Anyone ever hand-reared a zebra finch?

[longwing]

I was just wondering if anyone has ever heard of a tame, handreared zebra finch and if so, what they are like...

[expressmailtome]

I have heard of them but have never seen one. They are not common though.

Matt

[WhiteRaven]

Yes, I've tried handrearing zebra finches before (three in the clutch). The parents flew away. They were so beautiful and cute and would perch on my finger. Unfortunetely they died. They were going really well until one day an unavoidable emergency came up and I was unable to get to them for hours (they were just starting to fledge). I was so worried about them and when I finally got to them, they were all dead with empty crops. :( That was in 2007 and even though I only had them for a short time, I feel soo guilty and sad every time I think about them. They are the only birds I've ever tried to handraise and I would have been successful if it wasn't for the timing.

Anyway! Yes, finches are tame when you handrear them. They will zoom around after you and cuddle into your neck or hand. Most people seem to frown upon handrearing finches for no good reason (good reason would be if the parents can't rear them). I do know of at least one place that handrears them as pets.
I've heard the following thing about handreared finches from those that own them and I'm not sure what is true and what's not:
* They will generally only be tame to the one that reared them and therefore can't be sold as tame pets
* You need to handle them daily or they will go wild
* If you are going on holiday and need a bird sitter, you need to spend a few weeks getting the finch use to the sitter first

Also, did you know you can teach finches to talk? :D There are some YouTube videos, including a good talking hand tame Cutthroat Finch.

[WhiteRaven]

Also the reason it is frowned upon is because it is apparently more difficult to handraise a finch than a parrot and there is a high risk of the chick dying.

[expressmailtome]

Originally Posted by WhiteRaven

Also the reason it is frowned upon is because it is apparently more difficult to handraise a finch than a parrot and there is a high risk of the chick dying.

That is what I have heard of as the biggest reason that it is not a common practice. I would be worried that with them being so small, and the fact that you never trim/clip a finches wings, that I would forget that they were out and might slip out a door. So many people loose parrots this way and they are larger and louder.

Matt

[mrsuper]

My dad use to have alot of breeding Zebra finches when i was about 5 and he had one female that would sit on his shoulder when ever she had eggs and she took seeds out of his hand.

[expressmailtome]

Originally Posted by mrsuper

My dad use to have alot of breeding Zebra finches when i was about 5 and he had one female that would sit on his shoulder when ever she had eggs and she took seeds out of his hand.

Was she just tame or was she handfed?

Matt

[mrsuper]

I'm not to sure as i was only 5 and i can't really remeber, but i think she was just tame and friendly to my dad.

But the sad thing about is we had to get rid of them as i was little and dad was scared of the birds safty

[expressmailtome]

That is nice that she was so trusting!

Matt