Gareth123 4 Report post Posted February 19, 2014 Hi Im from wales. keep chickens. Im looking to get a couple of pairs of zebra finches to start breeding and eventually showing. Would the regular finches you can get from pet shops be ok to start or would i need to source better quality birds to start out with? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
speedwaybaz 69 Report post Posted February 19, 2014 Hi Gareth , try and get some good birds off a good breeder you will find a lot of good breeders in Wales because you can not breed good birds from crap. . Baz Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Emmy 528 Report post Posted February 19, 2014 I do agree with Baz up to a point but someone posted here not long ago that they had bought birds at a pet store and one of those birds lifted a prize at a show. So guess it all depends where the pet stores get the birds from. Emmy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
speedwaybaz 69 Report post Posted February 19, 2014 Hi Emmy ,sorry to disagree with you but pet shop birds do not make show birds . Baz Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
allan b 58 Report post Posted February 19, 2014 trying to keep an even balance here i agree with you's both yes a pet shop bird may win at cbs show where the competition is not that strong but as Barry said it would not win at a show where there was strong competition for the zebra awards. what i would say is if you want to go into the showing part of the hobby buy the best you can afford one good pair is better than 5 poor pair if you want to keep them as aviary birds or pets then go to a petshop or sales but remember there is exceptions to ever rule and I sure there may be a gem out there in a pet shop but not many also if you buy a bird from a petshop you don't know what genes its carrying Allan 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
speedwaybaz 69 Report post Posted February 19, 2014 Well said Alan . Baz Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
paulm 119 Report post Posted February 19, 2014 Hi Gareth and welcome to the forum. It really depends on the experience you have had with small finches, if you haven't bred them before it might be worth while getting a pair or two of pet shop birds to start with and get use to their breeding pattern and the problem you may encounter, the bigger show type birds can sometime be a little bit harder to breed and i guess if you have had a year with breeding the pet shop bird this will give you some valuable insight, plus you can then use the pet shop birds as emergency feeders if needed for the better birds you get later on. Bear in mind any pet shop birds brought from the same pet shop could be related. Paul 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dave huntington 94 Report post Posted February 19, 2014 Before i had the internet i sent some very good birds to the pet shops that would have done a novice starter very nicely! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
allan b 58 Report post Posted February 19, 2014 Before i had the internet i sent some very good birds to the pet shops that would have done a novice starter very nicely! remember there is exceptions to ever rule and I sure there may be a gem out there in a pet shop Allan see Dave I must of been thinking about you 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ssteves 51 Report post Posted February 19, 2014 sorry about the quality of the picture the bird on the left came from a place near ely cambs that deal in birds,seed,cages and other bits and bobs,the man that bred it,takes his spare birds there i think the owner of the place said he shows and he writes articles for the c&a about zebra finches and bengalese so you can pickup nice birds at shop and dealers steve Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gareth123 4 Report post Posted February 19, 2014 Thanks all for the replies. Think I may get a pair from a pet shop to start as paulm suggested. In the mean time ill keep an eye open for show quality birds. Im willing to travel for the right birds so if anybody has some available let me know Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
allan b 58 Report post Posted February 20, 2014 Gareth Dan has some nice birds for sale in the sales section on the forum Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Keri and Wayne Davies 13 Report post Posted February 21, 2014 Hi Gareth, theres several zebrafinch breeders around South wales. There's 4 of us in Llanelli alone. Where about s are you in wales. Wayne. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gareth123 4 Report post Posted February 22, 2014 Im about 30 minutes from cardiff up in the valleys. willing to travel though if the right birds become available/ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Keri and Wayne Davies 13 Report post Posted February 22, 2014 Hi Gareth. I dont have any birds available just now. Depending on when and what colour varieties you are interested in I am sure there's one of the local breeders who could help. Or just give advice in starting out with the zebs. Wayne. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gareth123 4 Report post Posted February 22, 2014 Well Its going to take me a few weeks to get my garage all set up and ready. I really like the normal colours and the darker ones, I think their called black faced orange breasted or something similar. Its quite confusing the amount of different colours and which produce what?! Just enjoying reading about everything and looking for ideas with other peoples set ups at the moment. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
norfolk flyer 208 Report post Posted February 23, 2014 Gareth, I've just posted on your garage and please don't take this wrong but I think you are trying to run before you can walk, If you are thinking about showing and never kept zeb's before, I would go to a pet shop or a garden centre or someone who has an aviary and buy a couple of pairs and let them breed, You then can get used to handling them, breeding them and close ringing the young, Buy a book or two, read up on the keeping of zeb's, what sort of seed, nesting material, added vitamins they need and welfare, Gain some experience before you go on leaps and bounds, As you said it's confusing so sit down with a pen and paper and write down what you could cope with comfortably, Go to some zfs shows look at the high standard of showing, speak to the exhibiters, gain more experience by visiting these shows, By the sound of your posts you are 100% full of energy, Control this energy and channel it in the areas that will help you the most, One small tip, I've kept zeb's for 40+ years now and I'm still finding and learning new things, It won't happen over night, Gareth I'm trying to be honest and I hope you understand what I'm trying to put across, All the best, Trevor 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dave huntington 94 Report post Posted February 23, 2014 Hi Gareth i agree with Trevor.chanel your energy into getting your accomodation ready and maybe visit some breeders near you to get an idea of what you should aim for join the zfs or a local bird club there is a welsh zfs you could join and maybe could point you to some local breeders this will save you heartache in future i cannot stress to you how important good bright airy accommodation is all the best dave 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
