A video still of Paradise Earth’s planted aviaries complete with bird baths inside. (Credit Paradise Earth/Click for more info)
If you’ve been following my posts on the Finch Forum, then you know I’ve been asking around about big breeder businesses you see online with a constant supply of Finches & just about every species imaginable. Ever since I learned their true nature earlier this year, that they use brokers and actually don’t do 95% of their own breeding, I had to know how this was done to a high standard of care. Much like when I first heard about USPS shipping, I was extremely skeptical at first but after some great advice from other experienced hobbyists I saw how it could be streamlined & successfully done safely.
My overall opinion of big breeder businesses was changed instantly while working with Paradise Earth owner David Calvin for an article I’m writing for the NFSS Journal. It’s pretty plain for anyone to see, they’re doing it right. They’ve got quarantine procedures for incoming Finches and quarantine cages that actually are nicer & more spacious than a lot of the hobbyist setups I’ve seen. After quarantine, their birds are transferred to large planted aviaries which is pretty much every Finch or any other bird’s dream. They do let them breed in the group aviaries and pick their own mates which they claim is the best system for them. This type of natural selection is used by many breeders successfully, and on a small scale it has minimal chance to go wrong. In a large mixed aviary where most if not all of the Finches are breeding however, it would be a recipe for disaster so be wary when deciding to use this method. Paradise Earth has decades of collective knowledge and avian vets so their system was not created on a whim!
A video still of Paradise Earth’s planted aviaries complete with bird baths inside. (Credit Paradise Earth/Click for more info)
I was also really impressed to learn they hand raise!! In fact, David has philosophies for care that are exactly the same as those of us hobbyists who go “above and beyond.” He believes we should provide the best level of care, the most natural environments, and we should support each other as a community. Incredible. I literally had to fist pump in excitement when I heard that. His website even includes a section for free listings from other hobbyists like we do here @ TWFA!
Paradise Earth is clearly way ahead of the curve compared to the horror stories you hear about other large-scale businesses. They’re also the only large-scale bird business to step up to the plate and under the spotlight for an interview (I contacted all of them!). I challenge all bird businesses and hobbyist breeders to stand up to their high standards! If you can’t talk about your processes or put your business under the spotlight, you might want to re-think what you’re doing. Personally I will definitely be recommending Paradise Earth in the future! If/when I do decide to add more exotic species I’ll definitely have them in mind.
Keep an eye out for the article I mentioned regarding large-scale breeders in a future issue of the NFSS Journal. We’ve got a lot planned for Sept/Oct & Nov/Dec so it may be Jan/Feb but I’ll let everyone know when it’s out.
Also look out for some moving updates & the new bird room soon! 🙂