The canary as a companion has deep roots in the American psyche, perhaps due to its contribution as a noxious gas detector in the coal mines of the 1800’s and early 1900’s or its use as the model for the feisty yellow cartoon character, Tweety Bird. Whatever the case, the canary has been a favorite among bird keepers for hundreds of years, and has been bred into over 200 breeds, much like dogs have, each breed prized for a particular skill or appearance.

But the canary is connected to the dog in name only. This bird was named for its place of origin, the Canary Islands; the islands were named after the dogs kept by the islands’ residents, more specifically after the Latin designation for dog, canis. The original canary was nothing more than a greenish-colored finch, nothing out of the ordinary—except for its song. Europeans fell in love with the canary’s song, and began importing them in the late 1500’s. Eventually, the Europeans began breeding these birds and capitalizing on small mutations, developing canary breeds that hardly resemble each other today, and certainly don’t resemble their wild ancestor.

But for all its popularity over the centuries, the canary seems to have been pushed aside by the parrot, a relatively new companion animal to the average home. The parrot is known as a hands-on bird; the canary isn’t. Perhaps this is why some canary enthusiasts call them the “forgotten bird.”

“Canaries used to be a fixture in almost every home. Fewer people have them today and most people don’t know much about how to keep them anymore,” said Ginger Wolnik, 2002 President of the Santa Clara Valley Canary and Exotic Bird Club in Sunnyvale, California. “There’s a common misconception that canaries are fragile birds and most people are afraid to handle them. Actually, canaries are hardier than many of the hookbills because they are temperate, not tropical birds. If acclimated, they can tolerate below freezing temperatures and are often kept outside year round.”

Roberta McDonald, owner of Robirda Online, A Place for Canaries (http://www.robirda.com) suggests that canaries are becoming more difficult to find as the world grows more technologically complex and the planet more chemically tainted. “Combine those factors with the amount of time caring for and watching canaries, then add in the expense of breeding and the even greater expense of showing if you wish, and the result is what the canary fancy has been experiencing over the last few decades in North America—a slowly, but surely, dwindling population of both canary breeders and canaries,” said McDonald.

Canary Categories

Despite their dwindling numbers, canary enthusiasts are among the most passionate of the bird keepers—they need more than a little zeal to master the hundreds of canary types, each with its own special traits. Canaries are bred for three basic characteristics: song, color, or type (appearance), though the male bird in each of these types will sing.

The song canaries are bred to perform skilled concertos, and many are bred to have a specific song, which they often show off at canary song competitions; popular song canaries include the American singer, the German roller, the Spanish timbrado, and the waterslagger.

Color-bred canaries are bred for their color, and can be fed manufactured and naturally pigmented food to enhance color; the red factor and the yellow (clear) canary are the most popular in this category.

The type canaries are bred to have certain physical characteristics, such as a mop of “hair” or frills; popular type canary breeds include the border canary, the crested, the fife, the Gloster, the lizard, and the Norwich. Of course, these lists represent only a few of the many canaries available today.

And My Bird Can Sing

Most canary novices will want a canary that sings well, rather than a ravishing beauty with a mediocre song. Finding a good singer is tricky business, and takes skill and experience. The longest and sweetest songs come from the male canary when he has reached maturity at six months of age or more. Experts suggest hearing a bird sing before buying it, or consulting a respected breeder. Hens are also capable of singing, but not as well nor as often.

The type of song canary to choose depends on the type of song that you like and the noise level in your household. “Hartz Mountain Roller canaries used to be the most popular because their soft song was like classical music,” said Wolnik. “Today’s households tend to be much noisier, so the louder song breeds like the American singer and Spanish timbrado are preferred. Red-factor canaries seem to be the most popular breed now, even though they are bred for color, not song.”

“If I sell a bird to an older client with a hearing problem, I suggest a green or blue sparrow-type canary,” said Evon Van Ornum, Secretary and Show Director of the Badger Canary and Finch Club in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. “These canaries will sing more freely and a bit louder.”

Song canaries are often entered into singing competitions having strict rules about how the song is sung. Sara Palmer and Terry Spreeman, owners of Canary Row Aviary in Sarasota, Florida, own and show sixty-eight waterslagger canaries, and will not own another breed for fear that it will contaminate their waterslaggers’ song.

“The hardest part was making a decision to only have one kind of canary, but it has paid off with improved show results,” said Palmer and Spreeman. “The song of the waterslagger has the lowest and highest range of notes of all the song canaries. They are noted for their water notes—water drops, rolling water, and bubbling water.”

