Getting the correct Bird Aviary
A bird aviary is the most important piece of equipment you’ll need to purchase for your new bird. A suitable aviary can assist in keeping your bird safe and healthy. There are a lot of bird aviaries on the market, which can make it difficult for the the new bird keeper.. How does the bird owner select the right one?
First of all, study the species of bird you are intending to keep. If you are housing any type of parakeet, cockatiel or some other long tailed bird species, you’ll need a long aviary so that your bird can get enough exercise. Preferably, the bird aviary will be long enough for the bird to fly comfortably from one side to the other. A bird with a heavyset body, such as a lovebird or a Sengal parrot will get appropriate exercise climbing throughout the aviary. It is best for these birds to be in a taller aviary than it is wide.
You should then consider the size of the aviary. Generally you should plan to purchase the biggest aviary you can afford for your bird, a newly weaned handfed baby bird may feel lost and terrified in a large aviary. Some of the younger birds could have trouble locating their food and water bowls. If it is affordable using a smaller bird aviary for your baby bird’s first few months and then changing to a bigger aviary when it is older would be a good idea.
Keep in mind when you’re choosing your bird’s aviary the spacing between the aviary bars. A great looking bird aviary is not very effective if your bird can fit through the bars! When considering using an aviary with wire mesh, you should compare the size of the hole in the mesh with the size of your bird’s head prior to making your choice. When the bird aviary is built with one inch mesh it is going to allow for a cockatiel to put his head through. It has been know for cockatiels to instead of taking their heas out through the same hole, to bend their neck into ‘U’ shape and put it into another hole.
After you have determined the aviary size and bar spacing, you chould look at a few other facets of bird aviary design. Inspect the cage tray. When the time comes to clean it, is there a grate in the aviary to prevent the bird from escaping? Is the tray deep enough to catch most of the mess your bird makes? If your aviary has a deep tray but no cage apron then you may get a lot of seed hulls and feathers on the cage floor. You can place the aviary in a plastic apron base or cover the bottom with a cloth apron but an in built metal apron is a better choice.
To end with, don’t forget to have a look at the aviary cups. You should be able to access the cups without having to enter through the main door of your bird aviary. If you are buying a bird aviary for a larger bird, the cups should actually bolt to the aviary unless you want to spend every morning and afternoon for the next 50 years reaching for cups that your bird has flung onto the bottom of the bird aviary
If you a replacing a bird aviary for an older parrot type bird, some owners have told me it’s crucial to get a bird cage of the same colour. They believe that a bird that is familiar with a white painted aviary, will not be happy with a metal cloured one.
