Acrylic cages?

[BirdSquawk]

I have seen them on the web, but are acrylic cages or tanks good for parrots? They certainly look a whole lot better, but there is a lot less ventilation and it could get hot in there, or little birds could get confused and run into it and hurt themselves. Finally, and I only ask because I have seen it so much, but is keeping birds in fish tanks (like they do in pet stores) or even those glass fronted boxes safe and good for the bird? Thanks for any input!

 

[ParkersMom]

It would seem to be a bad idea to keep any birds in an aquarium they need to be able to climb and have ventilation. As far as the acrylic cages the issue I would have would be keeping them clean.

 

[MarciaLove]

I agree with ParkersMom parrots need to be able to climb the bars of a cage and have proper ventilation they have such sensitive respiratory systems! I have see ones that are glass fronts and wire sides, top, and back which would be ok assuming your bird doesnt fly into the front of the glass which most birds that can fly would do from time to time when they get scared.

 

[Mayden]

Tanks are basically heat boxes, if it gets warm your bird is going to be x10 hotter for being in a tank.

Acrylic cages... depends on what you mean, my budgie's have got acrylic bases and I personally don't like it, but the bars are generally still metal.

 

[weco]

Supposedly, the fish tanks are used for younger birds, ones that have not fledged yet, but I have seen clipped birds in tanks, ostensibly so you can view them & access them better, though, as has been mentioned, tanks do create a heat buildup problem, even with full cage tops.....

Your acrylic cages have the same problem...heat buildup...ten years ago I thought I might get a couple for travel cages, so borrowed one from a pet store I traded with, for a 150mi round trip excursion with my maroon belly.....I kept the car temp at 68F, but the inside of the plastic cage stayed around 80F, so Buddy rode on my shoulder, other than the 10 minutes it took to pick up the documents I went after.....

I passed on buying the clear plastic cages.....

 

[Mayden]

Supposedly, the fish tanks are used for younger birds, ones that have not fledged yet, but I have seen clipped birds in tanks, ostensibly so you can view them & access them better, though, as has been mentioned, tanks do create a heat buildup problem, even with full cage tops.....

Your acrylic cages have the same problem...heat buildup...ten years ago I thought I might get a couple for travel cages, so borrowed one from a pet store I traded with, for a 150mi round trip excursion with my maroon belly.....I kept the car temp at 68F, but the inside of the plastic cage stayed around 80F, so Buddy rode on my shoulder, other than the 10 minutes it took to pick up the documents I went after.....

I passed on buying the clear plastic cages.....

The plastic cages/tanks have no decent airflow. So unless you've got a built in fan etc with it too, it's basically akin to leaving a dog in a hot car, imo.

I get it with young birds and fledglings, if you can keep the conditions right, but for older and non-disabled parrots, I'd say it's a nono.

 

[henpecked]

Some one gave me a "glass" front cage years ago. Every amazon i put in it HATED it. Threw it away.

 

[Zazoothehahns]

I have a large cage by "cages by design" with arcylic doors in the front. The sides, top, and bottom are ss wire. I love the cage, but I must emphasize, it is larger than needed, so there is plenty of ventilation, downfall, all items must be hung from the left or the right sides or the top, plus side....it keeps the mess to a minimum, looks great, love the storage cabinets it has for toys and food. I would not go with the type that is used in petco or the type that is made entirely made from acrylic, not nearly enough ventilation or climbing space. We placed pieces of blue masking tape over the doors for the first few days to make sure my daughter's Hahns knew there was something there, wasn't an issue at all.