Pet Bird Guide

Selecting a Bird Cage

Selecting the Right Bird Cage

The number one mission is to provide your pet bird with ample living space in it’s home. With all the different models of bird cages available today, it’s not hard to become confused when shopping for a home for your bird. To simplify the process you can follow some basic guidelines to make the process much easier.

Location

First, determine the best location in your home for your bird and it’s bird cage. You will want the bird to be in an area where he/she will be able to socialize with you and your family, but away from windows and drafts (vents). Once you select a location measure the area and make sure the space will fit a bird cage large enough for your bird.

Choosing the Right Size

Now it’s time to determine the right size cage for your bird. Always buy the largest cage you possibly can for your bird*. Birds kept in cages that are too small can develop undesirable behaviors such as, biting, feather plucking, and even ”screaming”. The cage should be large enough for your bird to walk around comfortably, and fully extend and flap it’s wings. Factor in space that will be consumed by perches, food dispensers, and water dispensers.

* Some people buy a small cage for their baby birds when they’re still very small. They graduate them into a larger permanent cage when they grow a bit. This keeps them from getting “lost” in a cage that’s too big.

Bar Layout

Small birds, such as parakeets and lovebirds, need bird cages with bars no more than a half inch apart, to prevent them from squeezing out through the bars or getting stuck between the bars. Larger birds prefer cages with horizontally placed bars rather than vertically, because it gives them the means of climbing and exercise.

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Shape

Some veterinarians believe round cages may be detrimental to birds’ psychological health, so rectangular or square cages are preferable (just in case).

Quality and Craftsmanship

The best cages are made of stainless steel, which is non-toxic, easy to clean, and will not chip. The primary function of a bird’s cage is to protect it - make sure that your bird’s home does not pose any hazards to his health and well-being.

A bird cage normally gives bird and owner many years of use. Your bird will spend a great deal of his in it’s cage and will appreciate some decorations to look at. Fill your bird’s cage with some toys, well placed perches, and some accessories to help ensure he is entertained. If you choose your new bird cage carefully, you’ll end up with a cage that will provide your bird a safe, sturdy, and secure living space that will last for many years to come.

Teaching Your Pet Bird Tricks

One of the great things about having a pet bird is that you can actually teach them to do quite a few interesting and amusing tricks. Aside from talking, there is many a bird trick that you can get your feathered friend to perform that will delight and amuse both your friends and yourself.

One fun trick that you can teach most any bird very easily is too played dead. In order to do this you need to get your bird used to having his back and head area touched. Spend some time accomplishing this and once he is very familiar to being touched here you can approach the trick in this manner. Have your bird perch on one hand and then take your other hand and cup around his back while cradling his head between your thumb and forefinger gently. And then, ever so gently tilt him over onto his back. At first he’ll probably struggle and if he does you should set him back upright immediately but gradually he’ll get used to this tilting and you can increase the angle and amount of time you leave on his back. After awhile he will be perfectly happy to stay on his back and thus, play dead.

Once you’ve taught your bird to play dead, you can expand on this trick by teaching them to tuck himself in. Once you have your bird in the “play dead” position cover him with a small piece of cloth and give the command “good night”. Then you can encourage the bird to take the cloth in his beak and pull it a little higher. This actually might be natural and your bird might even do it right off the bat without any encouragement.

Another bird trick that’s always fun is the ring toss trick. Birds naturally love to throw things so you simply need to harness and reinforce this behavior. Start off by just encouraging him to throw the rings. When he has this down start working with him so that he tosses the rings onto a dowel or stick of some sort. An offshoot of this trick is to teach your bird to shoot hoops. You can use a small ball and make a little basketball hoop out of a ring fastened to a dowel. The two tricks are very similar so what’s the bird learns one he will probably take together quickly.

No matter what type of bird you have there is sure to be a bird trick that suits your bird’s intelligence and personality and that you and he will have fun performing over and over again. Birds are naturals at doing tricks and they love to do it because it keeps the mind busy. Working with your bird to teach him tricks is a great way to spend time with your feathered friend.