92 



CANARY BIRDS. 



may sometimes be avoided, but only in the case of newly- 

 fledged and nearly independent young birds, by placing the 

 soft food as well as the soaked seeds, on the ground. It 

 need not be said that there must not be any mice in the 

 room. Young birds, as is well-known, pass much of their 

 time on the floor, and, rather than starve, they will, of their 

 own accord, attack the food placed there for their use. In 

 such cases it is fortunate if one of the bigger birds, as hap- 

 pens sometimes, takes pity on the forsaken brood, and 

 experiments should be made for that purpose. Females of 

 a mixed breed are said to be particularly good foster- 

 mothers ; but, unfortunately, it often happens in establish- 

 ments for the breeding of the finest and most delicate Hartz- 

 birds that the females feed badly and starve their young, 

 although they do no let them actually die of hunger. The 

 breeders are then compelled to aid in the feeding; and many 

 valuable canaries have, of late, been raised in this laborious 

 manner. But this process is seldom or never beneficial to 

 the breed. 



Fledged Young. — Despite the greatest care, many 

 young sicken and die about the time when they become in- 

 dependent, and the old birds cease to j feed them. In these 

 cases the illness is, without doubt, attributable to the 

 change of nourishment, and the finer the breed, i.e., the 

 more delicate the birds, the less able will they be to bear 

 the sudden transition. I think that the young, even of the 

 most delicate breeds, may be brought up by being accus- 

 tomed to the best rape-seed, egg-yolk, and moistened wheat- 

 bread, mixed with sepia-shell (but not too much of either), 

 and this, even while the feeding by the males is still going 

 on. They should then be placed in a warm, sunny spot, 

 and guarded, as much as possible, against draught, w T et, and 

 steam; further, the fledged young should never be lifted out 

 with a so-called " catcher," but only with a catching-cage 



