Progress of my built-in cage

[noodles123]

That picture of the rock wall depth is the vertical space at the back wall (actually same as the ceiling since it's the same tiles).

Not to worry about perching areas. We're installing about 20-30 fasteners to hang various ropes, toys, nets, etc. If anything, with everything we're planning, I'm worried that the cage will be too crowded with features for her to move around freely. We'll play it by ear, but it definitely won't be lacking things to interest her. Still a work in progress.

The tiled planters won't have any dark areas when we're done with it. The top will be covered with large stones with only the greenery coming out. I suppose she could still try to squeeze under the leaves and nest there, but again, we'll see what she does before making adjustments.

Regarding the fake plants themselves, some of the research says they can be a problem, but the majority of the research I've done says it's safe unless the particular bird shows an interest in ingesting the silk. Precious's trainer told me not to worry about that since very few of their birds have ever shown such a tendency including Precious herself. But we will keep a close eye on how she plays with the shrubbery.

Thank you for your suggestions and advice. We will definitely keep them in mind as we finish up the cage!

Cool- glad you are being so thorough.
The whole hormone thing is REALLY important and it can happen fast...but it can also sneak up and cause all sorts of health/behavior issues. Sometimes people see behvaiors and don't understand that hormonal triggers were actually the root of them (because they can seem unrelated at times).
It may seem innocent, but if she shows any interest at all in going under those plants (or under the leaves), you need to get rid of them because it can easily trigger a bird into nesting mode which comes with all sorts of headaches that you do not want...so just know that it can seem innocent and adorable (like curiosity) but they are hard-wired to reproduce and make babies---and bushy areas etc with shadows are perfect for that short of thing...so if you see more than one visit to that area, or any sort of extended fascination, it's gotta go.

 

[Cosmographer]

Noted. With thanks!

 

[Cosmographer]

After the input from this forum, I've installed lights and removed the taller tree in the corner. Still figuring out ideal plant placement and arrangement to minimize nesting areas. Hanging toys to be installed within the next week or two. Precious arrives in 18 days!

 

[Cosmographer]

Can't quite figure out food and water bowl placement. Original idea was on the vertical back wall above the ventilation box. But now that I learned that she may be able to and might enjoy climbing the rocks, I'm hesitant to take up that space with bowls. Is placing bowls closer to the floor a bad idea? (I'm wondering about mounting them on the stone planters)

 

[noodles123]

Can't quite figure out food and water bowl placement. Original idea was on the vertical back wall above the ventilation box. But now that I learned that she may be able to and might enjoy climbing the rocks, I'm hesitant to take up that space with bowls. Is placing bowls closer to the floor a bad idea? (I'm wondering about mounting them on the stone planters)

Could you make a tree stand with a base and put the cups on? Looking snazzy indeed! The ropes will be fun. Will you add some toys and stuff too (like the wooden chew-type toys)?

So with the plants you added, you said you will be covering the top part of the planter (around the plant's base) so she can't get down in there, right?

 

[Gemster]

Will you add some toys and stuff too (like the wooden chew-type toys)?

Just to add, it’s best to buy a variety of toys, that includes seagrass, coconut, corn husks, wood (like noodles mentioned), bagels, fingertraps, wicker balls, abaca, palm leaf etc.
You could also supply a variety of wood, for example balsa, sola, pine, bamboo, birch etc.
Just keep in mind that some of the materials I suggested are very easy for a green wing to destroy and that 10 finger traps will not last long at all.

I’ve attached a couple of toys that i have used.
(Sorry, Gemma’s already gotten a chance to destroy one of them)

 

[Gemster]

In addition, I’m loving the whole setup; it’s certainly something to admire.

 

[Cosmographer]

Thanks!

Regarding the plants, I'm still looking at a few options to minimize potential nesting areas. Large stones, additional tiling, taller plants so there aren't as many shadows or smaller plants so there isn't much space under their leaves haha. I'll be experimenting over the next few weeks.

Regarding the food bowls, the thought of a separate stand had crossed my mind, but I was worried about the clutter and possibility of her knocking the whole thing over. It's still an option tho. Maybe I could use the existing tree as such. Do you think mounting bowls on the planters is too low to the ground?

