Animal Care Associates, Inc
840 Oakwood Road
Charleston, WV 25314
304-344-2244

Housing Considerations

Pet birds may be caged or allowed to remain on perches while the owner is home to supervise their activity. Birds should be confined to cages while their owners are away to avoid accidental injury and other misfortune. Unsupervised pet birds allowed "the run of the house" often get into trouble. Not only can they be terribly destructive to the home and its furnishings, but all homes contain objects that can be harmful (directly or indirectly) to pet birds. These include mirrors, windows, walls, house plants, electrical cords and items containing harmful chemicals.

Birds resting on open perches are usually content to remain there, and usually take flight only when frightened by a sudden movement or loud noise. Unfortunately, these "impromptu" flights are taken without a flight plan and birds usually wind up crashing into walls, doors, windows or mirrors because of their confusion and poor depth perception.

The major source of poisoning of pet birds is lead found in curtain (drapery) weights, curtain pulls, leaded and stained glass, fishing sinkers and ammunition carelessly discarded in ashtrays or dropped on the floor, costume jewelry, and in the lead wrapping around the tops of wine bottles, to name the most common sources.  Most caged birds seem to have an affinity for this soft metal and love to chew on it. Poisoning results from eating even a small amount of lead. Lead poisoning can be successfully treated if diagnosed early enough.

Caged birds allowed unrestricted freedom in the home may eat house plants or chew on electrical cords, resulting in illness and injury. Some unsupervised pet birds chew on macrame, carpet and other similar fabrics and often swallow these materials, resulting in crop and intestinal impactions. Free-flying birds are also more vulnerable to injury from ceiling fans, hot stoves, and attack by pet dogs, cats and ferrets sharing the same household. It is wise not to underestimate the aggressiveness of our 4- legged friends, and to restrict contact between them and pet birds as much as possible.

Birds allowed unrestricted freedom and flight within the home may escape through open doors and windows.  Most bird owners have the mistaken notion that their bird would never flyaway and leave them. Unfortunately, birds that have escaped the owner's home easily become disoriented when outdoors. This confusions makes return or capture of the escaped bird very unlikely.

The location of the cage and/or perch in the home is important. Some birds thrive in areas of heavy traffic, where they receive lots of attention and are part of all of the "goings on." Others seem to prefer more privacy and solitude. A pet bird should never be kept in the kitchen. In addition to the obvious gas fumes and occasional smoke from cooking food, there is another much more dangerous threat to birds in the kitchen.  Super-heated Teflon and related brand-name non-stick pan coatings emit fumes that are deadly to all birds.  This "accident" happens most often when someone inadvertently leaves a pan, coated with a non- stick surface, on a lighted gas or electric range burner. The pan becomes hot and the non-stick coating overheats, emitting toxic fumes. Birds that inhale these fumes die quickly.

Many owners use commercial mite protectors on the outside of their bird's cage. These protectors have little to no effect in controlling mite infestations on companion birds. The mites have to come in direct contact with the mite box in order to kill them, since the mites spend most of their time on the bird protectors have no purpose.  However, having the boxes that close to the bird, you run the risk of your bird chewing and swallowing the toxic insecticide. It is much safer to have your bird examined and treated for mites by a veterinarian before adding them to your home.

There are several other considerations when allowing birds unrestricted freedom and flight within the home.  Birds flying about may end up in the toilet bowl or in an uncovered pot or pan cooking on the stove. Free-flying birds tend to assume a more dominant posture with people, and often become intolerably aggressive.

Covering the Cage at Night

Covering the bird's cage at night is open to question. Because of the tremendous insulating capacity of feathers, covering a bird's cage at night may not be necessary to protect the occupant from the cool drafts during the night when the thermostat is usually turned down. The one exception to this would be on cold nights in colder climates. A benefit of covering your bird's cage at night is that it provides a regular period of privacy not usually allowed during the day. Furthermore, it tends to keep the bird quiet in the early morning when it would otherwise become active and vocal. If you now cover your bird's age at night, continue to do so. If you have not done so in the past and find that your pet bird panics or acts agitated with a cover over its cage, do not continue covering the cage. Some birds, especially cockatiels, will try flying in their cages during the night. This behavior called "Night Flights" can traumatize the bird and break feathers. If your bird is prone to "Night Flights", we recommend leaving a small night light on so that the bird can see the sides of the cages. It also helps to keep the bird in an area where they are less likely to get startled by sudden movements or loud noises during the night.

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