Can a playgym be a cage alternative?

[June2012]

I would love to have a GCC, but I have a pet dog. She absolutely has NOOOOOO prey drive WHATSOEVER. She doesn't want to try and catch pigeons, squirrels, etc. The only thing she wants is a tennis ball. Cool, right?

Well, I want my bird to be in a playgym instead of a cage. I mean, I've heard of it being done in open space. People have trained their bird to stay put. The bird will NOT have their wings clipped, so he can runaway. If I'm not home, my dog will be [EDIT: secured] in his/her crate.

But if I'm not home, should I place my parrot in a cage? I don't want him or her to injure themselves. Or because they are already train to stay put on their playgym, is it not necessary?

I'm also willing to put suction cup perches on the windows so that he or she doesn't fly into one. Oh, and do they recognize screen doors, therefore not flying through them? All my windows and glass sliding doors will not be opened randomly. (Too many bugs here anyway. )

If not, can I train them to not go outside the window? I don't want to clip wings because of my dog (and my own personal reasons), I would like to teach fetch (as exercise so they can fly around the house), and other things. Or is flight training the only alternative?

Sorry for my long posts! I generally have a burst of questions at once periodically. And thanks for any answers! I really appreciate them. :10:

Note: I'm almost always home. I work from home so I have time to dedicate to my parrot and can train both my parrot and dog to tolerate each other.

 

[Flboy]

I am speaking out of experience, WHEN it goes wrong,you will feel guilt, bird dead, dog saying, can we still play?

 

[June2012]

I am speaking out of experience, WHEN it goes wrong,you will feel guilt, bird dead, dog saying, can we still play?

Sigh... True. Should I just make an indoor aviary? A playgym with a cage around it? It's just that the playgym would be right next to my desk. It would be right next to me and always in my peripheral. My dog likes sleeping on our rocking chair which is on the other side of the room. If I train my conure to stay put on her playgym, is that still a tricky situation and something to avoid? If it is, I'm willing to put her in a cage. It's just that I'll always be supervising, even through the corner of my eye.

 

[Mattroma]

If your home in the room with him,I would have hi out on a playstand. There is always a risk with other animals it he room. Even the best behaved dog can snap once in awhile. Unfortunately there have plenty of threads about tragic accidents.
keep I mind, it's not just the dog you need to worry about. There are others dangers a unsupervised did can get into.

 

[Kyoto]

Gcc are curious by nature, and I would never trust Kyo out on his own with me not there. He just likes to get into trouble! Play it safe and get a cage, but let the bird out when you are home and have a play stand for him to go to.

 

[Allee]

Supervised time out of the cage is great for any parrot, as long as it's a safe environment. I think most parrots consider a cage their own personal space. My birds spend a lot of time out of their cages, but in the evening, they are ready to return to their rooms and usually do so before I ask them to.

I have three very well trained dogs, but they are never in the room when the birds are out of their cages. I would never trust an open window around flighted birds. Even a station trained, bonded bird can be startled and react without warning, as others have said, tragic accidents are far too common.

 

[Birdman666]

Papya - My first bird, was raised outside the cage on an enormous, for a conure, playstand. (As compared to my present enormous for a macaw playstands.) He was also flighted, recalled, free fly trained, etc..

At the time I didn't have any other animals in the house. My ex wife worked from home, and could watch him, and he was station trained.

There is a lot to this...

And I got him a cage when I started bringing in other birds, who could be dangerous to him. (Sally was a very dangerous bird when I got her.) So he had both.

Mine all have both, and they come and go as they please now, but again, they have been extensively trained, and don't wander out of the birdroom without permission. Without that training, bad things happen...

 

[June2012]

Supervised time out of the cage is great for any parrot, as long as it's a safe environment. I think most parrots consider a cage their own personal space. My birds spend a lot of time out of their cages, but in the evening, they are ready to return to their rooms and usually do so before I ask them to.

