Any canary experts?; UPDATE: tomorrow is the big day!

[MercyA]

JULY 2 UPDATE: We are driving to Chicago tomorrow to pick up our sweet little canary and bring her home! She is four years old and was formerly named Sammy, soon to be Sunny! Please pray all goes smoothly and she settles in well. Please also pray that our dog quickly accepts her as one of the pack. 😉  Thank you again, @Selkie, for finding us a rescue canary within driving distance when there are currently only TWO listed on ALL of Petfinder.com! We are very excited! 

ANOTHER UPDATE: I've decided to adopt the first canary in the video below!!! I am so excited. I think I want to name her Daisy. 🙂 Thank you all for your help and advice.

Huge shout-out to @Selkie , who found her for me!!! 💖 Thank you so much!

UPDATE & new questions at end of thread.

[This section is no longer relevant]: I'd like to adopt these two canaries, John and Yoko. 🙂  They were advertised on Petfinder.com as two females. However, when I talked to the woman fostering them, she said she only thinks John might be a female. John doesn't sing much, if at all, as males usually do. The pair has displayed no mating behaviors. She's had them for two months. They were relinquished to the rescue with two other canaries by someone who was breeding them. They are about two and a half years old. 

Here are some pictures [removed], along with a graphic on canary eye placement, which is supposed to help in sexing canaries. 

What say you? We absolutely do not want baby birds. 

First two pics are John, second two are Yoko.

Quote from email: "I have not heard much or any male singing from John and am wondering if he may be a female. They are quiet and tweet but don't really sing. The man that gave them up said he was breeding them but I have seen no evidence of interaction with them or any eggs." 

 

Edited July 3, 2020 by MercyA

[MercyA]

[removed additional pics] 

 

 

 

Edited June 23, 2020 by MercyA

[MercyA]

And their poor nails! Need clipped for sure!

[MercyA]

So, my husband says it's a no-go unless we know for sure they are both girls. He doesn't want any baby canaries. 

I'm checking with the rescue to see if they can have an ultrasound done, which is supposed to be the fastest and most-pain free way of sexing birds. DNA samples can be collected, but it requires plucking feathers or nicking a vein in the toe with nail clippers--ouch!!! 😞 I would not ask the rescue to do that. I am afraid an ultrasound would be too expensive unless they have a vet who would do it for free.

We shall see. 

[Pen]

A vet visit might be a good idea anyway.

 

if you were to feel okay with not letting eggs be sat on and hatched, were eggs to be laid, I think you would not have to worry about baby canaries.

and if there were to be eggs and if schools were back in session, possibly a first grade would like to put eggs in an incubator and take care of them  

 

 

[MercyA]

35 minutes ago, Pen said:

A vet visit might be a good idea anyway.

if you were to feel okay with not letting eggs be sat on and hatched, were eggs to be laid, I think you would not have to worry about baby canaries.

and if there were to be eggs and if schools were back in session, possibly a first grade would like to put eggs in an incubator and take care of them  

I might be willing to take them and pay for an ultrasound myself--but the rescue is 2 1/2 hours away! If they were local, it would be easier.

I would not be comfortable removing eggs unless I knew for sure both birds were females. I appreciate the suggestions!

[Pen]

You could also ask a vet about how to avoid eggs if one is a male the other female—such as by simulating light conditions of mid summer instead of early spring mating season conditions . 

[MercyA]

6 minutes ago, Pen said:

You could also ask a vet about how to avoid eggs if one is a male the other female—such as by simulating light conditions of mid summer instead of early spring mating season conditions . 

Yes, I've read a little about that and talked to my husband about separating them during mating season--but he does not want to chance it. I understand! He is not a fan of birds at all and it is a Big Deal that he has agreed to let my DD12 and me have some. 

[Selkie]

Ooh, they are gorgeous!!

A childhood friend of mine had canaries, and I have such fond memories of them.

Is there an avian vet in your area? I would want to make sure there was beforehand, just for any future problems that might come up. If you called and asked, they might have some helpful advice on how to tell males from females.

I hope you're able to get them!

[MercyA]

8 minutes ago, Selkie said:

Ooh, they are gorgeous!!

A childhood friend of mine had canaries, and I have such fond memories of them.

Is there an avian vet in your area? I would want to make sure there was beforehand, just for any future problems that might come up. If you called and asked, they might have some helpful advice on how to tell males from females.

