cage questions

[Derpology]

Hello,

Now that I've been living with Rascal for a bit now I'm growing concerned about his cage and its size. I did some digging and found a link to the same cage for sale on a website https://www.birdcagesnow.com/products/prevue-hendryx-large-bird-cage-with-storage-shelf (<this is the link)
From what I've been told he has been living in this cage for about 3 years. Just from looking the cage over I can tell he has picked off bits of the paint all over but mostly on the bars. This makes me supper nervous that he may eat some of it and end up poisoned. on top of that I feel its small he looks cramped in there with his toys all hanging around him.
If you dont mind are there any cages you recommend? he is pretty much cage bound and doesn't like to leave it for more than maybe 2hrs a day tops. so preferably on the larger end for toos.

(EDIT) I forgot to include the fact that yesterday while i was at work he opened one of his cage doors thankfully he stayed inside.

on top of that
The curve this cage has makes it hard for me to find perches that look like they would fit nicely. so if his cage really is an appropriate size then I'm stuck on finding good perches currently he only has a swing to sit on and I want to change that. I really want to find something so he doesn't need to rely on the walls to move around but I cant find a perch other than those lil rope ones (wich he will eat) so I'm kind of stuck I'm not sure what to get or where.

feel free to recomend cages or perches via amazon link or similar.
reminder he is a rescue, I didn't buy this cage for him.
thank you!!

 

[Betrisher]

The best cage for every bird is the biggest one its owner can afford.

I have two double cages, each measuring 2m x 2m x 1m. My Alexandrines are not playful and spend most of their days just chewing whatever I can poke in their beaks to keep them happy. My cockatoo, though, uses every square millimetre of her cage.

She runs and jumps and flies (about two strokes) and bounces and hangs and swings and eats and drinks and bathes and is never still. I wish like mad I could have an aviary for her! I did actually buy one, but it turned out to be too large to fit in our yard - I'm just in the middle of donating it to a local rescue.

When I was deciding which cages to buy, I knew I wanted as much horizontal distance as I could get. Most commercial cages are tall and narrow, which is exactly the opposite of what's best for birds. Then, of course, there's the restriction of space and where a person can actually fit a cage large enough for a large parrot.

But it still comes back to the same thing: the best cage is the biggest one you can manage, especially in terms of horizontal distance.

This is Rosetta's cage (looking a bit empty as we were sorting out which toys to put back after cleaning). Normally, the hanging basket would be full of cardboard and chewy things, including a roll of toilet paper. Rosetta loves to make papier m?ch? with her toilet paper! It's a big cage, but it's really not big enough...

 

[Carmech001]

Hello,

Now that I've been living with Rascal for a bit now I'm growing concerned about his cage and its size. I did some digging and found a link to the same cage for sale on a website https://www.birdcagesnow.com/products/prevue-hendryx-large-bird-cage-with-storage-shelf (<this is the link)
From what I've been told he has been living in this cage for about 3 years. Just from looking the cage over I can tell he has picked off bits of the paint all over but mostly on the bars. This makes me supper nervous that he may eat some of it and end up poisoned. on top of that I feel its small he looks cramped in there with his toys all hanging around him.
If you dont mind are there any cages you recommend? he is pretty much cage bound and doesn't like to leave it for more than maybe 2hrs a day tops. so preferably on the larger end for toos.

(EDIT) I forgot to include the fact that yesterday while i was at work he opened one of his cage doors thankfully he stayed inside.

on top of that
The curve this cage has makes it hard for me to find perches that look like they would fit nicely. so if his cage really is an appropriate size then I'm stuck on finding good perches currently he only has a swing to sit on and I want to change that. I really want to find something so he doesn't need to rely on the walls to move around but I cant find a perch other than those lil rope ones (wich he will eat) so I'm kind of stuck I'm not sure what to get or where.

feel free to recomend cages or perches via amazon link or similar.
reminder he is a rescue, I didn't buy this cage for him.
thank you!!

As for the perch situation, I go to Lowes or Home Depot and buy wood dowel rods. They come about 6 feet long and in different thicknesses. Cut it slightly longer than the area you want to put it in, then cut slots for the cage bars on either side. This way, you can customize any length or thickness you want and it's just a few bucks and a little time.

