Want to replace current cage

[noblemacaw]

I am seriously thinking of replacing Valentino's current cage. This will take me a while to be able to do but want to do the research now so I can be ready to move forward when I can.

Valentino is a RFM which weighs about 470 grams. He is very active in his cage and will roost in his special place with blanket when he is napping. Currently Valentino is in a Kings 406 stainless steel cage however it weighs 210 pounds and I can no longer manage moving this cage outside by myself.

I am looking for a well made stainless steel cage as well made as the Kings but not as heavy. I don't want to go smaller (I refuse to put Valentino is Mihijo's cage. Its a high quality SS cage but too small) but would like to either keep the same size as current or maybe even go up to the size of a 506.

I am out of date of what cage manufactures out there are quality and/or make quality SS cages.

Please share with me your experiences with your favorite SS cage and why you like it. If you can recommend a quality provider/maker of SS cages please pass on the information and why you like them.

Thank you all so much.

 

[Kiwibird]

I too have been looking into stainless cages. I came across the Caitec line, and actually like the look of them better than the Kings cages. I'm looking at the 2436 for Kiwi, but they have 2 larger cages (2842 and 3248) for really big birds like Valentino Featherland Bird CAges

 

[Phlox]

Wouldn't all SS cages be super heavy, just due to materials?


Not that this is helpful, but I've always dreamt of some day getting one of these:

Beautiful Custom Bird Cages & Reptile Cages : bird cage, snake cages, parrot cages, birdcages, iguana cage, custom cage, macaw cage, cage

I saw one of the Hybrid ones in person at the local rescue. Magnificent, modular but not SS.

 

[noblemacaw]

The Featherland brand might be a option. With the quick look I think the smallest I want for Valentino is $1800...WHOA!

The custom cages are BEAUTIFUL but I would probably have the same problem I do now with being able to move the cage for power washes and with my now Gypsy lifestyle. As per past experience with renting I will probably have to move every year or so so I need a cage I can move easily. If I still owned my home I would seriously consider those custom cages. They really are beautiful but I wonder how easy to keep clean.

As for the Featherland brand I would love to hear from people who have bought these cages. Do they hold up over the years? How durable are they? Are they well made? I cannot ever complain about Valentino's current King's cage as it is the best cage I ever owned. I could never replace it with another for the same cost as in 2002.

 

[JerseyWendy]

Rebecca, I've heard many good reviews on THESE:
Expandable Habitats - Main Page

I have no idea how heavy they are, unfortunately.

 

[Kiwibird]

Those custom cages are beautiful, but seem impractical

I've actually be a bit taken aback by the cost of the SS cages. I knew they were expensive, but I didn't think they were AS pricy as they are

The Caitec ones are actually LESS expensive than the Kings ones, and the don't *look* as heavy (though I would contact the company and ask if weight is a major consideration for you).

 

[MacawLoverOf3]

There is a lady who did an in-depth review of all the cages and for the Featherland cages she said one person ended up cutting through a bar and found that it was hollow and not solid. This lady contacted the company and was told they were solid. (Where is an icon scratching it's head, could not find one so you need to use your imagination.) A lot of people report having sharp edges but someone else ended up sanding those down and she was ok with it then. A lot of people also reported a lot of shipping damage on the cages too.

When I got Donovan he came with an Animal Environments cage. Nice cage but when it was dismantled the PLASTIC connecters holding the top of the cage on the side broke. I figured that would not be an issue until I tried ordering more from the company. What a nightmare. After 9 months I finally got some. I know of one lady who also has the Luxor model and finally ended up welding the thing together. They built a garage I was told AROUND the cage. Don't know how things will be handled when the time comes to move it out of there. Another friend ordered a ring stand and we had a joke going on just how long it was going to take for him to get it. Took a while. Another person told of all the frustrations in dealing with the owner Carmen and all the redundant emails and then demanding payment or the deal was off, got to the point she just will not deal with her. These are not isolated cases either. One other lady was supposed to have gotten another cage from her months ago and the last time frame she was told was the end of this month. I sure would not be holding my breath.