I hope you're able to get them!

Yes! My wonderful vet is a bird owner himself and has a special interest in avian medicine.

I've read and read about how to tell the difference between males and females and apparently even canary experts have a hard time. There is only a visible difference in their vent area during the height of mating season; the rest of the time they look pretty much the same all over! If a canary sings, there is a 99% chance he is a male, but if he doesn't that might just mean that he is molting or just not in the mood. 

It is so, so hard to find canaries in rescue. Literally there are only three on all of Petfinder right now. The other one is in Florida! I would happily get finches except for one thing: finches are only happy in pairs or groups. They literally can get sick and die of loneliness if kept alone. If I adopted finches, I know I'd always be replacing them, because I wouldn't want the remaining one to be lonely. Canaries are usually solitary and are perfectly happy living by themselves (except if they are already part of a bonded pair, like these two). 

Edited June 23, 2020 by MercyA

[Pen]

Maybe you need another family who would love canary chicks who could take them if it looks like they are a male-female pair.  Maybe someone who wanted chicks but have 2 males or 2 females and could trade if yours end up being fertile. 

[Pen]

Perhaps your vet would know someone

[mmasc]

They’re so pretty! I hope you’re able to get them. I know you’d give them a great home! 

[Selkie]

21 minutes ago, MercyA said:

It is so, so hard to find canaries in rescue. Literally there are only three on all of Petfinder right now. The other one is in Florida! I would happily get finches except for one thing: finches are only happy in pairs or groups. They literally can get sick and die of loneliness if kept alone. If I adopted finches, I know I'd always be replacing them, because I wouldn't want the remaining one to be lonely. Canaries are usually solitary and are perfectly happy living by themselves (except if they are already part of a bonded pair, like these two). 

That's true. I see loads of parakeets at our local shelter, but I've only seen canaries a time or two.

I'm not sure how far this is from you, but the Greater Chicago Cage Bird Rescue and Adoption had some canaries for adoption in a Facebook post dated June 12.

[MercyA]

32 minutes ago, Selkie said:

That's true. I see loads of parakeets at our local shelter, but I've only seen canaries a time or two.

I'm not sure how far this is from you, but the Greater Chicago Cage Bird Rescue and Adoption had some canaries for adoption in a Facebook post dated June 12.

You are so awesome!!! 🥰 They are only about 2 hours and 15 minutes away from me and the canaries are beautiful! They say they only adopt local, so I'm not sure if they would consider me. However, I plan to give it a try. 🙂 

[MercyA]

I submitted my application!! Prayers appreciated!!!

[Ausmumof3]

I have no idea about canaries but with budgies (parakeets) generally if you take out the nesting boxes (Or anything that can pass as one) they tend not to breed.  Dds house pet does seem to go through egg laying cycles sometimes.  It seems to be better if you can keep the temperature controlled because warmer temps tell them it’s breeding season.  I have no idea if the same goes for canaries.

[MercyA]

Okay. The woman fostering John and Yoko said that according to the "eye test" they both look like females to her. She also had two canary people look at them and they both said they are females. My husband is unmoved and said if we don't know with 100% certainty we cannot risk it. 

I really, really love the canaries in Chicago Selkie linked. Hoping they are still available and the rescue will consider me! 

Some people have baby cravings; I have pet cravings. 🙂 

Edited June 23, 2020 by MercyA

[MercyA]

Oh, guys. I don't know what to do. The rescue @Selkie found approved me to adopt one or both of the female canaries in this video: https://www.facebook.com/GCCBCBirdShelter/videos/593838824867557/

I would only get one. My husband would prefer whichever one is quieter. I think they are both pretty. The smaller one seems more active and/or anxious. Any thoughts?

This is the larger question, though: Every time I talk about canaries my husband gets quiet and sad-looking. He really, really dislikes birds. I pressed him to see why and he just finds them unpleasant, like spiders or mice. 😞 He also said they are noisy and messy. He also hates seeing any animal in a cage (even though he knows this bird would be in a cage wherever she ends up, and she would be in a nice, big cage at my house and spoiled terribly). Canaries don't like to be handled and this is a plus for him.

He gave me permission to get one. He knows I have always, my whole life, wanted a houseful of animals. He thinks I'll be unfulfilled and unhappy if I don't have more, and my daughter would love having the bird, too. But, man, I would feel so selfish doing it knowing how he feels.

