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The Breeding Cabinet
The Breeding Cabinet can also be known as
Breeding Boxes or Breeding Cage.
The purpose of a Breeding Cabinet
is to house your Canaries and their chicks during the breeding season.
They come in various sizes and shapes however some basic rules apply,
which makes the process and care  of
your birds so much easier.
(1). The cabinet should have a format, that can by
inserting a slide, be divided into sections. This allows you to catch
your birds more easily without disturbing the rest. It also allows you
to have one cock with two hens by using three sections. By changing the
slides,
the cock bird can be easily moved between both hens.
(2). Have wire fronts which have two or more holes in the wire, so that
you
can use
outside drinkers and seed hoppers. The outside drinker stops the inside
of your cabinets getting wet and external seed hoppers allows you to
change seed and water
without disturbing the birds.
The birds quickly learn how to put their head through the hole to get
food & drink.
(3). The Cabinet should
have an easy method of cleaning the floor. I prefer slide out draws and
on the floor I use sand which is in abundance in most parts of
Australia. You could however use Sawdust, Crushed gravel, Crushed
Sugarcane etc..
 (4). The colour is best a light
colour, such as white
or pale
blue. Most breeders use a pale blue however I have used white very
successfully. I knew a man who bred Red Factor Canaries and he painted
his
cabinets pale pink.
(5). Each compartment should have 2 sturdy perches that do NOT move,
as this increases the success of each mating.
(6). The Cabinet should be in a clean well lit position (preferably
natural light, with good ventilation but not drafty.
(7). I also do not attach the nest pan to the back wall, I put it
in a margarine container, see [ Nest ] . This
method is not my idea but a very good one.
(8). To build a Cabinet with 16 Holes i.e. 4 Long by 4 High, you would
need to first buy or make your wire fronts, because all measurements
are based around them. As well if you are getting trays made up
you would need to work out your width and depth. The following is
a list of what you would need; timber lengths are approximate until you
calculate the above.
- 16 Wire fronts for Canaries
- 16 Trays or the like.
- 7 lengths of Radiata Pine - 1800mm X 300mm X 25mm (5 horizontal shelves + both ends)
- 4 lengths of
Radiata Pine - 1800mm X 20mm X 15mm (for the horizontal pieces between
the wire fronts and the trays)
- 6 lengths of Radiata Pine - 1800mm X 15mm
X 15mm (for
the verticals between each wire front, between which the separation
slides go)
- 2 sheet - 4mm 3ply 1800mm X 1800mm ( one sheet for the back, the
second to be cut into slides to separate the birds.)
- 4 Sturdy wheels so that you can move the
Breeding Cabinet if required.
- Wood Glue & small panel pins
- 2 Litres pale Blue paint.
With the selection of
timber you could use other varieties as long as they are
straight. Avoid using manufactured particle or chip board as this
absorbs water and will not last as well.
When assembling fill all holes to avoid later problems with redmite etc.
Author: James Hart Published: 15/9/04
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