Canaries: Their Care and Management. 9 



sides of the aviary may be fitted with windows that can be put in 

 place in winter. The entrance to the outdoor aviary should be 

 through a small porch or anteroom that need be merely large enough 

 to permit entrance through an outside door, with a second door lead- 

 ing into the aviary itself. The outside door should be closed before 

 the inner one is opened, so that none of the birds can escape. 



The fittings of the outdoor aviary may be adapted from those 

 described for the indoor bird room. With an earth floor it is pos- 

 sible to grow evergreen and deciduous shrubs for shelter and orna- 

 ment. Where space permits a hedge of privet along the open side 

 of the aviary furnishes a shelter in which birds delight to nest. To 

 avoid overheating in hot weather shade should be provided for part 

 of the structure. 



In aviaries birds pair more or less at random. To avoid constant 

 bickering or even serious fighting in the breeding season it is usual 

 to regulate the number of males so that the females outnumber them 

 two to one. 



FOOD. 



The food requirements of canaries are simple. Canary seed to 

 which have been added rape seed and a little hemp is a staple diet 

 that persons who keep only a few birds usually purchase ready 

 mixed. Canary seed alone does not furnish a balanced food, but 

 forms a good combination with hemp and summer rape. Much of 

 the rape seed in prepared seed sold in cartons is of a species that 

 even wild birds do not eat, as it is pungent and bitter in flavor, but 

 all relish the mild taste of true summer rape. Seed is given in lit- 

 tle cups that are fastened between the wires of the cage. 



In addition to a seed supply lettuce or a bit of apple should be 

 placed between the wires of the cage frequently. And those prop- 

 erly situated may, in season, vary this menu by the addition of chick- 

 weed, dandelion heads, thistle and plantain seeds, and the fruiting 

 heads and tender leaves of senecio and shepherd's purse. Water- 

 cress, wild oats, knot grass, and other grasses are relished, especially 

 in spring and early in summer. 



Bread moistened, in scalded milk, given cold at intervals, is bene- 

 ficial. Soft foods must not be made too wet. With bread, enough 

 liquid to soften the food but not to run or render it a paste is suffi- 

 cient. Supplies of moist foods must be kept strictly fresh and clean 

 or sickness may result. Special dishes, known as food holders, or 

 slides that slip through the wires of the cage are often used in giving 

 softened bread and similar supplies. Cuttle bone should always be 

 available. 



When canaries do not seem to thrive it is well to crack open a few 

 of the seeds to make certain that empty husks alone are not being 

 fed. Hemp, while a valuable addition to the diet, should not be 

 given in excess, as it is fattening and may make birds so lethargic 

 that they cease to sing, or in exceptional cases may even cause death. 

 When canaries cease to sing from the effects of overfeeding it is well 

 to supply some of the stimulating foods known as song restorers, or 

 other prepared foods that may be obtained from dealers. 



During the time of molt a few linseeds added to the seed supply 

 are believed to give gloss and sheen to the new feathers. Linseeds 

 should be given in small quantity, as they are injurious if eaten in 