Regarding toys, I already have a 3ftx3ft box stuffed with toys, hehe. Just waiting for delivery of stainless steel chains before putting them up. They include shreddable toys, woods, wicker balls, stainless steel bells with non-reachable clangers, etc.

The woods readily available here in the Philippines are often difficult to determine whether they are safe or not. I posted about them in another thread, but no one seemed to know about them. What I do have available here however are coconuts and bamboo which are cheap and easy to find (I think a whole coconut goes for about 50 cents). I'm planning to use those as my primary toy making components along with the occasional acacia wood that I might be able to come across.

Luckily, ropes are easily available also. The one pictured is Abaca which I believe is the same as Manila rope. Not sure how much they run in the states, but here, this particular rope cost me about 5 bucks per meter. On the expensive side for this country, but then again, it is over 3 inches in diameter. I'm planning to use the remainder for additional perches and swings for her play areas outside the cage. I'll post again once the toys are up.

 

[SailBoat]

Stainless Steel 'hardware' should be readily available at the Yacht Basin Marina Store as they are commonly used on Motor Yachts and Sailboats of size.

You may want to change your new spot lighting to Long Life, LED spot lights as the more you get into your built-in the less room for ladder to change-out traditional spot bulbs. When selecting spot light LED bulbs, target "daylight" style bulbs as then can provide the same light at a lower watt rating, which will reduce heat build-up. The "daylight" series tend to be on the blue side of the colour spectrum and will provide a clearer look as it reflects off the glass, which commonly has a small shift to blue itself.

NOTE: Talk to your electrician about installing a Dimmer to control light level of spot lights. This will allow you to adjust the lighting based on time of day (low as an accent after the Parrot is off to sleep) and higher during the day when the Parrot is enjoying the display. FYI: This will require that you purchase spot bulbs for a dimmer application.

 

[noodles123]

Thanks!

Regarding the plants, I'm still looking at a few options to minimize potential nesting areas. Large stones, additional tiling, taller plants so there aren't as many shadows or smaller plants so there isn't much space under their leaves haha. I'll be experimenting over the next few weeks.

Regarding the food bowls, the thought of a separate stand had crossed my mind, but I was worried about the clutter and possibility of her knocking the whole thing over. It's still an option tho. Maybe I could use the existing tree as such. Do you think mounting bowls on the planters is too low to the ground?

Regarding toys, I already have a 3ftx3ft box stuffed with toys, hehe. Just waiting for delivery of stainless steel chains before putting them up. They include shreddable toys, woods, wicker balls, stainless steel bells with non-reachable clangers, etc.

The woods readily available here in the Philippines are often difficult to determine whether they are safe or not. I posted about them in another thread, but no one seemed to know about them. What I do have available here however are coconuts and bamboo which are cheap and easy to find (I think a whole coconut goes for about 50 cents). I'm planning to use those as my primary toy making components along with the occasional acacia wood that I might be able to come across.

Luckily, ropes are easily available also. The one pictured is Abaca which I believe is the same as Manila rope. Not sure how much they run in the states, but here, this particular rope cost me about 5 bucks per meter. On the expensive side for this country, but then again, it is over 3 inches in diameter. I'm planning to use the remainder for additional perches and swings for her play areas outside the cage. I'll post again once the toys are up.

Yes- those planters are far too low to the ground for mounting dishes--- 1. she likely wouldn't be as comfortable eating so low because it's a vulnerable situation,
2. she would poop in her food and drop stuff in her water..
3.. you want to attract as little attention as possible to that area of the cage, as it is very shadowy under and around those plants (I know it seems silly, but it's like a nest down there already)-- if you are keeping those shrubby low plants w/ all of the leaves, and she is going down there to eat, you will not be able to monitor whether she is hanging out with food in mind, or because she is interested in hormonal things---you want her as far from the shadows as possible.

Can you not get another tree perch and mount it in the planter instead of the shadowy shrubs (aside from looks, and nesting, I am not sure what purpose the smaller ones serve, because they look too small to support her weight, and food/poop etc could also accumulate inside the bushy areas of the plant and make cleaning or even noticing the build-up difficult....

