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Hatching A Fledgling Business

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By YVETTE C. HAMMETT

The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 28, 2008

BRANDON - With more than 240 exotic birds on their lanai, you might think Linda and Alan Loehr walk around wearing earplugs, hard-pressed to enjoy a quiet home life.

On the contrary.

The itty-bitty birds sing soothing, relaxing songs, a welcome chorus for the Brandon couple.

Two and a half years ago, they received a gift of one fragile finch with a bright orange beak and a tiny peep that started the Loehrs down a colorful and melodic path.

After receiving that little zebra finch from their housekeeper, they adopted another. The two birds bred, and after seeing the eggs hatch and the adults rear their young, the Loehrs were hooked.

"They had babies in their feeding tray," Alan Loehr said. "The babies are truly the most exciting part of all of this."

The miracle of life, Linda Loehr calls it.

"It's so exciting to see the eggs hatch and watch them feed the babies," she said. "They're so tiny. You can pick them up with a teaspoon."

The Loehrs' fledgling business, Fly Babies, is still more of a hobby than a money-maker. Linda Loehr said the couple hope one day to sell the birds they breed to other enthusiasts.

They raise Lady Gouldian finches, a species listed as endangered in Australia because so many are captured for domestication and because native wet-season grasses they depend on for food are being destroyed by development.

The Loehrs also raise parrotlets, tiny parrots that are smaller than parakeets, and society finches that serve as foster parents. When Gouldians neglect their eggs or toss their young from the nests, the society finches adopt them.

The Loehrs count every egg and band every chick to prevent cross-breeding. They have hired assistants to keep the cages neat and the birds fed, and they keep meticulous records of feedings and cage cleanings.

Clusters of eggs often can be found in nesting boxes inside the birds' cages.

Females typically lay about six eggs. Both parents take turns sitting on the eggs for about 14 days until they hatch.

"I can't imagine doing this as a full-time job because it takes so long to see the result," said Alan Loehr. The couple's main income comes from a medical transcription company they operate - transcribing voice-recorded records for physicians - and an online medical transcription school.

Raising birds takes time and patience, they said.

"It can be several months or even longer before they get their colorful feathers," Alan Loehr said.

"It's always fun to see what colors they'll come out," Linda Loehr said. "It's always a surprise what their head color will be."

The male Gouldians sport rich, brilliant feathers in red, purple, blue, yellow and green. The females' colors are more muted.

"People tend to like the males because their colors are brighter," Linda Loehr said.

Now that they've established a base population, the couple are considering selling some of the finches, which have a life span of five to 10 years for males and one to 10 years for females.

Although most people who purchase finches are drawn to the birds because they enjoy watching them interact, Gouldians can be hand-trained, the Loehrs say. That will be their next undertaking.

To learn more, call (813) 681-9611.

LADY GOULDIAN FINCHES

The birds are natives of Australia and considered endangered, with only about 2,500 living in the wild.

Reason for decline: The range of these birds has declined sharply. Most of the decline is blamed on development of the wet-season grasslands that Gouldians depend on for seed.

Food in captivity: Finches eat a mix of ground blue-green algae, birdseed, oil, eggs and fresh fruit.

Life span: One to 10 years

Size: 5 to 51/2 inches long

Song: A soft chirp

Source: www.friskyfinches.com, www.savethegouldian.org and Fly Babies.

Reporter Yvette C. Hammett can be reached at (813) 657-4532 or yhammett@tampatrib.com.

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