Cockatiels are full of love...and DUST!

parrotqueen · Jan 14, 2010

Hi everyone!

I am having some issues with my two little boys, and I need help fast!
My boys are both cockatiels, and everybody here probably knows that they generate a lot of dust. I read up before purchasing them, and I already knew that they were going to be messy, and excessively dusty. Even having that known, I was never prepared for how excessive it really is. It's become a huge problem for my mother, who's eyes are watering and nose is running. I've been dusting regularly every day, in every nook and cranny. My brother is also vacuuming once a day, yet my Mom and Dad are still suffering, and have warned me about considering a new home for them. Any advice on reducing dust???

-Samantha

TexDot33 · Jan 14, 2010

I am not sure, but it is quite possible that frequent baths may help the situation ... and besides, I haven't yet met a parrot who wouldn't like a bath every now and then ... here's what you can try ...

take your average, ordinary dinner plate and put it in the sink (make sure that you do not plug the drain) ... and run some water into the plate and let your 'teils bathe ... I think you will find that you well help with SOME of the dust issues, not all of them .... but, by the sounds of things, you need to start somewhere.

You will probably have to attempt this several times before your birds take to it ... and you may have to change the tempurature of the water .... start with fairly cool water (no one heats the rain, right) and go from there ...

Good Luck.

parrotqueen · Jan 14, 2010

Thanks so much for the timely response.

I suppose I forgot to say this in my first post (I was avoiding rambling on too much), but I already bathe them regularly. I do it by spray bottle, but I could certainly try the plate idea as well. Sounds like they would get soaked up pretty well that way. Any other suggestions?

Auggie's Dad · Jan 14, 2010

HEPA air filters work wonders. Have you tried any?

parrotqueen · Jan 14, 2010

Thank you so much for the help, my Mom and I certainly have talked about using a filter. The only problem being that we're moving soon, so we'd have to wait awhile. I'll try it out when the time comes, but we still have about maybe two or three weeks before we can start looking for one. Thanks again!

Are there any other tips?

parrotqueen · Jan 15, 2010

Hey Tex, I was thinking about your suggestion this morning, and the more I thought about it, I remembered how my Cockatiels are afraid of almost everything. One of the brothers, named Pineapple, would probably fly away if I dare show him the faucet running on the plate. On the other hand, I have the less skittish one, named Sunshine (fits him well). He'd gladly try it out, if I gave him some time. So, do you think there's a pretty easy way to get him well acquainted with the running faucet?

Spiritbird · Jan 15, 2010

When it comes to Sunshines fear issues go slow. A slow, gentle exposure to whatever is frightening the bird will usually bring them around. Play with water yourself in front of Sunshine and let her see the other birds getting a bath. They do learn very easily from eachother. With parrots dust is a fact of life that will be ongoing.

parrotqueen · Feb 16, 2010

I figured out why my birdies are so dusty. Turns out, Sunshine has more dust than Pineapple. As I started observing them closer, I figured out that Pineapple is being really bossy to Sunshine! He never lets Sunshine preen in the cage, he always bites Sunshine if he even begins to preen. Very strange pattern indeed, but I'm glad I found it. Now I let Sunshine preen on my finger, so he can get all of his dust out. Then I dust the entire room, and problem solved. My mother's eyes don't water anymore, and her nose stopped running. We also moved into a new hom two weeks ago, and we got to completely start over with the dust situation. My mom and I also suspect that there might have been a mold problem that was wreaking havoc in the last house as well. Glad we're out of there!

antoinette · Feb 16, 2010

So glad the problem has been solved, whoever thought one would not let the other preen......
Who is the bossy one The male OR the female LoL
Enjoy your new home, and your birdie time
Take care, and that of our feathered friends !!!!

parrotqueen · Feb 26, 2010

Actually, they're both boys. I know that sunshine may seem like a kind of girly name for a boy, but it just fits his personality so well!

Pineapple is the bossy one. He's overprotective of his brother, yet he is so bossy to him. He does not allow any scary foreign objects near Sunshine, yet he won't even let him preen. What a wierd relationship!

birdcrazy · Feb 26, 2010

this is the air filter i use: Honeywell Tower Air Purifier with Permanent Filter : Target

it cuts down dramatically and helps the room to stay fresh. Also frequent baths and dusting the room (with no spray or spraying sparely on a rag outside the room then taking it in) should help as other's have mentioned. My room pretty much stays dusty, but then I'm not as vigilent as I should be about dusting. Another option is to research outside caging options for during the day when it is nice weather out. My Misty has a cage outside and she LOVES it.

Cockatiels are full of love...and DUST!

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