Mighty Little Flyer

[Taw5106]

Buddy has started leaving his cage more on his own. This morning after saying our good mornings, I went to the kitchen and he flew in and landed on the table, and said "Hello!" This weekend he came out and flew scaring visitors, cracks me up. He's come out to take a shower, flies into the bathroom. In each instance I'm in the location he goes to, he hasn't ventured into an area alone. Even right now he's acting like he's going to come out to visit. I'm loving it, but I make sure his door is shut and locked if I leave the room. Mainly so Buddy doesn't fly out but also so Canelo doesn't open the door looking for snacks Buddy dropped (see photo album for snack thief, lol).

I know a lot of parronts have their birds out of their cage but how are they about roaming? I like that Buddy is loosening up more.

 

[weco]

Since Buddy is venturing out on his own, you are going to have to start being more careful when you are or are not in the kitchen.....I have some photos of the dangers a kitchen poses to our feathered friends.....one of a 'tiel that tried to land on the edge of a cooling pot of just cooked pasta, couldn't hold on & fell in.....the bird was scalded, the owner scalded her hand, the bird lived, but never perched right again & was blinded by the incident.....then I know of a green cheek conure that flew onto a hot glass top stove, its feet stuck to the cook top & when the owner tried to lift the bird off the stove, left parts of toes on the glass.....both feet had to be amputated.

While we know what those little red lights mean, our feathered friends do not and by the time we are able to react to an incident, it is generally too late for our bird.....now, I'm the worst one for letting my guys fly most every place they want, I DO NOT let them in the kitchen when anything is hot...PERIOD.....I close both doors, then have to be very careful when I finally open either...I even eventually installed a half-glass door to replace both solid doors, just so I wouldn't open one on a bird.....

 

[Taw5106]

Kitchen is not an issue here I drive husband nuts with safety. He has said if we had children I'd bubble wrap them before they left the house, got that right, lol. We don't cook much and Buddy isn't allowed out of his cage when we are cooking. Mornings he's fine because nothing is on, cereal, milk, veggie breakfast for Buddy, and a Keurig single cup coffee maker for me. I should clarify that if I or someone is working on something that is electric, fire, mechanical, etc, Buddy's cage is closed. We try to stay vigilant about safety here for bird, pets and kids.

 

[weco]

Kitchen is not an issue here I drive husband nuts with safety. He has said if we had children I'd bubble wrap them before they left the house, got that right, lol.

Not to worry, the post wasn't directed at you, rather it was for general information, because sometimes we might forget and/or fail to keep track of our little birds with the big attitudes.....

 

[Kiwibird]

Parrot dangers around the house (besides the kitchen) include open sources of water like toilets or something soaking in the sink, houseplants that could potentially be toxic, any kind of toxic substance he could get into (from cleaning chemicals to makeup to markers to chocolate to glossy magazine covers), electrical cords, moving fans, anything with a heating element thats heated up (space heaters, curling irons ext...), ceiling fans (when turned on) and open doors/windows/doggy door/any other exits to the outdoors.

My mom has free-roaming birds and her house is very "sparse" looking because EVERYTHING a parrot could get into is in a drawer or cabinet, electronics are unplugged unless being used, toilets ALWAYS covered, ALL the doors have self-closing screen doors installed with them, the ceiling fan has never been used... It's really only the DYH though who ventures out of the bird area without 100% supervision and even then, my mom always knows where she is and what she's up to. She hangs out in my old bedroom a lot, but even she primarily follows my mom around all day. I *personally* keep things within reason safe, but in general, I'd rather ALWAYS know exactly where Kiwi is and be closely supervising "free roaming" activities of any kind. Gives a little more freedom to live comfortably and keep him safe. JMO.

 

[SilverSage]

When my birds are out and about, I lock all the doors. This not only keeps people on the outside from opening them, but it also is a "stop and think" mechanism for myself, so that I remember the bird is out. I have never actually gotten that far without remembering, but every time I reach a locked door I automatically run through my head and make sure the birds are safe. I also notify everyone in the house and specify "so no cooking and keep the doors closed."

As for the birds, I have a parrot tree, a play gym, and three table top play pens for them, and they recognize these as landing places. The tree and big gym are about the only places they tend to go when I am not there, we the exception of the IRNs who love the top of my fridge. I hung a curtain in my kitchen door to keep them out of the kitchen except when I am preparing their food, which does not include heat.

It is fairly simple, thoug not always easy, to teach a bird where he may not perch. Simply gently push him off every time he goes there. My birds are not allowed to perch on the tv or the tops of the AC units. We keep a long perch that the birds are familiar with, in each of the main rooms for just this gentle shoving. We never hit or frighten them, simply move them off, and they learn not to be there. This is important with parrots who are loose. I am not saying they will never go there, just that they know they are not supposed to.

Also, potpourri, toxic plants, airfresheners that can be chewed on, (We know they are a no no anyway, but especially when a fid is roaming) are all forbidden to a parront who will let her fid fly free without being there every second.

How are your other pets with your flights bird? That is a main concern there, as you may not be right there to stop a bite.

We are transitioning to a fully lighted house hold, and so we often experience adult birds really learning to fly well for the first time. There is always a few days or weeks where the bird will g confused and land on blinds or the table or the floor. When that happens, they are generally confused and a bit uneasy, and are happy to step right up. I always place them on the tree when this happens, and I believe most of my birds know that the tree is essentially their "spot" in the living room, unless the gym is out at well.

 

[Taw5106]

Funny you mention the toilet. I had told Husband to close the lid because of Buddy being out one day. He said he closed it. Buddy flew off my shoulder and went down the hall into the bathroom where I found him sitting on the open toilet seat. We discussed again and I added germs, cooties, bugs, and yuck to the conversation. He learned but like you both have said we have to be vigilant. Henpecked shocked me after he recommended a space no bigger than .5 inches because birds have stuck their head through. After seeing Buddy's scrawny neck during a glorious shower, I can see that happening. He's very good at flying, I'm surprised at how well he targets and lands, but that makes me nervous of what he can do, lol.