Antique bird cages

[Billy29]

I know a lot has changed in bird husbandry practices but does anyone use antique bird cages to house their birds. Some of them are really works of art but are they still safe to use and practical? I wouldn't think of using one for a larger parrot but for Cockatiels, Budgies and Lovebirds some of them look like they would work.

 

[weco]

Look at the cage closely, many old cages were soldered together because robot welding was something far into the future.....brazing was also used in some constructions, but unless you have access to lab testing, you're not going to be able to tell what chemicals/elements were used.....in soldering, you are pretty safe in assuming that the tinning agent was lead & the flux acid.....resin fluxing didn't come along until during & after WWII and was primarily used to protect electronic circuitry from acid erosion.....

Lead is a heavy metal, as or more dangerous than zinc to birds.....