# Orange Cheeked Waxbills?



## Joello (Jan 3, 2016)

So I'm getting 4 orange cheeked waxbills tomorrow and I tried looking up info on them but Google isn't really helping. I believe I'm getting 3 males and 1 female from a breeder. Do I care for them like regular finches? What should I expect?


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## StarlingWings (Mar 15, 2013)

I have absolutely no experience with owning finches, but I do know that waxbills are large insectivores and should have mealworms as a supplement to their seed, and that they appreciate green food.

Also, finches tend to pair up and I'm worried if you get three males and one female that they will all fight over the female come breeding season, which could make things complicated. 

Apparently, like canaries, they need a high calcium diet, especially females, as they are prone to egg-binding (this can happen regardless of whether or not they're breeding). Doves are like this too, so we make our dove a high-calcium grit with mealworms that's basically finely crushed mealworms and calcium mineral blocks. 

That's about the extent of knowledge about waxbills that may be different than other finches! 

Congratulations on deciding to adopt them but keep in mind that you should have a good knowledge on them to care for them properly. Maybe the breeder can tell you if he/she does anything differently with waxbills than with regular finches


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## JanineBudgies (May 4, 2015)

Hi, 
I have got no experience with orange cheeks,but found these links helpfull:
Orange cheeked Waxbills
Overall info:
1) https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orange-cheeked_waxbill
2) Bird Species - Orange Cheeked Waxbill
3) Estrildid.com » Orange Cheeked Waxbill
Breeding: 
Breeding Orange Cheeks - NFSS | National Finch & Softbill Society

Hope this helped!


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## Joello (Jan 3, 2016)

Thank you very much! I'm excited to get these little guys


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## Sheather (Oct 21, 2014)

I found them easy to keep. I fed them a mixture of Lafeber finch pelleted food and a millet mix, they also loves some fresh greens and broccoli every day. Mine readily accepted mashed hard-boiled egg dried with a little corn meal instead of insect food. Orange-cheeks are not a species that tends to bicker no matter the gender ratios as long as there are no nests for breeding available. Breeding is difficult and not recommended for the beginner. The parents will abandon the babies if they do not have a constant supply of a variety of insects to feed them. I didn't have success in breeding mine. They're very small and can escape almost any cage with the 1/2 inch bar spacing typical for finch cages, and once they're out they fly like lightning.


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## aluz (Jul 24, 2011)

While I understand your excitement in getting these new little birds, you may have to slow down a bit more when it comes to your eagerness in getting new birds of different species, especially since you are fairly new to pet bird ownership in general and may not be fully aware of everything that it entails and may find it overwhelming if or when things start to go wrong.
When having multiple species of pet birds in a household, it's important to be fully aware of their needs (different needs according to species) so that they can lead a happy and healthy life while under our care.

Another important aspect to consider is the finances to properly take care of said pets. More birds means more money to be spent on food, cages and accessories not to mention the required vet expenses for each bird (including in emergency situations).

Best of luck with these new latest additions to your flock, I hope all goes well with them.


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## FaeryBee (May 9, 2011)

*Joel,

As I indicated in Post #2 in this thread:
http://talkbudgies.com/budgie-pictures/330610-geo-sherbet-lemon.html
I'm concerned that you seem to be jumping into bird ownership of multiple species much too quickly.

A responsible pet owner takes the time to get to know each animal they bring into their home on an individual basis. Additionally, researching the specific species before choosing whether or not it is a good fit with your lifestyle and other pets is always recommended.

While I understand you are excited and think this is all grand fun at the moment, I strongly urge you to slow down.

Please take a more mature attitude toward pet owning. Read the information about budgies that is available in the stickies on this forum. Additionally, do not anticipate that this form is going to be able to provide you the support and advice for every species of bird you've decided you "Must Have".

The goal of this forum is to promote the best practices of caring for budgies for their optimal health and well-being.

Please exercise some restraint and get to know and truly understand the birds you have at this time before bringing any additional ones into your home.*


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## CaptainHowdy (Feb 9, 2010)

Are you going to be housing these in a cage or aviary? These are suited to aviaries not cages.

Their diet is more complicated than just seed and fresh foods. They require livefood in different amounts for different times of the year.

I wont go into breeding them, in order to do that correctly you need to really understand their diet and husbandry.

I hope your not intendinv to house these with your budgies.


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## Joello (Jan 3, 2016)

I got them today. The cage the lady had them in was super tiny. SO I'm gonna be getting them a huge cage  money is really no object like for vets, food, etc. I appreciate all the posts you guys made. I currently have them in a separate room in the house to quarantine them. I read up on a lot of stuff they'll need so I'll be getting all of it tomorrow.


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## Niamhf (Dec 17, 2013)

Pictures please


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