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Kendal Aviary Birds

Written for the Kendal Residents’ web page by Ann M. Mayer (Kendal resident).

If you’ve ever attended a sing-along in the Health Center lobby you’ve heard not only human voices but a jubilant accompaniment of twittering birds. The two aviaries at Kendal will be 4 years old in the spring of 2004. Purchased with a generous donation from a former resident, Margaret Sisson Christie, these aviaries have brought pleasure to Kendal residents and visitors alike.

Mrs. Christie, wife of the former Pastor of the Congregational Church in Ithaca, was a bird lover who wanted to share her interest with others. On a trip to South Dakota, Ithaca residents Eugene and Ann Erickson who were friends of Mrs. Christie, saw some wonderful aviaries in a nursing home. After the Ericksons described them to her, Bob Kirk, another Kendal resident, went to the supplier in Sioux Falls, SD to see if these aviaries would be suitable for Kendal.

A decision was made to purchase two aviaries, but the usual terms of this company involved having them under contract to clean and service the aviaries several times a year. Because of the distance from Ithaca this was not feasible, so Kendal purchased the aviaries without the maintenance contract. The expertise of Kendal residents, particularly those from the Veterinary School, would be relied on for bird care and aviary upkeep.

Anticipating delivery of the aviaries in early 2000, Bob Kirk contracted with the avian expert at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse to buy some exotic finches. The finches arrived in due time but not the aviaries! The small open cages containing the finches had to be temporarily moved into an empty cottage while awaiting the arrival of their permanent home.

Then a call came from the manufacturer reporting that "an accident occurred in Ohio with the trailer and the aviaries were damaged. Two new ones would be shipped soon." More time passed. Another call came, this time reporting "the truck driver who was bringing the aviaries was taken ill en route and had to be hospitalized." The aviaries could not be delivered. Finally it was decided to hire a trucker to bring them directly to Kendal.

In the spring of 2000 finches and aviaries were finally united in spacious quarters, one in Cascadilla and one in Taughannock. Each aviary measures 6'3" tall, 2' deep and 6' wide, giving the birds space to fly around. They are held at room temperature and lighted with ultraviolet and fluorescent lights which operate on a timer to provide 15 hours of daylight. The maximum capacity of each aviary is 12-15 birds.

Kendal’s finches are colorful natives of Australia and Africa, consisting of:

Java rice finches (sometimes called Java sparrows). There are 2 birds of the normal color strain which are gray with a black head, white cheeks and orange beak.

White Java rice finches which are a mutation and are mostly white. (They are not albino).

Owl finches Friendly, peaceful tiny brown and white speckled birds with a white breast and face markings that resemble an owl. The female has a bare strip under her throat.

Canaries (two pairs) The male loves to sing. The female just chirps.

Masked grassfinches are brown with a narrow black band across the forehead.

Diamond firetails Black and white birds with a bright red feathers on the tail.

Strawberry finches Tiny rosy colored birds with speckled breasts.

Green singing finches Gray and yellow birds. The female can be distinguished from the male by the black feather necklace under her chin.

Lady Gouldian finches Spectacularly colored finches with iridescent green, blue, purple red, and yellow feathers. Female’s colors are more subdued.

A team of Kendal residents takes care of the birds, feeding them daily, checking the nests for eggs, providing twice weekly baths, washing the windows of the aviaries, and changing the floor covering material. Every 4-5 months a thorough cage cleaning must be done. This entails capturing the birds, clipping their claws if they have grown too long, putting the birds in a temporary cage while emptying the aviary, changing the bottom litter, washing the perches, nesting baskets and artificial leaves. Sometimes new nesting baskets are added and nesting materials (coconut fibers, horsehairs, excelsior, down feathers) provided. The birds’ daily diet consists of specially formulated food pellets, a multi-vitamin (oil), water, meal worms, alfalfa sprouts, ground up hard boiled eggs with the shells, and occasionally a slice of apple.

Several of the finch pairs have successfully mated and raised young: the canaries, Java finches, diamond firetails, and Gouldian finches. In December 2003 the female Gouldian finch laid 6 eggs, all of which hatched. When the overburdened parents needed help feeding 6 hungry babies, the green singing finch helped with their feeding.

As with all animals, deaths and accidents have occurred, but these have been remarkably infrequent. Infections, parasites and egg binding are the major causes of untimely death. Having the Cornell vet school nearby has been helpful both for advice and for an occasional autopsy.

Anyone interested in helping care for the birds on a regular or occasional basis may contact Bob Young (257-0535) or Bob Kirk (257-4867).

January, 2004

Kendal Aviary