What is the REAL answer to safe toys, cleaning agents, cookware,toys, etc??

Louzparrot

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Aug 28, 2022
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Green cheeked conure
Hi, at this moment I am the newest member! I have a conure, and she is not my first…but I still have questions. I have heard every different answer. Now I have to choose which to believe. Some people are so conservative that it’s almost impossible to keep one’s bird safe. Others insist that the bird needs to adapt to the home environment.

For example, I have pans that are non-stick-ish and not Teflon. Maybe a ceramic type.
My little chum is so cute climbing on a cord, rope, or drape. Today I read that cotton rope is a no-no bc of potential, long-term ingestion of tiny cotton fibres getting stuck?? in the crop. Use natural fibres, it said. So what rope. Is safe: sisal, nylon, hemp?

Last example: my house doesn’t smell great and all the scented oils, candles, air fresheners are apparently verboten in parrot households. My carpet has a lingering dog smell. Is there anything I can use? The carpet was professionally cleaned. I am going to do a home shampoo, but it’s probably not gonna help that much. New carpet is the eventual answer. Is new carpet smell dangerous for birds’ respiratory system?

Thanks to ‘anybirdy’ who can help. I hope these forums help me to sift through all the opinions out there and find the truth for me and my little green buddy.
 

Cottonoid

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Feb 20, 2022
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Welcome to the forum!!

Now I have to choose which to believe

I think this is the answer, honestly.

Just like raising human children, there's a lot of information out there and we each have to determine what we think is legitimate and then what our individual risk tolerance is. And then apply our knowledge to our lifestyle in the best way we can.

For instance, I don't use cookware that isn't stainless steel or cast iron. But I have let my parrot go wherever he wants in my front room when I'm not home.

These decisions are based on my interpretation of recommendations and applying them to my own situation, knowing myself and my bird.


As far as dog smell in carpet, have you looked at some of the biologicals available? Like Anti-Icky-Poo or similar? They use enzymes and/or live bacteria to break down the compounds from pet waste odors without adding anything harmful to your environment. You might need to pull up your craziest and treat the pad underneath. Or you might need to replace it entirely, depending on how extensive the damage.

Myself personally I would err on the side of removing my parrot for carpet installation as I feel the products used are not safe - new carpet triggers my asthma (and I have lungs not air sacs that are a lot more sensitive) - so yes I fall on the more cautious side when it comes to chemical exposure.

All that to say - controversial recommendations cause controversy for a reason. Which does put the burden of decision on each of us as parrot companions and habitat providers.
 

ravvlet

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Jun 25, 2019
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(Rehomed) Sammy - YNA, 45 yrs old (2022-2023)
(RIP) Cricket - Cockatiel (2019-2022)
I have kids, dogs, a cat AND parrots, so I feel you!

Sisal & hemp are brittle natural fibers that tend to shatter rather than bunch. If your parrot is not actively eating his ropes, you’re probably safe with cotton. It CAN cause impactions and death - so keep an eye on the wear level and if he’s biting them or just using them for climbing. We have one parrot who has cotton ropes and one that doesn’t because she chews them.

For pots and pans it gets a bit complicated because companies often aren’t transparent about what’s used inside their products. For example, most toasters have Teflon coating on the interior and are not actually parrot safe. When shopping for a toaster or cooking pans etc that will be heated over 300 degrees I like to shoot the manufacturer an email:

Does this oven use any nonstick coatings? This includes PTFE (polytetrafluoroethyline), PFOA (Perfluorooctanoic acid), PFCs (Perfluorinated compounds), PFAS (polyfluoroalkyl substances) and Teflon. If this model does use these coatings, do you have any models that do not?


I got a few responses back from toaster oven manufacturers that you can see here:


I personally use ceramic cookware. Green pan is also fine, but doesn’t last very long. Cast iron, aluminum, and stainless steel with no coatings are also safe. Be mindful also of bakeware - silicone baking pans off gas at high temperatures as do non-stick pans. Ceramic bakeware or non-coated baking trays are fine! Parchment/wax paper can also offgas at high temps; but I think for those it’s fine as long as your parrot isn’t in the kitchen and you run your vent.

