Can I put one zebra finch with my budgies? Do finches need a pair?

Ideally, the more space the better, and three birds should have a flight cage that is big enough for them to fly back and forth horizontally in (finches tend to like horizontal rather than vertical cages). You also want to make sure each bird has their own access to food, water, and bedding areas, with dividers such as perches or toys to break up the space and prevent fighting over territory. If you do introduce a new bird, make sure to keep him separated for a week first to prevent the spread of any illness, and to make sure he is healthy enough to be added to the flock before doing so.

It might work, however once both pairs start breeding and raising young, that cage is going to get crowded fast. It is best to keep only one breeding pair per cage to avoid overcrowding, as well as any fighting over shared spaces such as food, water, nesting material, etc.

Without knowing the size of the cage, it is hard to give advice. If they have a large flight cage where they can easily move around and exercise, then that may be enough. Adding in some fun toys to explore, moving dishes and toys around or rotating them out, offering treats to chew on, etc can all help increase enrichment and make things more fun for your birds. If they're kept in very small cages, then looking for a playpen that can fit in the room or on top of the cage may be nice for your birds to climb on or play on. However, finches tend to explore more and may want to fly around, so it is best to make sure they are only let loose in rooms where they can easily be caught again and cannot fly into windows, doors, or other dangerous objects that can cause injury or death.

It depends how large your cage is. The standard minimum cage size recommended by bird professionals is 12- by 18- by 18-inches for a single bird. This cage size is fine if your budgie is outside of the cage most of the time, but if you have a cage-confined budgie, it's going to be much too small to keep your bird happy and healthy.

When zebra finches are all white it is sometimes hard to tell if they are male or female as they won't have the characteristic cheek markings, beak coloration or tail patterns. The two pictured look like they could possibly both be female, but it is hard to tell due to the distance from the camera and the lack of markings present (males will sometimes still have darker cheek areas, a stripe on the cheek, or a darker red beak). Males will also sing almost constantly that sounds quite different than regular chirping, and will also "tail waggle" when they are wanting to/attempting to mate with a female. If none of your birds are doing this, it is possible they are all female. Both males and females will show interest in nests and will go in them to sleep at night even if they aren't raising babies. If one is being left out, you can add in another nest or sleeping area to see if it helps.

A breeding pair should be kept alone unless you have one male with two females. If you have two males, they may fight over the hen. The proper environment, nesting box and diet will be necessary for a successful breeding.

Thanks for reaching out about Tweety. Many bird owners have only one budgie, and the vast majority do well as long as there is mental stimulation. These parrots don't like to be along, so either bird or human company. The problem with adding another bird, is not all birds get along and in a cage there is no escaping aggression. If you have a return policy and get the birds as a trial run, that could work. Also, new birds should be quarantined to limit transmission of infectious agents. Good luck.