I have 3 Expandable Habitats cages. In years past I have taken Jody's cage apart and put it back together myself. I now pay a friend to help me take it apart and wash it and even he wonders how I did it myself in years past but it can be done. The cages are made into panels. I screw one of the front panels onto the frame with one center screw. You don't have to worry about it just standing up in the air, it will sort of flex over a bit but not bend in half or fall over. I put the second front panel on and then do the 2 rear panels. Next you take the top and have it stand up on it's long end, lift it up, line up the hole on the end you are working on, matching one front panel hole on top with the hole in that top frame and do the same with one screw on the back panel. You don't want to screw it in tight because you will next swing the opposite end of the top up and match up the holes on the other end of the cage. This is probably the hardest part about putting this cage together because the top is heavy and if you can find a second person to help it is a piece of cake then but it can be done yourself. Put the end panels on and I am done except for tightening all the screws up as you don't want everything tight until it is totally put together. Jody and Kalea's cages are 4x3 ft with the door centered in the middle which is the old way of how they made them. Now they tend to make the door as a whole panel.

Expandable Habitats designs their cages so you don't have to totally dismantle them to wash things. You can take one panel off, wash it, put it back and go onto the next panel. I prefer breaking it down, getting it outside and power washing them, especially with Jody's cage as she is messier.

I bought Jody's cage in 1994 and after hearing some horror stories people have had with other cages, I highly recommend them. Tricia (her and her hubby own the company) is great to work with, she knows birds, they have a few Macaws of their own and they build the cages themselves, not like they have them made and shipped in from China.

Heavy? Yes, but they roll when needed. I so much prefer the paper roll system they use. Pull the paper through, roll it up as you are pulling it, slice it off and you are done. Not this thing where you have to collect newspapers, pull out trays and deal with stuff that way. I get the roll of paper that has a plastic coating on one side and that is unrolled with the coating side down. The plastic coating keeps the paper together so when they take a bath in their bowls I can still pull it out. Jody I use the white paper that is not as heavy as the brown Kraft poly coated paper because she does not splash out as much water from the bowl like Kalea does. The white paper is 1100 ft in length and lasts her about 1 year.

Jody and Kalea's cages also have two feeder doors, one on each side and big enough to hold 3 bowls. I also stopped using locks. Tricia told me what they started using was taking one of the bars which has a loop on the top end, you drop that onto the latch where you would normally attach the lock to and the cage is secure. No more keys to have to deal with and Kalea (my little monkey) has still (knock on wood) never been able to lift it high enough to take it out of that loop thing.

Cages are made for the particular bird so if you have Macaws you should get the cage double welded and no Hy is going to pop a weld on these cages. They build them solid.

 

[MacawLoverOf3]

I have hard good things about Bennett cages in the past but never seen one in person but would have bought one if the owner did not end up selling it to his ex. I know someone that has 2 of their travel cages and she is happy with them.

http://www.bennettimps.com/

 

[Kiwibird]

When I got Donovan he came with an Animal Environments cage. Nice cage but when it was dismantled the PLASTIC connecters holding the top of the cage on the side broke. I figured that would not be an issue until I tried ordering more from the company. What a nightmare. After 9 months I finally got some. I know of one lady who also has the Luxor model and finally ended up welding the thing together.

Are these the cages that kind of "snap" together with little plastic connector "pegs"? Kind of a little elongated rectangle of plastic that fits in a hole on each piece your connecting (wouldn't show at all when assembled), and thats how the cage is held together? If so, my parents got their G2 one of those kind of "snap-together" cages at one point. He managed to PRY the top up off the plastic connectors enough to break one and be able to squeeze out and escape. They had to padlock it shut on all sides until they could replace it. And just imagine if that heavy top section had fallen on his neck as he was dismantling his "bird proof" cage! Absolutely unacceptable and UNSAFE cage design. A G2 isn't very big or strong either compared to a macaw! I don't remember the brand (this was a long time ago), but IF this company is the one who makes the cages that can be dismantled by a smart bird, stay away! I'm sure *some* birds would never dream up such a thing as prying the top off their cage, but theres plenty of very smart, very determined birds out there.

