Aviary keepers national hit

IT’S been a long time between finches for Kowhai Park aviary keeper, Brian Day, who has just captured his second national caged bird title - 38 years after his first.

Mr Day, in partnership with wife, Jacqui, won the gold medal for “best Bengalese” at the North Taranaki Bird Club’s 77th Grand National Show in Waitara last weekend.

The win caps off an impressive run of successes for Mr Day this season after he collected four “best in show” regional ribbons during the lead-up to New Zealand’s biggest bird show of the year.

“I’m thrilled with the result,” said Mr Day, who last won at the nationals in 1971, “because it’s something everyone strives for, but finds difficult to get.”

Entries in the Bengalese section were higher than normal, with 83 finches from Invercargill to Auckland fronting up to the judges, who assess each bird’s size, head, tail and how it stands on the perch.

“I thought our bird would go close,” said Mr Day, “and something would have to be pretty good to beat it.”
Mr Day, who has been at the Feilding aviary for more than 10 years, is a noted breeder of Bengalese finches with about 200 birds in his own private aviary.

“Preparing the birds for shows is important as they have to get used to the cages. So you leave them in there for a couple of days and make sure they are feeding and drinking the water. If they don’t drink, you will lose them.”

The Day partnership has been successfully showing birds for nearly 42 years, and at this year’s nationals also claimed a runner-up award as well as doing well in the zebra finch categories.

“Competition is getting harder every year because the breeders are all starting to catch up to each other,” said Mr Day, who is unsure whether to defend his title at the 2010 show in Oamaru.

In the meantime, however, he is hoping for a good breeding season and to be ready for the start of the next caged bird show circuit in May.