Building an indoor 'aviary'

[Mechanical8dragon]

Not now, of course HAHA, but I figure I'd ask now so I have an idea of the costs and where to get the materials and WHAT kind of materials.

I've been spending a few days searching for cages I liked, haven't found any and then I thought... what about building one? It's usually cheaper right? All you need is a frame and proper wire right? And you can build whatever size you want. The length I'm trying to find is almost like a double-cage, but the ones that are manufactured are just SOOOOOOOOOOO TAAAALLLLL and they're like 500-800$. That's a lot of money to spend on a cage where only 1/3rd of it will be used ;n;. So I'm looking to build a cage with that similar length, but not the height.

I've been trying to find a cage that has more length rather than ridiculous height. I don't have a parrot with long tail feathers, so a super high cage isn't needed, I'd rather have length. When I can finally get my Jardy back, I want to have a cage ready for her that provides her with plenty of length so that she'll have plenty of room to move around while my BF and I are asleep during the morning part of the day (we sleep till about 2-3pm due to working nights).

I've already set up a mental layout. Since my BF and I spend all our free time on our comps (we're gamers) I'm getting jardy a nice play stand with food bowls that I'll put between our desks so she'll be right next to me, all other times, she'll be in her cage. So while she's up and we're still asleep, I want to have the room in there to provide the stimulation to keep her entertained.

I'd build a stand, and set the cage atop it. I'm thinking the height of the cage itself only needs to be maybe 30-40in high TOPS, although with the stand she'd be sitting 60in or more off the ground so she'll still have that height in that sense, it'll just be that less 'cage space' will be wasted and I'll use the bottom of the stand for storage.

What I want to know is what most home-build aviaries are made of. I've seen some made of wood with wire , and I've seen some with PVC. I personally find PVC to look unsightly, and Jardy isn't a wood chewer. She's never been interested in chewing hard wood (she'll chew on really soft wood, like popsicle sticks, luvs those) but the more harder wood toys that I got her she never touched... EVER.

Obviously the wood would be untreated, but where would I find the wood? And what kind of wire should I be using? Where would I get the wire? Is the obvious choices home improvement stores? (home depo, lowes, etc.?)

 

[LaurieC]

If you are planning to use wood, then I recommend a hard maple. If your bird does decide to chew it, she'll have a very difficult time of it. My Poi likes to try chewing my reptile enclosures, which are made out of maple, and he can't put much of a dent in them. You can find the maple at any hardwood store, and sometimes at Home Depot. It ususally runs around $8 a board foot. If you can find some on Craigslist it will be a lot cheaper.

For wire you'll need to use stainless steel, as galvanized wire is toxic to birds (zinc poisoning). This will be expensive , and you won't find it at a home improvement store. The least expensive sources for it that I have found are eBay and a wire company called TWP Inc. If you are searching on eBay, look for seller "hardwaremania", who usually has some good deals on it.

 

[Kiwibird]

It's so nice you found a temporary place for Jardy so you can get her back when you're in a more suitable situation You really care for her and that shows so much.

I think a few carefully placed small strips of acrylic on the inside of the cage frame could both protect the wood and keep any sharp edges from the wire mesh from being a hazard. You will need to use stainless for the wire, and that can be pricey. Factor in the costs of lumber and stainless hardware and you'll probably be right up at what a standard cage would cost. Not sure if you'd save any money per se building your own cage, but you would be able to customize it to the dimensions you feel would be best. If you start saving now, no doubt you could get enough saved up to make her a fantastic house on the time scale you're working with

 

[Mechanical8dragon]

Yeah I figure the wire would be the most expensive part, and probably the hardest to find. haha Looks like I was right.

Even if it does end up being pretty much the same price as a cage at least it will to my liking and how I feel it would best suit my bird, rather than a standard cage size where 90% of the cage goes unused.

Thank you for the info guys !

 

[GaleriaGila]

Wow. Back in the 90s, in New Mexico, it was the fashion among parrot people to build indoor cages of hard-wood and stainless "chicken wire". Usually, a room was customized accordingly, providing a safe and spacious custom 'aviary'. Challenges were... cleaning, and shielding birds from sharp edges. We did it! But as we moved a few times, it became impractical. But it *was* COOLIO!

 

[Mechanical8dragon]

Well I figure I'll try to find some kind of trays to put in the bottom. I could probably easily build tray holders below the cage and have them slide out just like they would in a standard cage. I'm not too worried with cleaning .

The sharp points is my main worry but I'm hoping maybe I can find a roll thats big enough or almost big enough to just loop around the whole cage so that there is only a start and finish point, maybe sand the joints down or something of the sort. Not worried about the wood, but Jardy enjoyed chewing on her cage bars.... so the wire needs to be thick enough, and having pointy pieces is a no go at all.