Is It Love?

Contrary to commonly held belief, canaries do recognize their owners and can become hand-tamed pets. “I’ve been told by many people that canaries aren’t interested in having humans for friends, but that hasn’t been my experience,” said McDonald. “In fact, it has been my observation that most canaries greatly enjoy a chance to interact with their people. I have even met a good number of tame or semi-tame pet canaries, who if offered the choice will choose to interact with ‘their’ people rather than other birds.”

Lynda Kasheta, owner of Lynda’s Feathered Jewels in Margate, Florida, agrees. “I know that they love their owners. I go from cage to cage or into the flight aviary and the sound of their chirping becomes softer and they come closer to me. It’s like a purring cat greeting its owner,” said Kasheta.
McDonald says that male canaries are out-going, brassy, and bossy. “The hens tend to be a little sweeter-natured, and, outside of breeding season, a little more sociable amongst themselves than the males,” said McDonald.

Though it is primarily a solitary species, a canary in the midst of breeding season will want to mate, and though some canaries will show little interest in anything but breeding, some do become fiercely attached to a mate. “I have a male gloster that will not leave his hen, and when I moved them they called for each other terribly,” said Kasheta. “When each of her eggs hatches he covers her with his wings to protect her and the chicks. This is the first time I have seen this behavior, but I’m sure other breeders have seen similar bonding.”

Dorothea Ashbery, Show Manager for the International Canary and Finch Society in Depew, New York has seen this behavior as well. “I have had canaries that were monogamous and didn’t want to leave a mate, but I have also had the Don Juan type, who just waits for me to take him to his next encounter,” said Ashbery.
As for breeding behavior, canaries are like clocks that use the sun to show them when it’s time to nest. This natural behavior can be disadvantageous for the house canary, whose life is filled with artificial lighting.

“Canaries are photosensitive. This means that their bodies respond physically to the changing lengths of their days,” warned McDonald. “Many out-of-season nesting behaviors or molts have been caused by irregular lighting provided by owners who did not realize the impact their casual on-and-off house lights would have on their canary.”

Give Me Shelter

Housing for any bird is an important factor for keeping it healthy, but proper housing for the canary is essential for keeping it singing—and alive. McDonald suggests a cage whose minimum measurements are three feet in length, with a height and width of two feet or more. Also, each canary should have its own cage, or the result could be deadly.

“One of the most common of these misunderstandings is that canaries need company in the same cage with them,” said McDonald. “Canaries are very territorial, and this single practice alone probably accounts for the largest percentage of premature pet canary deaths. Even a true pair will often need separate cages for at least part of the year. No territorial bird of any species enjoys sharing its territory with a competitor.”

“Few people seem to realize that a male canary’s song is not just about attracting a mate. Except during breeding season, seeking to attract a mate does not factor into why these birds sing,” McDonald continued. “The primary purpose of the song of a territorial bird, such as the canary, is to stake a claim of ownership to the territory. If he doesn’t feel he owns his little place in the world, he’s unlikely to sing much, if at all.”

“The dominant bird may decide that the less dominant bird must leave the cage, which of course he cannot do. The dominant bird may see this ‘refusal to leave’ as a challenge, and increase the level of harassment. Instinct tells him that this is the best way to get rid of his competition. The less dominant bird, finding himself unable to protect himself adequately, will simply huddle in a corner or cower under the cage paper, and slowly die of starvation and thirst if not rescued and removed to his own cage.”

Chow Time

Today’s canary is eating healthier than its ancestors, primarily due to advances in avian nutrition and information. “Canaries today enjoy a healthier variety of seed mixtures fortified with vitamins and minerals, as well as a greater food variety,” said Van Ornum. “Dried fruits and vegetables are added to some seed mixtures. Seed companies now offer canary size pellets as another food option. Favorite treats in my aviary are broccoli heads or grated carrots. These are replaced in the summer with treats of fresh marigold and dandelion flowers and greens from an organic garden.”

“A canary would probably tell you that his favorite food is some sort of green,” said McDonald. “Chickweed is always a favorite, as is the true dandelion. My birds eat almost their weight in ‘dense’ greens such as kale or rapini year round, on a daily basis. There is an old saying that goes, ‘Scratch a canary breeder, find a gardener.’ Every successful canary breeder I have ever met has also had a way with plants. It seems landscaping skills and the ability to succeed at nurturing songbirds tend to go hand-in-hand, not to mention that canaries very much appreciate being able to munch on edible greens harvested from such gardens.”

