a safe home

hi.

when i get a bird i'm obviously going to let it wander around my place a lot of the time.
i'm wondering what things should i look out for as far as keeping the home safe for a bird? making the place bird friendly?

are framed, hanging pictures a no-no? i just imagine they would like to try and perch themselves on the top of the frame?

thanks.

Make sure all open water (toilets, sinks, tubs, etc) are closed or drained. Put the curtains up so the bird doesn't fly into the window, make sure all plug outlets are secure. No peeling paint. Watch out for electrical cords. Make sure there's no tight places your bird might push itself into and won't be able to get out. Have a play gyms in some rooms so your bird can go there if it feels insecure. Make sure all hazardous materials are closed or put away (cleaning materials, medicines, etc). And make sure all plants in your house are not toxic if you have any. framing pictures should be okay as long as it's secure and won't fall or topple if the bird's on top of it.

Good advice from Ap

Also look out for gaps behind cupboards that your bird can fall down and become trapped.

Hanging pictures are okay as long as they are secure. My birds occasionally land on them.

ap, when you say put the curtains up, that doesn't make the bird think the window is a hole in the wall, and they try to fly right on out?

spaced said:

ap, when you say put the curtains up, that doesn't make the bird think the window is a hole in the wall, and they try to fly right on out?

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LOl, yes, that's what I meant to say. Make sure the windows and mirrors (if any) are covered

Not all windows in my place are covered. A good way to let them understand that they are solid is to let them touch it with their beak. Do this before they learn the hard way. My birds both know where all the windows are now and never go near them. Mirrors seem to be a little harder to teach

I think most important is supervision. Shadow was climbing around on a carry cage I had underneath her cage one day, she slipped and her head got caught in the gap between the legs - had I not been there it would have ended in her hanging to death - see photo. I now have packing tape around all the legs.

good move on the packing tape Mel. I always worry about cages that have bits that finish in a wedge. Toes, legs and necks can all get stuck. I turned down many great cages when choosing for this fear alone.

Aussie Ben said:

good move on the packing tape Mel. I always worry about cages that have bits that finish in a wedge. Toes, legs and necks can all get stuck. I turned down many great cages when choosing for this fear alone.

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It was definately something I looked at when buying Chickas cage. A big lesson learnt

Mel said:

Aussie Ben said:

good move on the packing tape Mel. I always worry about cages that have bits that finish in a wedge. Toes, legs and necks can all get stuck. I turned down many great cages when choosing for this fear alone.

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It was definately something I looked at when buying Chickas cage. A big lesson learnt

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Its funny, I actually almost bought a cage with legs exactly like that. I never saw the legs as a potential hazard though, only the cage bars. Lesson learnt for me too.

Mel said:

I think most important is supervision. Shadow was climbing around on a carry cage I had underneath her cage one day, she slipped and her head got caught in the gap between the legs - had I not been there it would have ended in her hanging to death - see photo. I now have packing tape around all the legs.
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OMG we have to think of everything don't we?

I think most of the safety issues are covered here. Now for a sanity list - this is from personal experience - when these things happened, the thought of roasted cockatoo/macaw flitted across my mind for a instant (j/k but still...):

Store all breakable items that you're attached to. This is much easier than you bird knocking it off a shelf, chewing it to peices or pooping on it.

See about getting some sort of plastic covering/protector for your cupboard/cabinet doors and edges, entertainment center edges, top of TV, etc. If there's enough room for their little feet to hold on to, they'll perch there.

Potty train or you're going to spend a lot of time wiping up poop...from everywhere.

Think about slipcovers or some sort of cover for the back of your furniture. Seams in fabric are incredibly intersting and with just a little work, those beaks can open them up or tear a hole in upholstery.

PUT REMOTE CONTROLS AWAY! Buttons are soooooooooo much fun.

Check your home for anything toxic daily. Not a top-to-bottom inspection, but a quick once-over. It's amazing how easy it is to leave that pencil on the table.

Have things available and close by that your parrot is allowed to chew on. It sucks telling them no all the time. You both get tired of it.

All that said, it kind of becomes second nature - like having a baby around. I can't imagine leaving our birds in their cages if we're home, so we do our best to make it safe and happy for them.

great points, thanks. i hadn't thought about a bird perching on my home theatre components or the telly. with any lounge chairs i presume chucking a sheet over them is kinda what you mean?

one thing i'm not sure how to deal with are all the cables at the back of the pc, and also the dvd player, tv, receiver, etc. there are so many of them and i can't push all the stuff right up to the wall, there will always be some amount of gap.

i understand what you mean about the remotes too. over the yrs some of my rats have chewed the odd button or two.

obviously a new bird is going to poo on things which i'm not too worried about[i think?], except on 3 items.
my dvd player, tv, and amp, all have a kind of grill[a load of little holes] at the top of them to help the units not to overheat.

i don't have an entertainment unit to slide them into, so they are completely in the open. i'm worried that at some stage the bird will land on them and do the business right down those little holes. needless to say that bird poo wouldn't be great for any of them.

the only thing i can think of doing is to lay something like a tea towel over the top of each of them, but then i'd be worried that they could indeed overheat.
i don't think there is any other solution?

You will need to teach your bird to not land on those items. If he ever does, move him right away, let him know he is not allowed on those places. Give him lots of attention when he lands in places that are okay.

You could also potty train, which would teach your bird only to poop in certain places.

You will figure out pretty quick how to 'guide' where your bird goes, but they do have mids of their own sometimes .

Also, like you say, prob not best to cover those things with towels as you may risk overheat or a fire.

spaced said:

one thing i'm not sure how to deal with are all the cables at the back of the pc, and also the dvd player, tv, receiver, etc. there are so many of them and i can't push all the stuff right up to the wall, there will always be some amount of gap.

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We got some thin plastic "conduit" material that is made to cover cable bundles. It looks like the bendy part of a bendy straw but about 1/2" in diameter and slit on one side.

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I am sorry I cannot really help you on making a house safe for a bird because my birds are in their own room but I have a couple of comments to make to the very good points made by previous posters:

1. I've never had a single problem with birds crashing into windows. The new ones do it once or twice when they are first let out after quarantine but they learn very fast. I think light makes the difference (I have very good quality full spectrum lights in two ceiling fixtures so there are no shadows or dark corners in the room).

2. If you are going to go with the open windows (and I think you should try it as birds adore sitting on the window sills and sunbathe themselves), you will need to get stainless steel screens on them because they will chew right through anything else.

3. Make sure the wall paint is non-toxic.

4. Non-toxic plants is a must but so is organic soil (some of them love to eat it).

5. No fans, ceiling or otherwise.

6. Put your books away (they love to chew on them).

Can't think of anything else right now.

i plan to have a go at potty-training any bird that i get. over the years all my rats have been trained to go in a litter tray, well about 90% of the time if i'm honest, but thats pretty good.

spaced said:

i plan to have a go at potty-training any bird that i get. over the years all my rats have been trained to go in a litter tray, well about 90% of the time if i'm honest, but thats pretty good.

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how the heck did you manage to teach them to use the litter tray

Perhaps they are like cats and it comes "naturally"

its pretty easy, probably the same with any animal. you know when they want to go, so you just put them in the litter tray.

actually i'd say they're the cleanest animal i've ever come across, they are meticulous with their cleaning.