This or That

[darkling]

If you had to buy one or the other, which would you buy first; a larger cage or a really nice playstand that can go from one room to another?

Hannibal will need a larger cage at some point. The one he's got is the one he came with and he does consider it to be his home so I haven't run out to get him a new one just yet but he can't flap his wings while he's in there. He just sort of stretches them one at a time and then flaps like crazy when I let him out.

I would like to get him both a larger cage and a playstand at some point but I'm wondering which should be first? He loves to be out of his cage and ideally I want to get him to a point where he spends most of his time out of the cage and only gets put into it when its bedtime or if I have to leave the house and can't take him with me.

 

[MikeyTN]

There's online shops or local distributors you can buy both items cheap. I would get a playstand first IF you are letting him out and only put him up to sleep.

 

[HRH Di]

What's your price point? I'm lucky enough to have a handy husband who built play stands for our birdies. He used untreated, ash and pine from our local home improvement store then attached food and water bowls the the ends of the perching dowel. The "crumb" catcher is a large (19") pizza pan that has a hole drilled into the center. I have pictures (I think) and can post them if your interested. The pizza pan was the most expensive part - $15 I think - and the rest of the pieces came to about another $15-$20.

I realize this isn't always an option, but if it is...

 

[darkling]

I'm not handy at all so I wouldn't trust myself to build anything that wouldn't fall apart within about two seconds. Although I have nephews who are carpenters so if I could show them a photo of what I'm interested in, they might be able to build something for me.

Could I see photos of the stands your husband built?

 

[pittiepride]

I would check out your local classified for cages, for instance here (in bc canada) I can find a used 3x3x5 cage for about $250. I built a stand myself using
-an outdoor umbrella post
-doweling from home depot
-odds and ends of pvc from recycle store
-plywood for base

Basically I took a piece of plywood, traced a garbage can lid and cut it out with a jig saw (your hardware store may be able to do this for a nominal fee).
I slipped the dowel into the metal base, cut a hole in the circle plywood and slipped it over, it rests on the metal base which is slightly wider. I screwed through the metal into the wooden dowel.

I then attached the pvc to the dowel to make elbows etc and screwed them in.

It's nothing fancy but it was cheap.

 

[Mike]

Sound like playground should be your next purchase. Treat his current cage as a sleeping cage only.

 

[mtdoramike]

Weeeeeelllllll, it all depends on how much of this you have? But then again, what is this with out a little bit of that. I prefer that over this, but I also at times like more this than that. Today, I decided to try a little bit of this and that and you know what, I think I like this and that both about the same. But then again, you might be a little different than me, but I would give both this and that a try and I think you'll agree that you will like both about the same.

Now, don't even get me started on whose on first.

 

[tucker]

my little sidekick only goes in his cage to sleep, he has a large cage where he can stretch but he only goes in when he wants or when its bedtime. i have a playstand that has several perches on it and flash absolutely loves it. i think we only paid around 150 for it and it even has places to attach his toys. search craigslist, theres always someone on there trying to get rid of either one you decide to buy, perch or a new cage. good luck on your quest to find whichever you decide to get.

 

[triordan]

Tucker can you attach pictures?

 

[skycon]

I am making my own play stand this weekend! I will have to post some pictures when I am done. Luckily, my parents just got finished building a chicken coop AND cutting down some trees so I am stealing some of the leftovers. I am using a square piece of wood for the base and covering it in laminate flooring for easy cleaning. Then I found two good size branches to screw into the bottom and smaller branches to cut and place on top as perches between the two branches. It should be pretty neat when done. Plus, I save a lot. lol. Win, win.

 

[Lesleybird]

If you had to buy one or the other, which would you buy first; a larger cage or a really nice playstand that can go from one room to another?

Hannibal will need a larger cage at some point. The one he's got is the one he came with and he does consider it to be his home so I haven't run out to get him a new one just yet but he can't flap his wings while he's in there. He just sort of stretches them one at a time and then flaps like crazy when I let him out.

I would like to get him both a larger cage and a playstand at some point but I'm wondering which should be first? He loves to be out of his cage and ideally I want to get him to a point where he spends most of his time out of the cage and only gets put into it when its bedtime or if I have to leave the house and can't take him with me.

It really depends on how small the cage is that your bird is living in. If it is really small then the bigger cage should come first. Get some untreated lumbar or PVC and build a make shift stand until you can get the real deal. Lesley

 

[Lesleybird]

I just ordered this new cage for my new Harlequin two days ago.
Madison Dometop Bird Cage - Bird Cages at Bird Cages It is as big as our inside space will allow. It is 48 by 36 inches and a tall dome top about 6 feet tall I think. I have the her in the smaller one of the same make that is as tall and a dome top but only 40 by 30 inches and is going to go to my amazon couple. If you were in Houston I would give you the amazon's 40 by 30 King Cage flat top with an area for play stand on top. We are getting rid of the stand on top with the cage. We just want someone that had a couple of guys to pick it up because it is very heavy and does not break down. Lesley