The Canaries of September 11th

Canaries were retired as coal mine gas detectors in the middle of the last century, but the memory of their use in that capacity hasn’t faded, and the tragedy of September 11th and the warnings of possible gas attacks renewed interest in the canary as a possible life-saver, especially in New York City.

Pierre Brooks, owner of the stores 33rd and Bird and The Bird House in New York City noticed a four hundred percent increase in people coming in looking for canaries. He opened for business on the 14th of September after having been closed the prior three days due to the tragedy. In the next two weeks, dozens of people came in to inquire about canaries.
“They had a misconception that since canaries were used in the past as the coal miner’s noxious gas detector, they could and should be utilized in the same fashion,” said Brooks. “We are against using a bird for that reason. It’s totally inappropriate. We want to save our birds, not use them as tools. Who knows how these people are going to feed them, care for the cage, and so on, while they’re waiting for this ultimate bomb to come? If someone burns a nonstick pan while cooking dinner and the bird dies, they will think they’re being attacked.”

Palmer and Spreeman had the same experience. “After September 11th, I was contacted by different unknown persons wanting to purchase birds. I felt that most were not sincerely interested in the waterslagger breed, and most did not want to pay the price plus shipping. I would not knowingly sell a canary to someone as a potential ‘gas detector’. Hopefully this ‘fad’ is no longer practiced.”

Anthea M. Stavroulakis, Ph.D., research scientist and associate professor of genetics, microbiology, and nutrition at a branch of the City University of New York, canary lover and a member of the Long Island Parrot Society, says that when it comes to efficiency, if she had to choose between a canary and an electronic gas detector, she’d choose the canary—in theory, not in practice. Even though she’s a New Yorker, she’d rather not put a canary on the front lines.

“Smaller animals in general have a rapid metabolism. The canary, with its activity and its size, and by virtue of being a bird, has a highly sensitive respiratory system. In contrast to other animal species which have one set of lungs, birds have air sacs as well, which work like taking a second breath to absorb the maximum oxygen,” said Stavroulakis. “The canary inhales and holds on to the air. The slow release is what it needs for its song. When a canary is singing, you can wonder how long it’s going to hold that note for before it falls over.”

McDonald says that using a canary as a gas detector is like purchasing a golf umbrella to use as a roof—it will work, but not very well. “Canaries are no different than other birds in being able to hide signs of illness until very near death, so the sad fact is that in most homes, a canary suddenly keeling over dead could very well result from other causes than toxic exposure,” said McDonald. “Unless such a person is skilled in the ways of canaries and understands their actions and reactions well enough to be able to differentiate between a toxic reaction, fear, or disease, the sudden illness or death of a household canary would quite likely tell them little, if anything, of any use.”

Susan Chamberlain, President of the Long Island Parrot Society and Bird Talk Columnist, agrees. “If you see a canary drop dead in the cage, then what are you going to do? What’s the step after that? Do you have a gas mask? It’s like packing a parachute when you get on a commercial plane flight. It might make you feel better, but it’s not going to do a lot of good. People that buy birds without knowing anything are probably going to kill them faster with their ignorance than a terrorist would. They may be spraying aerosols, lighting scented candles, using nonstick cookware, using furniture polish in close proximity to the bird, and that could kill the bird just as easily.”

The irony of the “canary fervor” in New York is that the Taliban had banned canaries in Afghanistan for many years. “The canary was seen as a symbol of decadence, being a creature whose sole and single purpose in any household is to bring pleasure by the mere fact of its presence,” said McDonald. “It wasn’t just canaries who were banned, but animals of any sort, unless they were being kept strictly as a working animal, rather than as a pet.”

Pet birds get loose in New York City every day, and Brooks’ two bird shops often receive calls when people find them. The shops have been in business for fourteen combined years, and in that time received a total of one call for a found canary. In the ten months after September 11th, they have taken eleven lost canaries into their special quarantine area, and know of several more that were killed by traffic.

“There was a yellow canary that we saw get hit by a bus,” said Brooks. “We got a call to come get it and we ran out with nets and tried to get the bird but it flew out into the middle of the street. Canaries aren’t strong flyers. Flying down Manhattan streets without a stop isn’t what you’re going to see.”

On the optimistic side, perhaps the canary fervor following the tragedy helped to create some new canary lovers. “The people who bought canaries might fall in love with the bird and learn how to take care of it and discover what enchanting creatures they really are,” said Chamberlain. “Hopefully they bought a book or received instruction at the pet store. My hope is that they find the canary so enchanting that it could help transform their lives.”