 

[SailBoat]

You may want to talk to your carpenter regarding adding venting in the wood trim above the glass panel near the spot light area. This area 'can' trap heat and develop into a 'hot spot' that could exceed the spot light canister's (fixture) maximum operating temperature. Venting could be as simple as cutting slots in the trim board. Depending on heat, consider 50% of the panel having slots added.

Test: With the lights on for at least an hour, does the trim panel and/or glass along the top heat-up?

Also, (and I am assuming here) with the primary venting sets along the shortest wall, heat will naturally build along the top of tallest wall (warm air rises).

 

[noodles123]

Some bulbs contain PTFE/PFOA/PFCs, so if they are getting hot, that is definitely something else to be aware of.

 

[SailBoat]

Some bulbs contain PTFE/PFOA/PFCs, so if they are getting hot, that is definitely something else to be aware of.

Great point!
LED spot series bulbs do not contain PTFE/PFOA/PFCs.

 

[Cosmographer]

Thnks for all the feedback. They've been extremely useful and have already resulted in both minor and major modifications.

Regarding the lights, these are LED, and the even the lights themselves don't get hot to the touch. The lights are very close to the highest glass panel which has ventilation holes both at the top and bottom. I'm guessing the lights themselves are about 5 inches away from the holes. Inflow of air comes from the opposit side (the short wall) and forces existing air out through ventilation holes of the glass, so if they do give off any heat at all, it should theoretically be blown out of the cage. On top of that, I made a weird discovery. When we cut the holes through the tile and into the drywall, the hollow space was actually sucking air into the ceiling. No idea how or why there is any kind of suction going on in that ceiling, but I suppose it's an added benefit since it should help the recessed back portion of the lights stay cooler (again, not that it really heats up anyway). We just left the lights on for 24 hours and no heat so I think we're safe on that front.

Regarding dimmers, are they necessary? I was told LEDs cant be dimmed, so I learned something new, hehe. The lighting was mainly installed for daytime use. At bedtime, I'm planning on hanging curtains around the glass, so I would have thought lights, even dimmed, would defeat the purpose. Is it better for their sleep quality to have dim lighting as opposed to no lighting?

Regarding other tips:
Oddly, even though I've owned a boat before, marine shops never crossed my mind. Great idea!

I'll be playing with food bowl placement in the coming days. Thanks for letting me know the planters would be too low. I'm beginning to lean towards mounting them on the tree perch as was recommended earlier.

The small plants are primarily for beautification purposes. Once some kind of ground covering under the leaves is in place to eliminate nesting areas, that should also minimize food/poop getting in there. That said, I expect cleaning would still be a hassle compared to bare flooring, but I'll have lots of help with that, thank goodness.

Thanks again for all the good advice!

 

[Cosmographer]

Cage is almost done. A few more climbing features and feeding bowls, and I think we're done for now.

 

[Jottlebot]

It's absolutely stunning. I'm slowly altering my Alexandrine's traditional cage into a perpex one. The only thing I think you'll miss is being able to give treats through the "bars" of a cage, or head scratches of you're lucky enough to be allowed. I can drill holes in the perspex, but obviously that's not possible in glass.

Also please be clear with the cleaners that they can't use usual cleaning products inside the cage!

 

[noodles123]

they cant use any *usual* cleaners inside the cage. This means it must be something avian safe, like white vinegar and water of f10 SC (a much better disinfectant than vinegar that is bird safe).

 

[Squeekmouse]

That's the coolest thing ever!!!! WOW!

 

[Cosmographer]

Yup using F10 for cleaning. There's not much need to feed through the bars of the cage since she's out most of the day. I was more worried about lack of cage bars for her to climb, so I decided to mount branches on the back wall and a cargo net on the ceiling. That was the purpose of the vertical hanging ropes but she hasn't gotten that adventurous yet, but it's only her third day so far.

 

[noodles123]

Oh yeah- you've got time.
I do think adding more branches is smart though, for foot exercise etc.
It's always good to have different textures etc-- all rope wouldn't be great, but combining rope and wood is great (just watch for any tangle situations).