Perches

Aavogaro · Feb 22, 2020

Hi all. So while we wait for Paco to join our family I am making sure I am prepared with the additions I feel he needs in his life. In my opinion I feel he needs additional perches, but perhaps I am incorrect. He currently has one natural wood perch across the width of his cage and a large swing with a natural wood base part. That doesn’t seem like enough to me. I would like to add a rope perch and a rough perch inside the cage. Does that sound adequate or like too much based on Grey behavior? I also plan on slowly introducing a foraging toy and a preening toy. He currently has 2 bells and a wood block chew toy. I have always outfitted my cages with a variety of toys and perches but right now all my fids are small and spritely. (I also may be a closet bird toy addict). Any recommendations/suggestions welcome. Cage is apx 36x24 flat top. Thanks!

noodles123 · Feb 23, 2020

Rope perches make me nervous for in-cage use (just because birds can get tangled in them and ingest the rope...BUT I have one for Noodles that she can use when she is out/supervised. Lots of people have rope perches-- I just don't like the idea of leaving her alone with one while I am at work etc.

A single natural wood perch doesn't seem like enough. Pictures might help.

Pumice perches are often recommended (something like sweet-feet brand etc).

saxguy64 · Feb 23, 2020

Rope perches are definitely a hit or miss, preference kind of thing. I have them for both of my birds. They seem to love them, and neither of them ever chew or pick at them, so not an issue for us. I do watch closely for any signs of it though, and would toss them if they started chewing on them. They do have a variety of other perches as well, skinny, thick, different woods, different shape and textured cement ones, and lots of different types of toys. A busy bird is a happy bird

Introducing new things to a grey can sometimes be a challenge though. Some adapt more quickly than others, so just move at his pace.

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SailBoat · Feb 23, 2020

Hmmm, Perches...
- A high sleeping perch.
- Upper mid-level perch for naps or hanging out.
- Food and Water perches
- Access perch(s) for moving around.
- A front door perch, sized to allow the Parrot to ride the perch in and out of the cage while opening or closing the door.

Portable Perch: This type of perch can be used to move the Parrot around the house or to set in different areas depending on where the Sunshine is coming in.

Tests:
- Your Parrot needs to be able to stretch to full open its wings, commonly along the longest perch.
- Your Parrot can easily more around the cage without fighting the hangings and perch placement.

bill_e · Feb 23, 2020

I have rope perches both in an out of the cage and I buy them in pairs. Cleaning is easy as I just swap them out and toss in the washing machine.,

Scott · Feb 23, 2020

Greys often have aversion to change, so I'd consider adding what you feel is necessary as he's going to have a big adjustment with a new home. (might as well go for broke!)

Several of my flock love rope perches; the caveat is to monitor and remove if you suspect fiber ingestion.

Aavogaro · Feb 23, 2020

noodles123 said:
Rope perches make me nervous for in-cage use (just because birds can get tangled in them and ingest the rope...BUT I have one for Noodles that she can use when she is out/supervised. Lots of people have rope perches-- I just don't like the idea of leaving her alone with one while I am at work etc.

A single natural wood perch doesn't seem like enough. Pictures might help.

Pumice perches are often recommended (something like sweet-feet brand etc).

Here’s a picture of his current cage setup. Might have to zoom in and scroll around to get a good idea of what we’re working with. In my opinion it’s pretty minimal.

Aavogaro · Feb 23, 2020

SailBoat said:
Hmmm, Perches...
- A high sleeping perch.
- Upper mid-level perch for naps or hanging out.
- Food and Water perches
- Access perch(s) for moving around.
- A front door perch, sized to allow the Parrot to ride the perch in and out of the cage while opening or closing the door.

Portable Perch: This type of perch can be used to move the Parrot around the house or to set in different areas depending on where the Sunshine is coming in.

Tests:
- Your Parrot needs to be able to stretch to full open its wings, commonly along the longest perch.
- Your Parrot can easily more around the cage without fighting the hangings and perch placement.

Thank you SailBoat. Hadn’t thought about the front door perch. Love that.

I just came across this cage on my local Facebook for sale site. It’s exactly the size of the space I have. It’s 36x24x60. I liked the idea of creating a play top on top of the existing cage which I couldn’t really do with this cage, but this one looks so open and spacious. It is also low to the ground which might frighten him. If I got a new cage for him my plan would be to keep the 2 cages side by side and let him get used to the new one on his own terms.

SailBoat · Feb 23, 2020

Be careful regarding the diameter of the perches. Narrow diameter perches are problematic as it forces the pads on the bottom of the foot (claw) to carry more weight in the upper front pads, which can result in their failure. See the Amazon Forum and the Sticky near the top that is titled: I Love Amazons - ... On page one is a list of segments. Look for the segment titled: Getting to the Food of the Problem, which speaks to perch size. Note near all of the I Love Amazons - ... Thread can have the word Parrot put in place of Amazon. Note: That segment that speaks to Diet is based around the needs of New World Parrots with minor adjustments.