As for scented products, it gets complicated- especially for candles. The problem is both the fragrance/essential oil and in the case of candles the smoke. I have unscented or naturally scented soy & beeswax candles but I hardly use them; I believe they were gifts. Aerosol sprays of any kind are definitely a no; especially in the pressurized cans!

To get odor out of your carpets I highly recommend baking soda and/or vinegar. This is completely parrot and rental safe and you can find a lot of guides online. I was able to fully remove the smell of cat urine out of carpet just using that. An air filter is great for your bird and can also help cut down on odor.

I don’t know if you’ve ever watched the Great British Baking show, but one of their winners Nancy Birtwhistle has made a career of posting green/enviro friendly cleaning tips to her blog & has even published a book, and a lot of it is just bicarb of soda (baking soda) and vinegar.

If you have more specific questions feel free to @ me! This is what I could think of off the top of my head!
 

ravvlet

Well-known member
Jun 25, 2019
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7,081
Seattle WA
Parrots
Kirby - OWA, 33yrs old (2019-)
Broccoli - Dusky Conure - 3?mo old (July 2023 -)
~~~
(Rehomed) Sammy - YNA, 45 yrs old (2022-2023)
(RIP) Cricket - Cockatiel (2019-2022)
Oh, follow up about the carpet - anything that has glue or adhesive in it and smells strongly is not great for your bird, so if you redo the flooring they’d need to be out of the house while it is installed and for a couple days after to air it out.

That being said - have you considered switching to peel and stick & area rugs? I recently remodeled a shed and we did the flooring with a primed underlayment (since it was a shed floor we used cheap wood panels cut to size & painted but for a house I’d just use a roll of Pergo Floormate or similar underneath). It’s dead easy to install, inexpensive, and there are lots of colors and styles to choose from. Your local big box mega hardwood store should carry a good selection (Home Depot/Lowes). Carpet is a nightmare to keep clean unless you have a commercial style with the right weave; and no matter what kind it is getting bird poop out of it sucks! You’ll still need to let it air out some as the adhesive for peel and stick also has an odor.

My parents redid their whole house after our dogs over the years wrecked their carpet in tile and peel & stick and it smells sooooo much cleaner!

They make area rugs now also that have a washable top surface (if you still have a dog). They’re a bit more expensive than a regular area rug but I find being able to throw the whole thing in the wash instead of having to sniff and spot clean or have it professionally shampooed is so worth it!
 

wrench13

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If you look long enough on the internet, you will eventually find a page, message board or forum that supports even the craziest ideas. ParrotForums has, for me, been the most authoritative and accurate source of parrot info on the Web. And the people are nice too.

Re cotton or other materials for rings, toys etc.
If you parrot does not chew on the material there is little impact, aside from looking for loose threads which can entangle birdy feet. Like most wild animals, they will start to even chew a leg off trying to free themselves in that case. Look out for loose threads in any material.

Re: cookware and other household appliances
Aside from cookware, almost any item that heats things up, like hair dryers, air fryers, toasters, etc etc, these days will have a teflon or other PTFE based coating on the heating element as a corrosion preventative measure. Manufacturers will change the chemistry a tiny bit so they can say "PTFE Free" but that difference may only be by one molecule in the formula. We run any new heating appliance at the maximum setting for a few hours OUTSIDE the house, for a few times before we bring it into the house for use, and we open te windows in the kitchen or other area where it is. 100% safe, no, becasue the damage happens when the coating gets really really hot and the coating starets to breakdown and out gas more. Also NEVER use a self cleaning cycle on an oven as that heats things over 550degF and volatizes any crud in the oven and the fumes are rife with bad stuff.

We threw out all our coated cookware. Again, the real dmage happens when you forget a pot or pan on the stove and the coating goes WAY over the critical point and the coating starts really out gas a lot. If used at normal temperatures, they supposedly are OK to use, but here, you need to make your choice. We elected to be supersafe, after loosing a parrot ( RIP Max) who just suddenly one day just died for no apparent reason ( well before we were aware of the whole teflon issue).
 

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