Spray Painted Parrot Cage?

ziggybird

Member
Jan 21, 2013
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26
Los Angeles
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Meyer's Parrot (Tukki),
Meyer's Parrot (Brooklyn),
Double Yellow Headed Amazon (Ziggy),
Blue and Gold Macaw (Max)
My husband and I found cool cage for sale on fb marketplace that appears to be in great condition. However some years ago the owner spray painted it with rustoleum white spray paint (she doesn't have details if it was VOC free or anything).

Would this be a safe cage for my meyers parrot?

(my instinct is probably not... but I wanted to check anyway)

Thank you!
 

SailBoat

Supporting Member
Jul 10, 2015
17,662
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Western, Michigan
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DYH Amazon
Far too many possible issues here...

" some years ago the owner spray painted it with rustoleum "

Rustoleum has undergone several changes in its ingredients and as a result, the term 'some years ago' is not acceptable to address your question /concerns. Another problem is that depending on what effort the past owner placed into prepping, i.e., cleaning, sanding prior to painting. Most people just sprayed the surface regardless of its condition... This commonly results in flaking and chipping, which is common when attempting to paint over a powder coated surface.

It is important to understand that VOC has more to do with the off-gassing as the product drys to a fully hardened state. Once fully dried, the product is stable unless it is scrapped.
 

Ira7

Banned
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Feb 9, 2020
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Coral Springs, FL
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YNA
No painted cages! It will only cause heartbreak if ingested by your bird I'm afraid.

And new cages aren’t painted??? (And powder coating is the same as painting.)

You can properly scrape/prep/and paint old cages with great confidence, especially since it’s unbelievably rare that a bird is going to feast on the cage bars.
 
Last edited:

LaManuka

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Aug 29, 2018
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Queensland, Australia
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Fang ({ab}normal grey cockatiel), Valentino (budgie), Jem (cinnamon cockatiel), Lovejoy(varied lorikeet), Peach (princess parrot)
As we say in Australia, "Yeah ... no."

Indeed most cages are painted (except stainless steel) but in this case you've only got the seller's word for what type of paint they used, and they're probably keen to make the sale!

Some birds are more prone to nibble on the bars than others. My tiny little lorikeet once chewed a chunk of powder coating off a brand new cage when she was trying to get INTO Fang's cage to harass him while he was trying to have his breakfast. She must have found the one spot that may have had a flaw and she went for it!

On balance thought if it was me I'd give it a miss.
 

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