Pet finches have been described as “clingy,” with one minute being playful and affectionate and the next being demanding and depressed. The body language of a finch, which may be both evident and subtle at times, can provide you with valuable information about their behavior.
How can you tell if a finch is happy?
Finches produce clicking noises and twitch their wings when they are happy. They will demonstrate an increased eagerness to play, live, groom, and interact with others. They will also stand on one leg more often and shake their heads when they feel joyful.
How can you tell if a finch is sad?
Depressed finches show feather-plucking behavior along with biting, screaming, decreased appetite, and decreased vocalization.
Let us discuss all these happy and sad finches’ signs in detail
Signs of happy finches
· Clicking
When happy finches generate a clicking sound more often, this can sound rather loud and harsh, similar to the sound of two stones being knocked against one other. Although it may appear to be a strange sound at first, it is actually quite typical. In reality, it indicates that your finch is confident and relaxed.
· Shaking Its Tongue
Finches open their lips and wag their tongues about to show that they’re excited and joyful. Additionally, they may wag their tails simultaneously, further conveying their excitement.
· Twitching its wings
Finches may quiver their wings in response to anything they are excited about. They’re in such good spirits that they can’t help but move, even if it’s in little steps.
When it’s combined with another positive body language, it’s a good indicator. Alternatively, it might be afraid if the finch flees or cries out.
· Friendliness
Finches are very gregarious animals. When they’re content, bonding with their owners and associating with other finches consider them happy.
In fact, finches that are left alone are more likely to get unhappy and develop bad behaviors.
If your finch is in a good mood, he or she will show an interest in spending time with you. It may swiftly creep up your arm and sit on your shoulder, or it may try to nuzzle the inside of your mouth.
· Grooming
Finches take great pleasure in grooming and preening their feathers. The best way to tell whether yours is in a happy mood is to watch it happily, eliminating feather dust, picking up dirt, and spreading preen oil throughout its plumage.
This is a highly soothing action for a finch, and it makes the bird feel more organized. Happy finches may even preen one another, which will aid in reaching hard-to-reach areas such as the rear of the neck and the back of the skull.
If your finch pulls at your hair or nibbles at your skin, it is likely that it is pleased with itself and is attempting to groom you. It is common for finches to be depressed or sick when they are not preening.
· Good Appetite
Finches have large appetites as a means of compensating for their high-energy lives (for their size). To keep up with their fast-paced metabolism, finches feed numerous times during the day.
If your finch is in a happy mood, it will eagerly fill its stomach with nuts/seeds, as well as fruits or veggies. If you feed your finch a strawberry or a piece of lettuce and it enthusiastically consumes it, you can be certain that it is pleased.
· Playing
Finches prefer to be kept occupied. In the wild, they spend their days hunting for food, inspecting novel items, pecking at twigs or bark, and mocking one another about their antics. The majority of this activity is replaced with toys in your home, which is convenient.
A happy finch will play with its bells, strings, hooks, and climbing toys, among other things. It will also like playing with you or the other animals in its cage. Whether it’s taunting, pecking, or playing fetch, you’ll never find a happy finch that doesn’t take advantage of any opportunity to be active.
· Standing On One Leg
Before retiring to bed, finches like to stand on one leg for comfort and warmth. When they’re unhappy or uncertain, they’ll frequently choose to sit with their legs crossed. If your finch is in this unipedal position, you may be confident that it is safe, comfortable, and pleased.
· Tilting the head
When finches are inquisitive and engaged, they will tilt their heads to one side or the other of their bodies. It allows them to get a better view, and it is a pleasant method to move about.
Signs of Sad Finches
· Feather-plucking
Feather-plucking is a fairly typical external sign of stress and restlessness in birds. This is especially true of tiny birds like finches and lovebirds. When a precipitating reason, such as a loud noise or the presence of construction in the home, some finches may begin selecting, and they will keep picking long after the precipitating stimulus has passed. To rule out other possible reasons for sickness in feather-picking finches, they should undergo a complete medical checkup, including blood tests.
· Decreased appetite
Sad finches eat less and lose weight. An avian veterinarian should properly evaluate finches whose appetites alter (decreased) to ensure that they aren’t concealing an underlying medical condition.
· Biting
Even though many finch owners mistakenly believe that their birds’ biting is an act of violence, this behavior frequently indicates stress and sadness. When finches are terrified, they may commonly bite and lunge in an attempt to protect themselves because biting may sometimes be a symptom of pain or distress in birds. If your finch suddenly begins biting excessively should get a thorough veterinarian checkup to confirm that there is no medical condition causing this new behavior.
· Screaming
Commonly finches produce a lot of noise, depending on their species. A rapid surge in screams and screeches, on the other hand, may signal that a finch is agitated, disgruntled, or otherwise bored. Screaming can be symptomatic of pain or distress in the same way biting might be. As a result, any finch that starts screaming out of nowhere should be examined by a veterinarian to confirm that there is no medical reason for this behavior.
· Reduced vocalization
While screams might suggest underlying tension or sadness in birds, diminished vocalization can indicate the opposite. The reason for a bird’s rapid decrease in vocalizations might be stress, sadness, boredom, or illness. An avian veterinarian should be consulted as soon as possible if a bird’s vocalizations abruptly decrease to ensure that there is no medical reason for this behavioral change.
Do finches enjoy playing with toys?
Even though pet finches do not require toys in the same manner as species of the parrot family do, they nonetheless benefit from the stimulation provided by interacting with things in their enclosures. There are numerous toys available at pet stores; however, many of these toys may be produced at home with little creativity.
How can you maintain the happiness of your finches?
You can maintain the happiness of finches by following these pointers:
- Cage in a warm room that is appropriately sized, well-designed, and routinely cleaned
- A well-balanced and diverse diet is important
- Fresh, safe water for drinking purposes
- Accessories for the cage that provide comfort and excitement
- A stress-free environment
- Company (whether it’s other finches or just you)
- Horizontal cage area for flying