Very active finch

[Aaron1994]

I am a first time bird owner, proud new keeper of a Java finch that I obtained 2 days ago. Everything is great, he is eating, drinking and sleeping well as well as slowly gaining a trust for my presence. Just every so often he goes into these 5 minute spurts of crazy activity, hopping perch to perch quick nibble of seed and a quick dash of drink than back to perch hopping, sides of the cage hopping back n forth. And peeping every step of the way acting out right insane haha. I don't know if this is just the way finches stay active or their way of expressing happiness or discomfort? just need to know. Other than those happy/crazy spurts he is great.

 

[suebee]

lol if all vet checks are ok i'd say its like what my nut has, the mad half hour or parrot zooms

for no reason, she will fly onto another room, do a flock call as she'd be alone and then strait back, off out again and back, we just let her get on with it and make sure the doors between the rooms are opened fully so she does not crash into them, and her landing platforms areas are safe
sometimes she will squeak, others we just hear her fluttering

we avoid walking about when she is in this mode or we will say we are coming in, she's a good enough flyer, to land into us feet first without hurting herself, but them little needle sharp talons of hers, really hurt US!!

 

[Aaron1994]

Heh, I guess even our little feathered friends need a moment to play too! going bananas letting out all that energy.

 

[aliray]

Finches are by nature very active birds.The bigger the cage the better. They also like the small bird toys that have thin strings tied on a plastic ring. They love to pull on them and preen them. My canary also loves a daily bath. I use a small oval baking dish with about one half inch of water everyday and he really enjoys it. He also likes a bit of apple, Birdie bread, dark green leafy veg. Corn ect. besides his regular food also a peice of plain pasta ar a few grains of cooked rice. That sounds like normal finch behavour Alison and sweetie Pie

 

[ann]

hi my finches do that too, sometimes if something spooks them they all flit and fly all over the place! and one fly's from perch to perch nonstop for about a minute, almost like shes trying to get the others to follow her. maybe your bird is just relieving pent up energy? also finches are very social birds, and a single finch can get very lonely and depressed, unless they bond to the human who cares for them, but for them to be tame with you they usually have to be hand fed, have you considered getting your finch a friend? also mine LOVE a hard boiled well cooked egg crumbled with the shells, served warm but not hot, and be sure not to leave it in for more than an hour or it will spoil. hope this helps and congrats on your new birdie and welcome to the forum !

 

[mcw009]

hi my finches do that too, sometimes if something spooks them they all flit and fly all over the place! and one fly's from perch to perch nonstop for about a minute, almost like shes trying to get the others to follow her. maybe your bird is just relieving pent up energy? also finches are very social birds, and a single finch can get very lonely and depressed, unless they bond to the human who cares for them, but for them to be tame with you they usually have to be hand fed, have you considered getting your finch a friend? also mine LOVE a hard boiled well cooked egg crumbled with the shells, served warm but not hot, and be sure not to leave it in for more than an hour or it will spoil. hope this helps and congrats on your new birdie and welcome to the forum !

I work with Zebra Finches and one time I put a finch alone in a cage cause he was being bullied (we normally keep them 5 to a 30x18x18, single sex)... and he got sooo lonely he almost died! He was far happier with company, even if they plucked all his feathers.
Another time, in a breeding cage (just a male and female, unless they have offspring), a male's mate died and he was alone for a while. He would sit as close as possible to the cage next door, where he could glimpse past the cage cover and see the other finches, and literally only left that spot for food and water. Sadly some other ladies died as well, but on the plus side all the widowers are together in their "Bachelor Pad" now, and quite happy.
So I second the friend idea. Finches are social, gregarious colony birds after all!

But yea, I agree that that sounds totally normal. I don't often get to see finches behaving calmly, since none of the ones at work are tame and they're very nervous when someone's in the room. We've recorded them on video though and they practically never stop moving anyway.