Enjoy!

SailBoat · Feb 23, 2020

Aavogaro said:
SailBoat said:

Hmmm, Perches...
- A high sleeping perch.
- Upper mid-level perch for naps or hanging out.
- Food and Water perches
- Access perch(s) for moving around.
- A front door perch, sized to allow the Parrot to ride the perch in and out of the cage while opening or closing the door.

Portable Perch: This type of perch can be used to move the Parrot around the house or to set in different areas depending on where the Sunshine is coming in.

Tests:
- Your Parrot needs to be able to stretch to full open its wings, commonly along the longest perch.
- Your Parrot can easily more around the cage without fighting the hangings and perch placement.[/quote

Thank you SailBoat. Hadn’t thought about the front door perch. Love that.

I just came across this cage on my local Facebook for sale site. It’s exactly the size of the space I have. It’s 36x24x60. I liked the idea of creating a play top on top of the existing cage which I couldn’t really do with this cage, but this one looks so open and spacious. It is also low to the ground which might frighten him. If I got a new cage for him my plan would be to keep the 2 cages side by side and let him get used to the new one on his own terms.

Click to expand...

I prefer the play top style as it provides additional area for 'playing' and it is an excellent landing place for flighted Parrots.

FYI: Near all parrots will stay in the upper two thirds of any cage. That stated, most Parrots will wander (walk) about and will find the lower cage style (common) allows them to easily climb onto the cage...

Aavogaro · Feb 23, 2020

SailBoat said:
Aavogaro said:

SailBoat said:

Hmmm, Perches...

FYI: Near all parrots will stay in the upper two thirds of any cage. That stated, most Parrots will wander (walk) about and will find the lower cage style (common) allows them to easily climb onto the cage...

Click to expand...

Well that is great info because this cage is 2 feet taller on the interior than his existing cage which means his useable space to n this one would be the total size of his existing therefore automatically giving him more room. I went ahead and committed to buying the cage. I figure if it doesn’t work out I can resell it. But it’s the best price for the largest high quality cage I have the space for. And I have decided to allow my creative juices to flow to design a play top we can make and attach to the top of this cage as well since it’s only 5’ high. Now will be the test to see how long it takes him to decide he likes the new cage so I can have just one inside my home.

My plan: put them side by side with toys, food and perches in both (going to take an existing toy or two and locate it inside the new cage), and just allow him to explore inside and out of both cages simultaneously whenever he is out. I guess when he comfortably and willingly goes inside and spends time in the new cage on several occasions I can make the switch. I’ll keep the old cage on hand but out of sight for a little while just in case. Oh how I can’t wait for this sweet guy to join our family!!!!!

Click to expand...

saxguy64 · Feb 24, 2020

I totally agree with your plan. I did exactly the same thing with Baxter when her new cage arrived. She's a YNA, not a grey, so hard to say how long it will take, but my situation was a total surprise for me. Cage was assembled and scrubbed down while she watched one evening. Next day I moved one of her perches and a few of her familiar toys in. That evening while she was hanging out with me, I walked over to the new digs to see how she reacted, watching for any signs of stress or fear. She reached out for it, climbed on/around/in, and never went back to the old cage. Done! Just like that. I couldn't believe it! The new one is much bigger, so I've been slowly adding more toys for her, but it's her home and she makes that VERY CLEAR when Tucker tries to get anywhere near it.

Many changes ahead for your new one. Some may go smoother than others, but hopefully it won't be too stressful overall. Be prepared for a slow transition, but allow things to happen at his pace if he's ready. Keep us posted!

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Aavogaro · Feb 24, 2020

Ok y’all...... I bought the second hand cage and couldn’t be more excited. It’s a California Cage (I suspected but wasn’t sure), which are my favorite cages ever, and while he left it dirty it’s in great shape for a 15-20 year old cage. I put a bunch of elbow grease into cleaning it and doused it inside and out in a diluted bleach solution and left it in the sun to dry and then rinsed it. The perches that came with it are awesome and have also been cleaned and disinfected. It’s so big and open feeling! I love it! I hope Paco likes it too and adjusts to it quickly so we can make the switch.

bigfellasdad · Feb 25, 2020

SailBoat said:
Hmmm, Perches...
- A high sleeping perch.
- Upper mid-level perch for naps or hanging out.
- Food and Water perches
- Access perch(s) for moving around.
- A front door perch, sized to allow the Parrot to ride the perch in and out of the cage while opening or closing the door.

Portable Perch: This type of perch can be used to move the Parrot around the house or to set in different areas depending on where the Sunshine is coming in.

This

Also the portable perch can be used by other people who are a little nervous of the bird, my son and GF use the portable perch to move Enzo around if im not around.

the only rope perch I use in Enzo's cage is a spiral one with a metal core, Enzo likes this one a lot.

Perches

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