I have three very well trained dogs, but they are never in the room when the birds are out of their cages. I would never trust an open window around flighted birds. Even a station trained, bonded bird can be startled and react without warning, as others have said, tragic accidents are far too common.

We have black mesh screens behind all windows. It's only to let the air in and keep bugs in. Would a bird be able to tell there's a black mesh?

EDIT: Keep bugs out, not in! XD

EDIT #2: Would it be alright if it was an indoor aviary? Or an oversized house? I just have SO much room for her. I don't want her to be out with the dog unsupervised and fly all over the house now that I think about it.

 

[Birdman666]

We have black mesh screens behind all windows. It's only to let the air in and keep bugs in. Would a bird be able to tell there's a black mesh?

EDIT: Keep bugs out, not in! XD

Shut the dang screen door, the flies will get out...

If it's black they should be able to see it. If it's screen material, they can also chew through it and escape, if they were so inclined...

The flies would bump up against the screen a few times, but they would eventually find the hole the bird made, and you'd lose them too...

 

[June2012]

We have black mesh screens behind all windows. It's only to let the air in and keep bugs in. Would a bird be able to tell there's a black mesh?

EDIT: Keep bugs out, not in! XD

Shut the dang screen door, the flies will get out...

If it's black they should be able to see it. If it's screen material, they can also chew through it and escape, if they were so inclined...

The flies would bump up against the screen a few times, but they would eventually find the hole the bird made, and you'd lose them too...

Could they chew through it? It could be chewed through I'm sure, but the angle would be rather odd. It's very tight and you can't find a place to pinch, and then chew. The holes are also extremely small. I can't even get a toothpick through!

And what are your thoughts on an indoor aviary? Would he be lonely if it's too big? I've heard that not all birds like big areas and can even freak out if their territory is too big compared to their size. I'm so confused. >_<

 

[Birdman666]

Well, Papaya's "aviary" was my living room. Didn't bother him any...

Just because some birds are sometimes phobic, doesn't mean your bird will be.

You're probably going to want a cage for cleaning purposes... otherwise your bird might decide to be "helpful" around chemicals that could kill him if he got into them.... having a cage doesn't mean he has to stay in it all the time.

 

[Scott]

I have some parrots that are never placed in a cage, though they have access to community food/water and will occasionally enter a cage to troll for food and play with toys. However, they are in a closed environment (bedroom as aviary) that is not accessible to the dogs. They generally hang out on a playpen or one of several cages as desired.

As others posted, never entrust the life of a bird to a dog/cat.

 

[Birdman666]

OR THE LIFE OF A CAT TO A MACAW...

Just sayin'... We did have a B&G that killed a cat.

(Mostly they just like to make them jump!)

 

[Taw5106]

Mine are out of their cages most of the day, they sleep in their cage, stay in their cage if we are not home too. Buddy is a home body so he spends a lot of time in his cage, his choice. Venus is active, curious so I especially have to keep an eye on her. We have three dogs, one is a 70 lb bulldog. Even though the dogs have never acted interested in either bird, I don't let them get close. One time Venus ran from my Husband across the couch, stops in front of Canelo, he sniffs her, she bites him and continues running towards me. He's gentle, but he's a big boy and (this sounds bad) he's sat on the other dogs, on purpose, uses them as pillows, so anything could happen. Like Mark said, if you train them to stay that would be a great asset.

 

[June2012]

Well, Papaya's "aviary" was my living room. Didn't bother him any...

Just because some birds are sometimes phobic, doesn't mean your bird will be.

You're probably going to want a cage for cleaning purposes... otherwise your bird might decide to be "helpful" around chemicals that could kill him if he got into them.... having a cage doesn't mean he has to stay in it all the time.

