- Details
- Written by: Deb White
- Category: Buying Guides
When choosing a cage, size is a critical factor. The internal living area of the cage needs to be big enough to allow adequate movement and flapping of wings. Bar spacing is a critical consideration, your parrot should not be able to put its head through and get wedged in the space between the bars. Additionally, for the larger bird species the diameter and strength of each bar should be large enough to ensure that the bars can not be bent or broken by your bird.
| Bird Species | Recommended Bar Spacing/Bar Diameter | Minimum Internal Width |
| Finch, Canary | 1/4" - 1/2" | 18" |
| Parakeet, Parrotlet, Lovebird | 1/2" | 20" |
| Alexandrine, Cockatiel, Conure, Caique, Quaker, Pionus, Senegal | 5/8" - 3/4" (3mm) | 24" |
| African Grey, Amazon, Eclectus, Small Cockatoo, Mini Macaw | 3/4" - 1" (4mm) | 32" |
| Large Cockatoo, Large Macaw | 1" - 1 1/4" (5mm) | 36" |
- Details
- Written by: Deb White
- Category: Buying Guides
| Perch Type | Advantages | Considerations |
| Natural Wood |
Built in grip variety, birds love to strip bark, provides chewing outlet. |
Make sure wood is pesticide/insecticide free and is a safe, non-toxic wood for birds. |
| Rope | Soft, comfortable and irregular gripping surface. | Maintenance or replacement required if excessive fraying occurs. |
| Conditioning | Reduces frequency of beak and nail grooming. | Can irritate feet if alternate perch surfaces unavailable. |
| PVC/Acrylic | Durable and easy to clean. | Often too uniform in size, slippery if not textured. |
| Leather | Soft, comfortable grip. Provides chewing outlet. | Difficult to clean. |
| Milled Wood Dowel | Inexpensive | Size uniformity and smoothness doesn't exercise feet. Not recommended if additional perch alternatives not provided |
| Rubber/Latex | Soft, good traction, colorful. | Destructible by large beaks. |
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- Details
- Written by: Deb White
- Category: Buying Guides
When choosing a perch, size is a critical factor. Incorrectly sized perches can be a source of pain and discomfort in a bird's legs and feet.
Good foot health is promoted by having multiple perches of varying diameters available with your bird's cage. The generally accepted rule of thumb is that your bird's feet should wrap between 2/3 and 3/4 around the perch.
|
Diameter Range |
Appropriate for: |
| 3/8" - 7/8" | Finch, Canary |
| 1/2" - 1" | Parrotlet, Lovebird, Parakeet, Cockatiel |
| 3/4" - 1 1/4" | Conure, Caique, Meyers, Quaker, Pionus, Senegal, Timneh Grey |
| 1" - 2" | Eclectus, Congo African Grey, Small Cockatoo, Small Macaw, Amazon |
| 2" - 3 1/2" | Large Cockatoo, Large Macaw |
