnowcattery.com/page9.html)

Those look just like mine did...

BTW, Their legband must have the STA Spanish Timbrado Association band for them to be officially Spanish Timbrado Canaries. It has to be stamped sideways edge to edge, not lengthways liket he breeders initials are. These are purchased from the organization, so annual membership in the organization is required.

Another Timbrado link (http://centralpets.com/critterpages/birds/songbirds/SBD4314.shtml)

Link with sound files (http://www.spanishtimbrado.us/)

STA American Assoc of Spanish Timbrados (http://members.cox.net/timbrados/)
above is the organization I belonged to
That link also has sound files of their magnificent song.

[Shirley]

Oh, I'm sorry, I thought he was still in Q.

Oh, no problem. I didn't wait 60 days since my vet determined he was fine. A sick canary goes down very quickly... puffed up, sits on the bottom of the cage, doesn't last long... and he didn't have parasites... but was a victim of poor nutrition and was feather plucked by probably another bird in the cage -- they often pick the back of the neck. There was a nasty nest in his cage... I'm thinking they may have had two males in there... as the male usualy picks the back of the females neck! Who knows! poor guy! I never could learn his origin.

[harleybaby]

After I posted this I went looking and I didnt find any blue either.:mad: I tell you he's gonna have one POed customer who buys a brown bird and it doesn't turn the beautiful denim blue he said they would. he did say that their song is beautiful and almost sounds like a lullaby and that he had to go through tons of papers to be able to get them and that they were imported.:confused:

[Shirley]

I seriously doubt they were imported... :rolleyes: