"And the greatest of these is Love."

There are many reasons people own a canary ..... or two birds, or more!
I have talked with many 'canary people' over the past dozen or so years.
I may be looking for new birds, or someone is inquiring about any extras birds I may have.

Many are breeders:  some with half a dozen pairs, many with hundreds of birds in their flock.
Some are older people, who have found the comfort and pleasure of having a singing companion.
Others are young parents, wishing to introduce their children to bird keeping.

These people own a canary for many different reasons. 
Often is is to add yet another breed or species to their collection.
A few have dreams of being well-known in the bird show world.
A great many are thinking of the dollar value of the youngsters they will sell!

It is just my opinion, but the best reason to own a canary is because you love the beautiful little creatures. There is nothing wrong with all other possible reasons for keeping a canary, but

the greatest benefit you will gain
is the personal enjoyment you experience every day!

I know those who own canaries because they love to watch them --- are the most interesting to talk to!
If the second question a person asks is "How easy are they to sell?" OR most of their conversation is about taking birds to sell at a show, our conversations usually tail off into silence.
If the breeder is excited about training and exhibiting a bird, with breeding goals to work toward, our phone calls often become quite expensive! 😆

Please, keep canaries because you love them,
not because you dream of becoming rich and famous!

Below, I quote Matt Eld's words in Episode 3 of The Canary Room, which prompted this blog post! 

 

January In The Bird Room --- Month by Month Journal

I've been doing some study of my notes from the 2019 season...  As an overall summary, I like the effects of my diet plan.

BUT, I did see a definite difference in the months I fed seed I thought was less than fresh! 
Seed consumption was less, water consumption was up, and activity was more fighting or nervousness.
It took about 3 days to become obvious.
When I switched back to seed that smelled fresh and was dust free, I noticed an improvement in about 3 days!
Once again, I proved GOOD SEED is worth it's weight in GOLD!  With rising shipping costs, I have been tempted to order from unknown sources.  I have proven to myself, once and for all:  always buy seed from trusted sources!

Another note that kept appearing again and again during the weeks I used a portion of Purina Flock Raiser in my soft food mix.  The hens fed the soft food readily and the chicks grew well.

I also think I have learned a few things about the different American Singer bloodlines I have.
I will be continuing work with two of my older lines, cautiously testing the line I bought in 2018, and have added new birds from Ed Medrano to my plans for 2020.
At the beginning of the 2019 season, I culled several birds that I thought may be dominate for faults in freedom and maturity. 
I am not sure I will ever prove my opinion, but the youngsters from my 2019 pairings were very nice.  :D

Some new things are planned in 2020!!!

I am completely rearranging my bird room... and will be adding a second area for breeding and molting. 
May also have new paint and new cages!!!!!
I will be photographing some of my best canaries.

I am also working on new online Canary Things!

For now, I am going to ask that you SUBSCRIBE to my YouTube channel.
Note:  Visiting my channel does not automatically subscribe you!
You must CLICK the SUBSCRIBE rectangular button below the arrow,
and CONFIRM. 
 I can use my name as channel name, instead of a random assortment of letters,
when I get to 100 subscribers!

December In The Bird Room --- Month by Month Journal

December was warm and sunny outdoors, and also sunny in the bird room.
I actually shipped birds this month!  Amazing!
I usually order bulk seed for the coming breeding season, but found postage costs were rising higher and higher!
I determined not to fall into the old habit of simply ordering smaller bags off Amazon.... and experimented with several new sources with online stores.  Some good, some bad.
Generally, I still recommend Herman Bros. Seed, WingzStore, and MyParrotFood.  All have online stores, plus great personal attention to phone orders.
November was my Canary Fun and Games month, where I host a few games on Facebook.... oh, it was fun!  There were many photos entered in the Photo Contest.... and four winners throughout the month!
I have added several of the winners, plus a new jigsaw puzzle to the Canary Fun and Games page here.

Here is one of the puzzles:
Have fun!

November In The Bird Room --- Month by Month Journal

November was a busy month... on the ranch, so the bird room was given a once-a-day service.  Actually, that is a great thing, as I was not tempted to give them luxury care... and as the natural daylength continued to shorten, the room temperature dropped, and their diet remained on a basic seed diet.
I did continue the Ioford/DufoPlus combo in their water weekly.
     Instead of ordering seed and supplies for the next breeding season, I ordered new BIRDS!  :D
    OH, I am excited about next year!
     I had some LOVELY youngsters this year!  BUT, I ended up with more males than hens.  At first, I was planning to simply hold some over until next year when I would have more young hens.  Then I decided to order a few hens!
     I have spent the past two months observing my American Singers and other canaries.... taking notes and comparing hatch records for the past two years. I made plans and set goals.
     THEN I contacted Ed Medrano for new stock. (Listed in the Breeder Referral List on the American Singer Club website.)
     The birds arrived on a very frosty below zero morning, but settled in well. Most of this video is of their 'bath-time' antics. 

     I loved the look of Ed's birds so much, I ordered a second box!  :)

New Links To Good Canary Information

I keep adding new links to the list of good canary links!
I found several of the older links led to 'Page Not Found' errors. Sorry!
If the website had good information, I am looking for the website on the Internet Archive, and adding the link to the archived pages!  😍  I have MOST of the links updated!

Latest NEW link:

•  YouTube Playlist of My Favorite Canary Videos  

Here is one of my favorites,
the 2013 Gouden Ring Cage Bird Show!
Watch if you are unable to attend
the 2019 National Cage Bird Show in St. Charles, Illinois!

Don't forget these important topics:

• New Bird Quarantine
• The Cycle of Seasons
• The Role of Diet in Canary Colour Part 1 Yellow
• The Role of Diet in Canary Colour Part 2 Red  
• Canary/Bird Clubs 

List of Links to Pages of Canary Information

October In The Bird Room --- Month by Month Journal

There are NEW additions coming... to both this blog, and my bird room!
Oh, it is an exciting time!
PLEASE:  sign up to receive emails of my posts!
You will want to 'watch' and participate in these new things!

First things first:  I did update my Month by Month Care Schedule boxes... and combine them into pdf files that you can print off.
They can be found on the Journal Page!
Remember, I am continually watching my birds, and will update/change my schedule if it is necessary.  
But this is what I did in my bird room the past year.
I made a few changes from last year, but generally June through November remain my 'molting/growing/resting' months.  December through May are my 'conditioning and breeding' months.

 The NOVEMBER Canary Fun and Games will begin on Facebook November 3rd!!!
Join in the fun.  I collect no emails or names.... and the sole purpose is just TO HAVE FUN!
Visit my Facebook page:  Savoy Singers Aviary


I am experimenting with taking photos and videos in my bird room!

Okay, I leave you with all that to think about!
More to come!  :)

Archived Canary Classics Site of Interesting Canary Articles

This looks to have been a great list of interesting and informative Canary Articles!
I am happy to say it can be read as a Wayback Machine archive!

Required Reading List for Canary Owners

Archived copy of http://www.canaries.org.uk

I have not followed every link on the page, but the ones I did read were available!