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Animal Stop In Our Opinion.......
Bird ownership brings with it many responsibilities. None the least of which is finding adequate housing for your bird. Quite often a person will decide to get a bird because they've found an old cage and want to put something in it. Or a friend says, hey, I've got this old cage, why buy a new one? Before you decide to make use of that used cage, you must be able to
answer the following:
What is the cage made of What is the size of the cage Is it suitable for a bird
What was in it before? Might have some sort of a bird. What kind, really doesn't matter, what does matter is what happened to that bird? Did it die, move on to a bigger cage or perhaps move on to a new home. If the bird died we probably need to take some precautions. 1. Discard all wooden perches and any old accessories in the cage. 2. Scrub the cage with a good detergent, rinse it with a bleach solution and let it air dry. The cage must be totally dry. 3. Install new perches and accessories If the prior resident did
not die, the cage needs to be cleaned, none the less. I still recommend
discarding anything wooden and scrubbing and bleaching everything else.
What is the cage made of? We've all heard horror stores about lead, etc. Usually, if the cage is not painted you probably don't have a problem. If the cage is wire, scrape away rust with steel wool, wash it with Dawn dish detergent, rinse, let dry, rinse with bleach solution and let dry. Then we suggest you coat it with "clear coat enamel" available at any hardware store. This helps to protect the wire from corrosion and once dry it's non-toxic to your bird. As a matter of common sense, repair all broken welds on the cage and file any rough edges. Wicker cages may be
suitable for canaries and finches, but not for hook bills, they will chew
it apart.
What is the size of the cage If the cage is smaller than
14 x 16 x 16, I personally don't think it's large enough for any bird's
permanent home. The bar spacing is also crucial, for example a cage
with 1" bar spacing that is 14 x 16 x 16 is not suitable for any bird either,
as a bird that can stay safely in 1" bar spacing is too large for a 14
x 16 cage.
Is it suitable for a bird? If you've made it through
most of the previous questions, your cage is probably suitable for a bird.
What kind of bird is another topic.
Copyright 1997, R. G. Ryan, animalstop.com a division of: Retco Marketing, Inc. All rights reserved. Reprinting without permission is prohibited.
This page was last updated: Thursday July 05, 2007 Don't forget toys for your birds at: Just Plain Toys or look for additional perches at: Natural Branch Perches (remember birds get minerals from the wood they chew up) Build your own toys? Check out - Raw Materials.
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