There is a lady who did an in-depth review of all the cages and for the Featherland cages she said one person ended up cutting through a bar and found that it was hollow and not solid. This lady contacted the company and was told they were solid. (Where is an icon scratching it's head, could not find one so you need to use your imagination.) A lot of people report having sharp edges but someone else ended up sanding those down and she was ok with it then. A lot of people also reported a lot of shipping damage on the cages too.

I'm looking at the 2436 for my amazon. Sharp edges I can deal with and shipping damages could happen with any item. I'm wondering why exactly hollow bars are a bad thing? Makes it sound as though the cage would be lighter to move. I mean, do hollow bars pose a safety concern somehow? My amazon doesn't "bend" bars (or attempt to bend bars), so would this only be of concern for a macaw owner who's bird was capable/willing to bend bars or something I'm missing?

 

[MacawLoverOf3]

When I got Donovan he came with an Animal Environments cage. Nice cage but when it was dismantled the PLASTIC connecters holding the top of the cage on the side broke. I figured that would not be an issue until I tried ordering more from the company. What a nightmare. After 9 months I finally got some. I know of one lady who also has the Luxor model and finally ended up welding the thing together.

Are these the cages that kind of "snap" together with little plastic connector "pegs"? Kind of a little elongated rectangle of plastic that fits in a hole on each piece your connecting (wouldn't show at all when assembled), and thats how the cage is held together? If so, my parents got their G2 one of those kind of "snap-together" cages at one point. He managed to PRY the top up off the plastic connectors enough to break one and be able to squeeze out and escape. They had to padlock it shut on all sides until they could replace it. And just imagine if that heavy top section had fallen on his neck as he was dismantling his "bird proof" cage! Absolutely unacceptable and UNSAFE cage design. A G2 isn't very big or strong either compared to a macaw! I don't remember the brand (this was a long time ago), but IF this company is the one who makes the cages that can be dismantled by a smart bird, stay away! I'm sure *some* birds would never dream up such a thing as prying the top off their cage, but theres plenty of very smart, very determined birds out there.

Good chance that it the same company. Go to the web site and see if it is.

This company also has a cage on the outside that holds the dish bowl thing. I HATE that setup. A friend had that cage and I always had a difficult time dealing with it. I also think that is why Donovan has never take a bath in his bowl in the 1.5 yrs I have had him, just could not get his 'little' body in there to do a bath. Donovan will now only get his toes wet in an open bowl.

There is a lady who did an in-depth review of all the cages and for the Featherland cages she said one person ended up cutting through a bar and found that it was hollow and not solid. This lady contacted the company and was told they were solid. (Where is an icon scratching it's head, could not find one so you need to use your imagination.) A lot of people report having sharp edges but someone else ended up sanding those down and she was ok with it then. A lot of people also reported a lot of shipping damage on the cages too.

I'm looking at the 2436 for my amazon. Sharp edges I can deal with and shipping damages could happen with any item. I'm wondering why exactly hollow bars are a bad thing? Makes it sound as though the cage would be lighter to move. I mean, do hollow bars pose a safety concern somehow? My amazon doesn't "bend" bars (or attempt to bend bars), so would this only be of concern for a macaw owner who's bird was capable/willing to bend bars or something I'm missing?

Not sure about the hollow bowls except the company is NOT selling you what they are advertising so you wonder what else they might be lying about.

 

[Kiwibird]

A few cage brands now have the external feeders and you can also buy them "after market" too. I kind of like the idea personally . Kiwi takes a dish bath every day (that is in addition to his daily shower). He gets the very top of his head wet and soaks a 10' radius around his cage. It's very annoying because he does get showers daily and outdoor baths in the summer.

Having worked in retail before, some of the misinformation about products that I heard come out of my well intentioned coworkers mouths was.....astonishing to say the least. Whomever this lady talked to probably had no clue if the bars were hollow or solid and just wanted to sound like the knew what they were talking about. Those 'type' of people are out there.... I'm just concerned about safety concerns...