Fish are out. We tried our best with fish and they didn't do well. I don't know if it is our water or what. Plus, very few fish in rescue.

Two of the three of us are allergic to guinea pigs and one of us (that we know of) is allergic to hamsters. Small furries are out.

My husband LOVES cats but is super allergic them. Again, out, unless a stray shows up and wants to be an outdoor cat. Or, I supposed we could build a small outbuilding and apply to adopt some feral cats if the local TNR group has any to place. But I think they'd be on the chairs and swing on our back porch and then my DH could not be out there. We have talked about trying to buy a lower-allergen cat, bathing a cat, etc., but we can't risk it. It was horribly painful when we had to give our guinea pigs back to a rescue when DH and DD turned out to be allergic to them. A cat would be even worse.

There aren't a lot of reptiles and amphibians in rescue and definitely none that my DH would want, I think. No snakes or large lizards.

Our last rescue dog was very aggressive towards my husband. After 14 years of that, he doesn't want another dog from a rescue. Our dog is from a very good breeder. 

Sigh.

What should I do?

Edited June 28, 2020 by MercyA

[Corraleno]

There seem to be so many animals that you can't have, and this is one of the few that you can, so I think you should get the canary. It sounds like you and your DD really really want it and will love it and give it a wonderful home, and although your DH isn't thrilled about it, he's OK with it. Since getting the canary will make 3 beings very happy and 1 being slightly unhappy, IMO the pro-canary side wins.

Edited June 28, 2020 by Corraleno

[Annie G]

I think you get the bird, and express your gratitude that your husband loves you enough to put your needs ahead of his bird annoyance.  One of you will be unhappy either way and it’s ok to let it be him this time.  He won’t have to clean the cage or feed it or anything. It won’t be out of the cage so no worries about it flying and landing on him.   
How old is the bird? Canaries can live a long time. Like 15 years. 

[Pen]

?

https://mom.com/momlife/18025-10-hypoallergenic-cat-breeds

[barnwife]

I'll disagree with pp. I pretty strongly believe in a "no new living things unless both DH and I really want them and are willing to care for them." That being said...we have goats. I never, ever wanted goats. In fact, I say that I loathe taking care of them with the passion of 1,000 fiery, burning suns with every fiber of my being. When we first got them, it was understood that DH did the work. 

Then, life happened. And now DH is often OOT. Despite how much I hate taking care of goats, we still have goats. I've often considered saying we need to hire someone or they need to go. But I am cheap. And it's clear DH likes them. And our children love them. It's so fun to watch our children with them. And I like the goats, too (the matriarch of our herd died recently. I totally cried), I just hate the work involved. 

At this point, it's a sacrifice of love. With kid #5 arriving this fall, my time taking care of the goats is quickly dwindling. I've made it clear that once baby is here, I am done until baby is at least 1 yo. DH will either need to be here to take care of them, hire someone, board them, or sell them. I dislike it because I know some of those options will make him/the kids sad. But even I have my limits. I am not doing it with a newborn. 

All that to explain my "no new living things unless both DH and I want them and are willing to do the work" stance. 

 

[Calm37]

MercyA,

If my husband gave me permission, and I really wanted it, I would do it. He would have been free to tell me no and would have said no if it was really no. If that makes sense, lol.

[MercyA]

30 minutes ago, Annie G said:

I think you get the bird, and express your gratitude that your husband loves you enough to put your needs ahead of his bird annoyance.  One of you will be unhappy either way and it’s ok to let it be him this time.  He won’t have to clean the cage or feed it or anything. It won’t be out of the cage so no worries about it flying and landing on him.   
How old is the bird? Canaries can live a long time. Like 15 years. 

I don't know; once I make a decision about whether I'll continue to move forward with this, I'll ask the rescue. 

[Pen]

Or how about a dog chosen to be a friendly non aggressive breed and individual- - maybe from puppyhood?) that could love and be loved by whole family ? 

 

[MercyA]

16 minutes ago, Pen said:

Or how about a dog chosen to be a friendly non aggressive breed and individual- - maybe from puppyhood?) that could love and be loved by whole family ? 

