Bath time

My B&G does not want to take a bath. I put him in the bath tub with a couple inches of luke warm water and she fought it all the way. . he did not even try to bathe so I kept rinsing him with the standing water and he screamed the whole time. He was so happy and loving after he got dry. His behavior is so much improved since his bath, but I want him to like it and to do it on his own. Any suggestions?

You can go about this a few ways. For one, you can get a spray bottle and with warm water and lightly spray the bird. Some birds don't like baths but like the misting. If he likes the bottle idea then he may like showers too. A lot of people make or buy perches or just put their bird on their shoulder(i probably wouldn't do this if it's the first time, you never know which body part he may 'peck' if you get what I'm saying)

You can also fill the tub or if you have a big enough tray or something to fill up like an inch or so high and let him investigate on his own. It often just takes time and patience.

Also you can try doing it everyday until he eventually likes it. Although that may have some controversy over that.

Even if you just make the water source like filling the tub with very very shallow(like an inch or two high) and having it there for him. He may not decide he want to go in it right away, or even the 2nd or 3rd day but maybe after a week or so he may decide it's not so scary after all. If he even just steps around in it on his own that's a big step and the first steps in working his way to getting used to bathing/showering. Also most birds don't generally like being soaked to the bone with water(unless maybe in the shower) they just like a little splash here and there. Either way the bottom line is patience.

Good luck.

I think Meghan covered it pretty well I think there is one point to reiterate.

A tub is a pretty uncomfortable place for a bird even if there is no water. There is nothing to hold on to - imagine being dropped in the middle of the pacific for your bath.

I bowl of water is much easier - look particularly for a bowl that has near vertical sides that he can perch on. He can perch on the bowl and take a dip when he is ready. This is after all much closer to how birds bathe themselves in nature.


I also second the misting. Most of Auggie's baths are just from a misting bottle, which will still get him completely soaked. Occasionally he does use bowl too.

I also think a tub can be quite intimidating but B&G macaws are quite large birds and unless you have a very large bowl(or maybe a turkey pan thing?) it won't be big enough! lol However a reasonably sized bowl may be a good start to allow your bird to play around and splash a bit. But yea, if you have a conure or similar sized bird or smaller then yes a bowl would be perfect. For larger birds though my only suggestion i can think of is using a tub or if you have another thing that can hold water and is reasonably sized for your bird then feel free to try that too.

Auggie's Dad said:

I think Meghan covered it pretty well I think there is one point to reiterate.

A tub is a pretty uncomfortable place for a bird even if there is no water. There is nothing to hold on to - imagine being dropped in the middle of the pacific for your bath.

I bowl of water is much easier - look particularly for a bowl that has near vertical sides that he can perch on. He can perch on the bowl and take a dip when he is ready. This is after all much closer to how birds bathe themselves in nature.


I also second the misting. Most of Auggie's baths are just from a misting bottle, which will still get him completely soaked. Occasionally he does use bowl too.

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Try letting him(?) stand on the shower door or rod to ease him into the idea of getting wet. Both of ours love this & if they're in the mood they'll get right into it. Our GW will usually hop right on my shoulder & jam herself under the showerhead - loves the shower!

BTW - Re misting, oddly the shower-loving GW hates it & the B&G loves it. Parrots can be odd.

I had bird bath problems too. My birdie hated and I do mean hated the misting from a bottle and just drank any water in a bowl. I got a very nice shower perch at windy city. Very slowly got birdie used to the bathtub, shower curtain and the sound of running water. Then I tried the full blown shower with me and her. The perch is not directly under the water so birdie got on my finger and I slowly got her into the falling water and she loved it and got soaked. After she dried. her feathers were so very shiny. I guess everyone's bird is different but I vote for whatever you do to be slow. Good luck.

for the large birds, at the rescue. we use plastic trash can lids. they are wide, but not deep. plus with the width, they are difficult to tip over. even a large macaw can't move it.