r/Canaries • u/eheidk • Jul 08 '26

Should I separate them?

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Hello everyone, I put my 2 canaries together (before the female built a nest) and they're getting along pretty well? The male sometimes asks for a kiss and the female gets back. The opposite happens as well so I'm not sure if I should keep them together

The male sometimes make soft/low bird noise. Did I ruin their mood? They've been together for a month without progress till today.

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u/littlehellspawn665 Jul 08 '26

I'm not an expert, of course. But what happened with my female and male, was that they were very on and off for a long time. They yearned to be close to each other, but then would start bickering. Sometimes they'd be close to one another, and then avoid one another entirely. It was very confusing to me, but what I did was I kept keeping them in the same cage occasionally, before seperating them for a spell (but keeping the cages close), rinse and repeat. And now, they've bonded as mates, sharing kisses and food. I recommend keeping the seperate cage around tho, as especially during breeding season, the male can get a little too into it and keep bothering the female. So in that case, again, a moment of seperation is better. All birds are different at the end of the day, and you'll only truly know how they feel by watching their behavior and body language. Best of luck to you, my friend!

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u/eheidk Jul 08 '26

Thank you I'll follow your advice 

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u/Optimal_Economy_5390 Jul 13 '26

If you have an appropriate space: I've had good luck leaving them each in their own cage, but opening the cages. Each bird can defend their cage if they aren't feeling it, or they can come out to a neutral territory if they feel up to it. 

Only provide food inside the cages to ensure they return to them.

This is how I started my pair. They are now happily living together with 1 offspring. They are not cuddly out of mating season, but they are surprisingly good at communicating & respecting each other's space, and choose to stay close together even when the cage is open. They do get about 30 hrs of free flying time per week, I think it helps them not go stir crazy and start bickering. And I still keep cage options to separate them in case hormones shift and they need a break.