Hopefully he won't be a jerk and pluck his feathers for an awesome aviary. XD

I definitely am going to have a cage. Traveling, cleaning, etc. For those purposes only. I have so much room to play with, I would just love for him to actually live there. A playgym but with a fence and roof over it. Should that be doggy proof? When I'm gone, should I place him in a smaller cage? My dog would be in her crate in my bedroom (a whole flight of stairs above). Would that still be necessary?

 

[June2012]

OR THE LIFE OF A CAT TO A MACAW...

Just sayin'... We did have a B&G that killed a cat.

(Mostly they just like to make them jump!)

From stress or did he literally snap the cat in half? I don't imagine it being hard, tho.

 

[Bandespresso]

Conures usually love big spaces to play but that is really all based on the individual bird. Personally, I would take your baby home for a while in a regular cage and get to know the bird before going for an aviary. Espresso still has a pretty small cage (in my opinion...I would give her my whole room and sleep on the couch if she would let me) but that's just what she is comfortable in. She is out on her playstand talking to the birds outside almost all day because my family and I all have pretty well staggered schedules. Her cage is only for meals, the occasional midday grocery trip, and sleep. Her stand has a seed guard and is up on bed risers so she can't climb down and is out of reach of my dog and cat BUT she is clipped and has a previously injured wing so she can never fly . A playstand would be fine as long as you are in the room with your fid but, knowing conures, s/he'll probably rather be on you all day long! Basically: go with the flow!

 

[June2012]

Conures usually love big spaces to play but that is really all based on the individual bird. Personally, I would take your baby home for a while in a regular cage and get to know the bird before going for an aviary. Espresso still has a pretty small cage (in my opinion...I would give her my whole room and sleep on the couch if she would let me) but that's just what she is comfortable in. She is out on her playstand talking to the birds outside almost all day because my family and I all have pretty well staggered schedules. Her cage is only for meals, the occasional midday grocery trip, and sleep. Her stand has a seed guard and is up on bed risers so she can't climb down and is out of reach of my dog and cat BUT she is clipped and has a previously injured wing so she can never fly . A playstand would be fine as long as you are in the room with your fid but, knowing conures, s/he'll probably rather be on you all day long! Basically: go with the flow!

Yeah, maybe thrusting the bird in an aviary all alone wouldn't be too great, LOL. Would a sturdy, tall playstand be okay? My dog is 30 pounds of skin and bones, a weak little thing... even though she's supposedly healthy.

I also understand the possibilities of my dog being a predator and a parrot being prey, but I would LOVE it if she could play fetch. Maybe partial clipping could work? I think Birdman partially clipped her wings so she could fly, but only around the area? I would love to do that! I just want her to fly around and get toys... Like birdy fetch? Would be adorable!

And maybe I should just relax... O.O

 

[Flboy]

Am not sure how to word this, rethink cage! To the guy happy living under a bridge, we live in cages! To him, we are trapped. To us, security. Give your guy both!! My JoJo really enjoys his cage and loves the several play pens he has. Each different treats.
I know I am paranoid over their safety, but through the family, I have had to bury three beautiful bundles of pure joy. Both my daughter and I are 'over board' on protecting our JoJo, we reinforce each other, talk out exposures and failures and make sure there are NO misunderstandings. Don't know what else to say, when it goes wrong, it is so fast! Yes, you learn, but!

 

[Bandespresso]

Definitely relax but not about safety. Playstands are great but your fid should always be closely supervised in the same room as your dog No matter how sturdy the playstand is our how feeble your dog is. My CAG and dog get along great, she drops food for him and they go on walks together with me, but they are still never in the same room together without me. Definitely figure out your cage situation as you go along but always keep safety as a priority and also make sure to gradually introduce your animals and keep a super close eye on reactions. There are dangers involved for both flighted and clipped birds...partially clipping would probably be ideal at least at first while you get some training out of the way (HHarness, recall, stick, and bite pressure are the most important in my opinion. Fetching is cute but not a priority). You'll be a great bird parent i am sure just take your time and do your research! Might I ask what part of Southern California you are from?