Ask Lafeber

Zebra Finches, Taking Eggs Away. Nests. Enrichment Questions

Hello! I have had my male and female Zebra Finches for about a month. They’ve bred 2 clutches! And I’ve removed the eggs.
I just read your articles that they shouldn’t breed that much- so I will be taking the best out.
But I also wanted to ask, they seem to be avoiding the nest I kept taking the eggs out of. Their first clutch bred about 8 eggs & I didn’t know to check for them so when I cleaned their cage, I swiftly removed them bc I don’t want babies. Since then I check everyday and about a week after that first round, she started laying an egg a day. I take it out everyday.
I want to make sure they’re happy! And I don’t want to cause distress or sadness for them. I’m worried they dislike me (lol) bc I’ve removed their eggs. I try to always give them some greens after I do to distract them. And now I’ll remove the nest, understanding that could hurt her health, breeding that often.
Have I upset them? Will they be lonely without a nest? They have wooden perches and lots of room to fly horizontally. But after removing the enclosed straw nest, should I get them some straw perches to lay in?
And, they don’t like vertical hanging enrichments, however, are there toys/enrichments you suggest?
Apologies if any of this is repetitive to other posts! I tried searching 🙂

Hi,

Yes, you should remove the nest if you do not want chicks. They do not need a nest except for breeding, so they will be just fine. In the wild, a nest is not used year round – they do not sleep in a nest except during breeding season.

Finches enjoy the small plastic toys made for small birds. They like swings – you can even hang a ladder from the top of the cage and they use that as a swing. They enjoy the plastic rings that hang vertically, usually with 5 rings. Only add one toy at a time, and add another once they are used to it. Look for colorful toys – they also like bells and mirrors. However, if either bird seems to get obsessed with a mirror, remove it. Do not give them anything they can sit in or try to use as a nest. They don’t need to lie down – birds sleep on their feet.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda