bath time?

MetroidGirl

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okay so i got Arcee a shower perch, and she loves it. she likes taking baths and sitting in the shower......
but how warm should the water be, or should it be warm at all? how can i make her bath time more enjoyable? how often should she get a bath?
and btw, i found this bath spray for her that deodorizes, but on the back it says it gets the cigarette smoke out of their feathers.....
i thought cigarette smoke could kill them?? shouldnt it warn against smoking around your bird?
 

TexDot33

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Right now, Hamlet is going through a major moult (poor girl looks like a porcupine) she is getting a complete soaking daily to help with pin feathers ... Mac, well, Mac takes a bath every three days or so in his water dish, and gets a light misting everyday in the shower ... Mine go into the shower everyday with me, and even if they don't get wet, the steam is good for their skin.

As for the temperature, I just usually set the temp to how I like it and if they want to get wet, well the mist is cool and if Hamlet is getting soaked I turn it down to luke warm ... you might want to let Arcee decide on how warm she wants ... Hamlet likes to bathe in warm water, Mac in ice cold ... As long as the water is warm (not like hot-hot, but warm) then she should be fine.
 

Auggie's Dad

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Cigarette smoke in the feathers?! Yes smoke can kill them quite easily, in fact anything that has a odor or "fragrance" has potential to be quite dangerous to them. Compared to the rest of the animal kingdom our noses hardly function, if we can smell it there is quite a bit of it in the air. Avian lungs (which are very different from ours) can't handle much.

So no smoke around the birds. Personally I've never heard of spraying birds with anything but water. This may be my ignorance on the subject, but I'd look closely at anything other than water that gets misted or sprayed around her.

Unfortunately there are many companies that market products for pets that are in fact very dangerous for them. Again this may be my ignorance on bird bathing as what you have for her may be great, but ask around.
 
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Auggie's Dad

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By the way, I've got Auggie down to a pack a day.... ;)

But me, I'm still addicted to my image editor.
 

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zarafia

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I have used Natra-pet's Bird bath since 1990, sometimes every day during the show season and I like it quite a bit, but I usually dilute it at least halfway. For cockatoos I dilute it to two parts water to one part bird bath.
I don't think that it says anything about ciggarette smoke anywhere on the bottle:).
When you think about birds breathing keep in mind that unlike us who breathe in a breath and then breathe out the same breath, birds breathe in a breath and then breathe in three more breathes before exhaling that first breath. I hope I wrote that clearly. A bird cyclet air all throughout its body via airsacs. So anything in the air permeates their entire body so to speak.
 
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MetroidGirl

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ha ha well don't let Auggie try the "sauce". you may never get him back! too cute. the spray i got for her is mostly water, its just got some deodorizing stuff in it. my friend has used it on her Senegal for about three years, she was the one who referred me. but I'll look into it more, you're right, i don't want to end up hurting her in the long run.
 

Auggie's Dad

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We started calling him Joey for a while.... He's part marsupial.

Loves the shirts. I just wish I had one that didn't have dozens of holes chewed in it. Someone saw one of my T-shirts with avian air-conditioning in it the other day. They said I should get a new shirt. I said "this IS a new shirt"...

Sounds like I'm over-ruled on the spray which is good to hear. I learned something new, it happens from time to time.
 
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MetroidGirl

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and to dry her off other than a towel should i just let her air dry? i know some dryers have teflon in them, so i don't want to risk that, but she seems to shiver after were done with bath time, i don't want her to be uncomfortable.....
 

TexDot33

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... but she seems to shiver after were done with bath time, i don't want her to be uncomfortable.....

Completely normal. Birds don't shiver because they are cold, they shiver after a bath to expand down and body feathers which help them dry off faster. As long as the room is in a 'normal' temperature range then Arcee should be comfortable.

:50:
 
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MetroidGirl

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okay good. lol i'm glad i asked, cuz i almost went out to petco and bought her one of those birdie robes.......
 
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MetroidGirl

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haha yeah, she probably would too. but they ARE super cute, but i'm not paying twenty bucks for one.
 

TexDot33

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Birdie robes ... are you kidding me ... for $20 it's not worth the hassle of trying to put it on them ... man, they really will try to sell anything.
 

Alsquared

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Glad this topic came up, hubby asked about this today.

Our avian vet said not to soak our baby B&G macaw (6 mos.) to the skin, as it's quite cold outside. But our house is set at 72, and in the bathroom where we'd bathe her, it's probably 78-80 (why, I dunno, ask the moron who built this place). She's molting and I'd like to help her deal w/the pin feathers. He said to mist her w/a water bottle in her cage, but I think she'd just get more chilled that way. Any ideas?

Also, I don't think she's been bathed before. Any tips on introducing the concept of "rain"? I've shown her the kitchen faucet running, and she seems to be a little weirded out by it, but fascinated too, and I swear - after the 2nd time I told her - she repeated "Water!"
 

TexDot33

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Dec 26, 2006
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15 year-old Sun Conure: Hamlet &
14 year-old Green-Cheeked Conure: Mac
Our avian vet said not to soak our baby B&G macaw (6 mos.) to the skin, as it's quite cold outside. But our house is set at 72, and in the bathroom where we'd bathe her, it's probably 78-80 (why, I dunno, ask the moron who built this place). She's molting and I'd like to help her deal w/the pin feathers.

I would never argue with an Avian vet, but unless you aren't going to take her outside until she is completely dry I don't see the issue with soaking her to the skin, especially if there are lots of nasty pins ... As long as the room you are going to be in after the soaking is warm enough I don't see the harm ... I might ask for an elaboration on this next time you see your AV.

As for helping with pins, really easy ... as long as they are not blood feathers (everyone knows the difference right? Touch a blood feather and there is a good chance you will get bit) you take the pin feather between your pointer finger and thumb and gently roll it back and forth and crack it open. With big old Macs you should be able to do this for HOURS and they will just sit there, their eyes rolled back in their heads, their head feathers fluffed up, beak partially opened ~ just in absolute heaven! You will be in trouble when you stop ~ but these sessions are the best part of moulting season. They are a great chance to bond, and your bird will absolutely love it! I love being able to do this with Hamlet, Mac's pins are just too small for me to get too! Try it out and see how much your baby loves it!
 
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MetroidGirl

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Also, I don't think she's been bathed before. Any tips on introducing the concept of "rain"? I've shown her the kitchen faucet running, and she seems to be a little weirded out by it, but fascinated too, and I swear - after the 2nd time I told her - she repeated "Water!"

what i did for Arcee because even though i was told she likes showers, i dont think she had many, was i got her a perch that has suction cups on it and i put it in our shower. its out of the way of the stream of the shower but it lets her get use to seeing me get all wet. after a while i got her off the perch and let her splash around in the bottom next to my feet, and then i held her on my hand underneath the stream to really soak her. we have one of those 12 mode shower heads, and so i use the misting stream so that its not shooting at her. i get her really soaked then i put her back on the perch and finish doin my thing.
the suction cup perch is really great cuz after i'm done in the shower i put it on the mirror while i brush my hair ( i never dry my hair around her) and my teeth and get ready for bed, she loves it.


btw, don't give me credit for that idea, i was just as lost as you are about bath time until someone on here gave me the idea. but its really worked for me, maybe you too?


also, i do not know the difference between blood feathers and pin feathers, what is it?
 

TexDot33

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Dec 26, 2006
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14 year-old Green-Cheeked Conure: Mac
... i do not know the difference between blood feathers and pin feathers, what is it?

Well, I am glad you asked (gives me a chance to spread some knowledge this morning).

Ok, so feathers grow in in a protective shell (kinda pointy, and uncomfortable) that is made out of keratin (the same stuff as our fingernails) and the keratin protects the developing feather, which contains a vein that runs up the shaft of the feather (hence called a blood feather) supplying that feather with nutrients. As that feather develops completely the vein stops supplying blood/nutrients to that new feather. With the decreased supply of blood the keratin starts to deteriorate and can be broken open without any pain to our birds (now a pin feather).

The easiest way to tell a pin feather is that the keratin is cracked, half the feather is already unraveled and protruding. These are the ones you can break up easily. Blood feathers are usually completely encased in the keratin and, if you look very carefully and very closely, you can see the black vein running right up the middle of it ...

I will see if I can get some pictures for reference ... probably from a Greenwing macaw that way we can really see them ... will have to wait until Friday though, so if anyone here has any pictures feel free to post them before that!

:50:
 

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