 

[eman]

Hi,
For the cage, you can check “Elle and the birds” in Amazon. She recommended several ones:

https://www.amazon.com/shop/livelaughbirds?ref=inf_pub_livelaughbirds

For the perches, I got These beautiful ones that Mathew really loves from Amazon. What I like about them is that they can easily be installed in any cage, and I can change their places from time to time so that Mathew don’t get bored whenever he has to stay in the cage ..

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08PFDWZCB/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_XPM9KGPA2MY9MRGBMH60

 

[Owlet]

As for the perch situation, I go to Lowes or Home Depot and buy wood dowel rods. They come about 6 feet long and in different thicknesses. Cut it slightly longer than the area you want to put it in, then cut slots for the cage bars on either side. This way, you can customize any length or thickness you want and it's just a few bucks and a little time.

I do not recommend this. Wood dowel perches are not good for birds' feet

 

[Carmech001]

I do not recommend this. Wood dowel perches are not good for birds' feet

The perches that come with the new cages are the same thing. In my case, it was small for my cockatoo so I made my own in a bigger diameter that would be better for his feet and I guarantee, it is exactly the same thing as what came with my cage. Looking at the picture Derp shared of the cage they have, I'd bet it's the same as that too. I also use hardwood branches that are thick enough and some screw ons. But the one Zeke prefers and spends the most time on is the one I made. I was just suggesting a a cheaper solution to the curved cage problem.

 

[Owlet]

The perches that come with the new cages are the same thing. In my case, it was small for my cockatoo so I made my own in a bigger diameter that would be better for his feet and I guarantee, it is exactly the same thing as what came with my cage. Looking at the picture Derp shared of the cage they have, I'd bet it's the same as that too. I also use hardwood branches that are thick enough and some screw ons. But the one Zeke prefers and spends the most time on is the one I made. I was just suggesting a a cheaper solution to the curved cage problem.

Dowel perches regularly come with cages, it doesn't mean theyre good. Natural perches are 100% the way to go.

 

[Derpology]

thank you for your input, I'd prefer not to use a wooden dowel as Rascal prefers to eat them rather than stand on them. when I first acquired rascal he had no perch inside his cage just a swing and he seems to prefer his new perch over his swing. he has a natural perch that just barely fits in his cage that he uses to stand that he doesn't pick apart wich is great.

I've been looking at this cage and this cage as possible cages for him. I like them because their big and have seed catchers and will help block out mice. (I live in a basement, mice happen when you live underground.)

I personally prefer not to shop off amazon are there any other trusted websites I might be able to get one of these from?

 

[Betrisher]

While it's not fun, watching the perches you paid for being systematically torn apart, it's good for your parrot to pick and shred wood. In fact, it's one of the most important and natural forms of occupation for him. I've got nothing against dowel perches, so long as they're not the only kind of perch in the cage. I use dowel, natural branches and rope for my lot. They love to strip the bark off the natural branches and that forms a lot of their daily 'work'. Luckily, I've got two huge eucalyptus trees in my yard: a Lemon-scented gum and a Sugar gum. Both have bark which tears off in long strips and that's perfect for my purpose.

There are lots and lots of bird-safe trees and shrubs in Australia: all you have to do is watch the wild parrots and see what they most like chomping on, then go and provide yourself with an armful of fallen branches. I don't know what it's like in the US or elsewhere, but there are lists among our forums that tell you which timbers are bird-safe. Just the other day, I got to watch a family of white-tailed black cockatoos stripping the bark off gum branches and winkling out insect pupae to feed their baby.

I've been using sisal rope for perches and for swings. The inch-and-a-half thickness has been great and all three of the big birds enjoy climbing and hanging from it. Recently, though, Rosetta has begun shredding the sisal at the top of her boing, so I'm going to remove that from her cage for a while. Whenever you see a fluff of shredded fibres, it's time to pull the item out. It presents a serious risk of crop or bowel impaction!

I can thoroughly recommend both the cages you're looking at (at least, for size: dunno about materials etc as I got mine here in Oz and it's slightly different). One comment I'd make is that those sticking-out seed skirts are *lethal*! It's very easy to slice a chunk out of your leg if you bang into it unawares. I got my husband to take them off and remove the corners, then put them back on so that they're flush with the cage wall (ie. they no longer stick out, but sit vertically against the cage). I use Seedmate feeders, so don't have much seed waste anyway.

