Some questions and news

[Atwee921]

Okay first I have made my final decision of a cockatiel. Im getting it at a home breeder that is really close by for only $30! I know someone who has 2 tiels from her so Im going there.
2nd, I got a small sleep cage from goodwill for only $5!. And it also came with 2 dowels. It is a pretty nice cage but the only thing is it does have a grate but the grate doesnt slide out. I dont think that'd be too much of a problem cuz he'll be in it for about 11 hours a day. My one question is, how should I disinfect the cage to be 100% sure its safe for my bird??

 

[rlchic93]

One of the best things is to just scrub it down with hot water. Then use GSE (grapefruit seed extract) it kills all bacteria and makes it 100% safe. You also don't need to use alot of it.

I have heard some people say that you can use bleach as long as you triple rinse it. But personally I don't trust this method.

 

[darkling]

I use hot water to do the initial cleaning and then vinegar to disinfect. My mom is 71 and she swears by vinegar as a natural cleaning agent.

 

[ellsiebird]

You can get parrot safe disinfectant spray from pet shops , i use this when i give a deep clean on the cage, even though its safe i still rinise afterwards to make sure

 

[Sabbath]

GSE works, I've also heard people useing 1 part bleach, 10 parts water.

 

[Abzeez]

I am a bleach user. I also dilute it, let it sit on the cage for about 10 minutes and then rinse, rinse, rinse.

 

[Atwee921]

I think i'll use GSE, it sounds the safest and I dont wanna spend lots of money of special cleaners.

 

[MikeyTN]

I use bleach with lots of rinsing and I sit it out to dry completely for a few days. Bleach dissipates after 48hrs.

 

[Atwee921]

Can you use normal household bleach? I read you need something called "Oxygene" because bleach corrodes the bars.
And if bleach is okay how do you use it? Do you mix it with water then just pour the mixture on the cage or....?

 

[Atwee921]

Bumping topic up.

 

[rlchic93]

We have used normal bleach and then just rinsed it like crazy and we've had no problems, but I still prefer GSE

 

[MikeyTN]

Can you use normal household bleach? I read you need something called "Oxygene" because bleach corrodes the bars.
And if bleach is okay how do you use it? Do you mix it with water then just pour the mixture on the cage or....?

I don't use bleach on the cage itself unless I can sit it outside for a few days. But we never use bleach on cage but we use those hot steam cleaning machines to sanitize.

 

[Atwee921]

Oh well in that case I will use GSE. How do you use it?

 

[rlchic93]

The best way to do it is it get like a bucket and put 3 drops for every gallon of hot water, and scrub it with that solution. Then make up another that is 1 drop per gallon to rinse it with. Good luck!!!