UVb lighting

helijohn · Feb 23, 2013

I've read a bit and just got more confused or should I say undecided. I see full spectrum lighting used here there and everywhere but I thought a few hours a day might be beneficial, perhaps in the evening when we have the lights on particularly in winter. It should be simple, shouldn't it.
So I saw this.

Parrot uvb/uva light- Stops plucking, BIRD HEALTH LAMP- bird/avian/parakeet | eBay

Then I thought just get the bulb and put it in one of the wall lights. Then I thought put it in an anglepoise lamp. Finally I thought see what you folks think!

weco · Feb 23, 2013

All I can offer you is more reading on the subject of UV lighting/FS lighting.....virtually every advertisement for any of these products is flawed and most people who purchase the flawed products do not realize they are not getting what they think they are buying:

http://www.parrotforums.com/general...l-spectrum-lighting-do-you-want-part-1-a.html

http://www.parrotforums.com/general...l-spectrum-lighting-do-you-want-part-2-a.html

helijohn · Feb 23, 2013

weco said:
All I can offer you is more reading on the subject of UV lighting/FS lighting....

Thanks, I read it before I posted but just found myself floundering.

Mudkips · Feb 23, 2013

"Full spectrum lighting" is just a terrible use of the English language for the purpose of marketing a product.
The term "Full spectrum" seems to imply either:
a) You are getting the full visible light spectrum range (meaning it's just like a standard light bulb and there's no guarantee you are receiving any of the benefits of UVB/Vitamin D), or...
b) You are getting the full range throughout the entire electromagnetic spectrum, which is just ridiculous (and also means you are getting bombarded with gamma radiation and x-rays every time you switch the light on)

All you need to do is place the cage in direct sunlight for 5 minutes a week and your parrot will get enough UVB for plenty of Vitamin D.

BoomBoom · Feb 25, 2013

I used to trust in my Featherbrite bulb. It was one of weco's posts that opened my eyes to the possibility of the 'full spectrum bulbs' being useless.

I'll still use it to brighten the room but will no longer waste my money changing it every 6 months as the greedy manufacturing companies suggested.

I make sure Boomer gets sunlight everyday. Like Mudkip said, 5 mins of direct sunlight daily is good enough. In fact, that is lightyears better than what a UVB bulb could ever offer. Boomer's cage is right by an open window. Half of his cage gets direct sunlight at least for a good 30 mins to 1 hour in the afternoon. On the weekends, I let him have some morning sun through the bedroom window. When my harness comes in, I'd be able to take him out again which means more natural sunlight and vitamin D for him.

helijohn · Feb 25, 2013

BoomBoom said:
5 mins of direct sunlight daily is good enough. ................. Boomer's cage is right by an open window.

Does direct sunlight mean unobstructed by glass??
Does daylight count as sunlight or do we mean visible sun's rays?
What of winter time when it is dark and dull for weeks at a time??

sodakat · Feb 25, 2013

There are altitude charts online that tell you when the sun is high enough on the horizon in your exact location to provide beneficial UVB rays. Where I live in South Dakota the sun is too low until about the first of April and by September we are not getting much Vit D help.

This is one of my biggest worries with my parrots. I can drink Vit D fortified milk, eat eggs and a few other foods that contain Vit D, but since Eclectus are prone to fatty liver disease and high cholesterol was a problem with on of my males in the past, I no longer feed eggs.

This is really why I occasionally feed Harrison's pellets: Vit D.

BoomBoom · Feb 25, 2013

Mudkips said:
All you need to do is place the cage in direct sunlight for 5 minutes a week and your parrot will get enough UVB for plenty of Vitamin D.

I thought you wrote 5 mins of sunlight daily. Is 5 mins a week truly enough for their vit D needs? Is it because of the size of their bodies? If this is the case then I've been stressing for nothing.

John, that's a window unobstructed by glass. I have mine open with just a screen. And yes I think it's needs to be direct sunlight. On winters with no sun, it happens. I just make sure vitamin D exists in his diet.

SweetPeasFriend · Feb 26, 2013

I heard windows prevent some of it from going in, but having a mitred conure for almost 30 years, without know how old she was when we got her, living in the Pittsburgh area where I only hear talls tails about this thing in the sky called the sun, and the conure being frightening when she did go outside even in her cage she was rarely out.

She was healthy her whole life, well except for that time she got a hold of a chocolate pudding pop. She survived the tummy ache.

Hard to say. I know I'd like real sun sometime.

At least I heard there was something called sun.

UVb lighting

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Amazon help!!!

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