I've been told buttons don't do good in winters outside? So how do you all house them? Looking for a nice looking set-up for inside my home. And can you house boys together without females with no fighting??
GrandmaBird is the Button expert around here. So you might PM her for more info. However....Buttons are not cold hardy birds and are to be kept indoors. You can keep them in aquariums or even close barred bird cages. I believe they are best kept in pairs, 1 male to 1 female to prevent fighting and aggression. Feed them a good gamebird food and give them some hidey places as well. Even some fake foliage will help with their environment.
Males can kill each other if housed together in close confinement. Even females will sometimes fight and injure each other. They should be kept in male / female pairs only for best results. I keep each pair in their own cage (where they can not see other pairs), with a fine ware bottom, so the poop falls to the ground. This stops poop sticking to their feet which can actually set hard on their toes and cause them to fall off!! Give each pair a large container of sand to have a sand bath in. You can keep this in the cage and sieve it sometimes to remove dry poop and seeds. Give each pair a ball of hay, or some plastic plants to hide in, and also a nest box. They should be fine over winter in such a set up. Don't forget to cover the top and back of the cage with a towel or something to make them feel same, and stop them flying up into the air and injuring their heads if they get startled. If you would like them to get tame, offer a few mealworms each day by hand through the bars. They will soon be running up to you every time they see you hand!
So having just a group together isn't a good idea. Just thinking ahead as I wanted to get more and other colors but didnt know about extras ..... finding eggs is easier then birds. Right now I have 2 cages...I have a small wooden box in the corner which is where I find eggs and momma sat and hatched a baby. They go in and jump on top of the box. The box also decorated with fake flowers. They get a mixture of gamebird crumbles and finch seed. And they LOVE their worms. Bedding is used on the solid floor. I have what I call their tub that I offer them daily with sand/grit. I think its a cute set up. They are inside.
It sounds like you have a great set up for the ones you have. If you want to get more you can keep the youngsters in a larger group of up to 12 birds until they become sexually mature at about 6-8 weeks of age then it is best to pair them up and keep them in separate cages. If you want to raise them the cages that Jodi sells at www.Brackenridgeranch.com are great and you could make some that are similar to hers for a bit cheaper. I use a single finch flight cage that is 18 high 18 deep and 36 wide for my one pair and they are spoiled. I could keep another pair in the cage if I put in the divider but I think they like having a bit more room to run then just 18 square. I have fake leaves on the top of the cage and line it with non skid shelf liner, bought at Walmart, the liner can be removed and washed very easily and I cover it with aspen shavings and clean them once a week. I leave a 8 inch cake pan that is about 2 inches deep in the cage with play sand in it but they can and do make a bit of a mess tossing the sand around. I use regular caged bird waterers, fountain type for water and just small bowls for crumbles and grit/oyster shell. Treats are giving every day or so in a metal jar lid, I use red ones and when they see it coming they get excited for the treat inside. I usually give them broccoli, egg, fruit or even spinach. They do love the treats. I do not feed mine worms but they would eat them up just be sure and not give to many as they are quite fattening. Like candy is to us! Do keep them inside if you can they are from tropical areas that the temps are in the 70-80 all the time. most importantly enjoy them!
Thank you again GrandmaBird!! I am planning to get eggs next week and hopefully will get a few other pairs. Love these little guys. Always been a bird lover. So excited to see what we get