Yes, that is what we have right now. 🙂  DH says that the only way he would consider having two dogs is if we adopt them from as puppies from the same litter, preferably from the same breeder as our current dog. Our dog is only four, so she will hopefully be with us for a long time. 

[MercyA]

57 minutes ago, Pen said:

?

https://mom.com/momlife/18025-10-hypoallergenic-cat-breeds

We have looked into this and decided that the risk is not acceptable, given the severity of DH's allergies. 😞

[MercyA]

50 minutes ago, WendyAndMilo said:

Can you both go see the birds in person?  He might change his mind about noise/mess after actually seeing them....or you might change your mind if you can see he's really uncomfortable.

His family had a parakeet when he was growing up. Also, my DD loves birds and spends a lot of time at the zoo interacting with them, and DH is the one who often takes her. 

He did watch the video and it didn't change his mind at all.

Birds do make him uncomfortable but he admits the impact on his life would probably be minimal.

[MercyA]

Just now, WendyAndMilo said:

What about chickens instead of an inside bird?

Don't think the thought hasn't crossed my mind. 😉Not allowed in town limits and he is even more averse to chickens.

[MercyA]

Okay, guys, does one of these seem quieter to you (out of the first two; the male has been adopted):

 https://www.facebook.com/GCCBCBirdShelter/videos/593838824867557/

I thought I had my mind made up to say no, for the sake of my husband, but he thinks we should both sleep on it before making a decision.

 

[Pen]

Can’t tell in video.  And it’s very short.  Ask them which is quietest usually.

 

who will clean cage etc?

 

 

 

[Selkie]

Yay for getting approved!! I think you should go for it. Your dh agreed, and it seems like it would make you and your dd very happy. Plus, that will be one lucky little birdy to get adopted into such a wonderful home!

Both of them are so pretty. The second one seems calmer in the video. I would ask if you could observe both of them in person before you make your choice.

[MercyA]

Just now, Selkie said:

Yay for getting approved!! I think you should go for it. Your dh agreed, and it seems like it would make you and your dd very happy. Plus, that will be one lucky little birdy to get adopted into such a wonderful home!

Both of them are so pretty. The second one seems calmer in the video. I would ask if you could observe both of them in person before you make your choice.

Yes, I think the second one seems calmer, which is a plus. I think the first one is maybe a little quieter (maybe because she's smaller?). I also think the first one seems anxious in all the commotion, which makes me want to rescue her. Plus she's super cute. But then I'm going to worry about the one who is left. LOL. The rescue seems very picky about who they give the birds to, which is great. I had to send a whole home tour video. 🙂 

I should definitely ask if I can see them in person first. It's such a short clip. What a great idea.

[MercyA]

11 minutes ago, Pen said:

Can’t tell in video.  And it’s very short.  Ask them which is quietest usually.

 

who will clean cage etc?

Me. 🙂 Maybe my DD eventually. I've promised my DH he won't have to lift a finger.

[Selkie]

YAY!!! So happy you decided to get her. Love the name, too!🐤❤️

[Pen]

Good!   Hope it is all wonderful!  Like the name! (I suggested it for Tap’s dog, but it seems an even better fit for canary.)    

Have you had bird before? If not, I want to suggest a secondary small cage for during big cage clean outs, and for if necessary trip to vet unless yours does house calls.  We had an unfortunate incident with a parakeet in my childhood who escaped out a window during a cage clean out.  Normally he just sat on someone’s head or a chair or lampshade , or tinkertoy structure... but a window was accidentally left open and he went out and after an afternoon of freedom probably didn’t survive the night.  ☹️😢

[MercyA]

16 minutes ago, Pen said:

Good!   Hope it is all wonderful!  Like the name! (I suggested it for Tap’s dog, but it seems an even better fit for canary.)    

Have you had bird before? If not, I want to suggest a secondary small cage for during big cage clean outs, and for if necessary trip to vet unless yours does house calls.  We had an unfortunate incident with a parakeet in my childhood who escaped out a window during a cage clean out.  Normally he just sat on someone’s head or a chair or lampshade , or tinkertoy structure... but a window was accidentally left open and he went out and after an afternoon of freedom probably didn’t survive the night.  ☹️😢

Thank you! I have purchased one. So sorry about your childhood parakeet. 😞 

[MercyA]

Update in OP! 

[Corraleno]

Yay, I'm so happy for you! <3 

[Pen]

Yay!!!