Do show us pics of your final set-up! It's always informative to see what other members are doing and take on new ideas.

 

[Derpology]

While it's not fun, watching the perches you paid for being systematically torn apart, it's good for your parrot to pick and shred wood. In fact, it's one of the most important and natural forms of occupation for him. I've got nothing against dowel perches, so long as they're not the only kind of perch in the cage. I use dowel, natural branches and rope for my lot. They love to strip the bark off the natural branches and that forms a lot of their daily 'work'. Luckily, I've got two huge eucalyptus trees in my yard: a Lemon-scented gum and a Sugar gum. Both have bark which tears off in long strips and that's perfect for my purpose.

There are lots and lots of bird-safe trees and shrubs in Australia: all you have to do is watch the wild parrots and see what they most like chomping on, then go and provide yourself with an armful of fallen branches. I don't know what it's like in the US or elsewhere, but there are lists among our forums that tell you which timbers are bird-safe. Just the other day, I got to watch a family of white-tailed black cockatoos stripping the bark off gum branches and winkling out insect pupae to feed their baby.

I've been using sisal rope for perches and for swings. The inch-and-a-half thickness has been great and all three of the big birds enjoy climbing and hanging from it. Recently, though, Rosetta has begun shredding the sisal at the top of her boing, so I'm going to remove that from her cage for a while. Whenever you see a fluff of shredded fibres, it's time to pull the item out. It presents a serious risk of crop or bowel impaction!

I can thoroughly recommend both the cages you're looking at (at least, for size: dunno about materials etc as I got mine here in Oz and it's slightly different). One comment I'd make is that those sticking-out seed skirts are *lethal*! It's very easy to slice a chunk out of your leg if you bang into it unawares. I got my husband to take them off and remove the corners, then put them back on so that they're flush with the cage wall (ie. they no longer stick out, but sit vertically against the cage). I use Seedmate feeders, so don't have much seed waste anyway.

Do show us pics of your final set-up! It's always informative to see what other members are doing and take on new ideas.

Boy do I envy that you get to observe wild parrots (The only native parrot I know of is extinct).

Yes its not that fun watching him tear apart the perch's I buy he destroys dowel perches in a day where the one he has now has only been striped of bark and slightly chewed on in the weeks I've had it.

where I am there's lots of Oaks, Maples, Birch, Fur, Beach, and Pine trees. From what I've read Maples, Birch, Beach, Pine, Fur are safe but most of those are full of sticky sap leading me to distrust that information. I'm also very hesitant as I dont know how well I can identify fallen branches.

I really would like to try and keep the seed skirt as I'm really struggling to keep the mice out of rascals cage and eating his scraps. If they dont help then ill most likely remove them but until then ill watch my shins. Ill also invest in a lower waste feeder once I get the new cage but currently it would just take up too much of his cage.

 

[Betrisher]

Boy do I envy that you get to observe wild parrots (The only native parrot I know of is extinct).

Yes its not that fun watching him tear apart the perch's I buy he destroys dowel perches in a day where the one he has now has only been striped of bark and slightly chewed on in the weeks I've had it.

where I am there's lots of Oaks, Maples, Birch, Fur, Beach, and Pine trees. From what I've read Maples, Birch, Beach, Pine, Fur are safe but most of those are full of sticky sap leading me to distrust that information. I'm also very hesitant as I dont know how well I can identify fallen branches.

I really would like to try and keep the seed skirt as I'm really struggling to keep the mice out of rascals cage and eating his scraps. If they dont help then ill most likely remove them but until then ill watch my shins. Ill also invest in a lower waste feeder once I get the new cage but currently it would just take up too much of his cage.

We have a mouse plague going on here at the moment, but for some weird reason I don't have mice in my cages! Maybe the three shiftless cats have actually been doing their job? Or maybe there's a snake living under the house that we don't know about? Could you, maybe, grease the bottom few inches of the cage legs to deter the mice? Or slit some plastic cups and fit them (pointing downwards) over the legs?

You could ask at local nurseries or your town planning department whether there are any nearby plantations of Australian bottlebrush, melaleuca or eucalyptus. I know all are grown widely in the US and all are perfect for parrot purposes.

With the seed skirt, we worked out that a piece of pvc electrical conduit could be slit vertically and fitted over the sharp edges. Will do that next time and save some work!

Seems to me your Rascal is enjoying a much better life with you in it!