The majestic aura of birds can only be overshadowed by the fact that they are super cute and adorable. They are capable of bonding with humans and hence have become excellent pets to us over the years.
Birds are delicate intelligent creatures that if taken care of, can become lifelong pets. This partnership comes with a requirement of making certain changes to your home, some obvious ones like switching off the fan and some non-obvious ones like throwing away your teflon pans.
Let’s understand how you can protect your bird and give it a good life:
- Cage care: A lot of considerations need to be kept in mind while picking a cage for your bird. Ensure that it’s twice as big as their wingspan. Research on what type of cage would work best for them and also pick one that is completely lead-free. Even their feeding bowls, toys, and perches need to be lead-free. As for the bars, they need to be wide enough for their toes to comfortably move in and out of, but narrow enough to not let their head get stuck. Keep paper substrates at the cage floor since they are non toxic to birds and regularly clean them out to prevent bacterial growth.
- Cage placement: Birds are sensitive to temperature and humidity changes depending on the species. Their cage needs to be placed away from direct sunlight and draft to avoid fluctuations that will put your feathery friend under stress.
- Air control: Birds have delicate respiratory systems that require a carefully monitored environment in captivity. Fumes and toxic chemicals from scented candles and aerosol sprays are harmful for them and must be done away with. Even colorless and odorless fumes from teflon cookware, microwaves, ovens, toasters, and hair straighteners are fatal for birds. Keep them away from your pet or remove them from your home completely if possible. Your buddy should have unrestrained access to clean fresh air at all times.
- Flight time: Their out-of-cage time needs to be strictly supervised to prevent accidents and injuries. Cover all reflective surfaces to avoid collisions(Interesting fact: Some birds might even see their own reflection as a rival and develop territorial issues). Tape all cables and loose threads to save them from entanglement. Goes without saying but definitely switch off all ceiling fans and secure open windows and doors. You can add a mesh on the windows for extra protection.
- Mental health: Maintain a routine with them to regulate their mood. This should ideally include feeding time, play time, and social interactions. Jog their mind with puzzles and toys. Get them different types and sizes of perches to exercise their feet. This will prevent any foot issues for them in the future.
- Bird feeder: Maintain a list of all the food items that are toxic for birds such as dairy products, meat, chocolate, peanuts, alcohol, and even avocado. Food items full of salt, sugar, yeast, and preservatives are not safe for them either. Birds have low immunity against saliva from other living beings, so don’t feed them anything that has come in contact with yours. Keep other pets from licking your winged friend, this could cause a serious bacterial infection. Birds are serial chewers, make sure to keep heavy metal objects of all sizes away from them.
To completely enjoy watching your bird take flight and explore your home, you need to make it a safe haven for them. While it’s almost impossible to perfectly protect them from everything, the pointers above pretty much cover more than the basics. You are now ready to be a super responsible bird parent.
Click here if you plan to get other pets and need to know how to safeguard them.
