Everything you need for your pet bird
Pet birds spend lots of time in cages, both to keep them safe and to keep these intelligent creatures entertained. Pet parents want to make birds happy, just as birds bring humans joy with lilting songs and bright feathers. Given that the environment is very important for a bird’s health and happiness, we’ve put together the ultimate guide to picking your bird’s cage—dimensions, handles, feeding trays, and more. You’ll also find everything you need for inside the cage, including food, toys, and litter. Here’s how to make your bird’s habitat stimulating and inviting.
How to pick a bird cage
Here are some bird real estate basics: Think about your bird’s species, size, cage location, and whether she’ll have a flock of roommates. You know your bird best, so think of their personality, too.
Bird cages and cage accessories
Bird cages and cage accessories come in many sizes and varieties. Dimensions and bar spacing are two of the biggest considerations.
Birds like parrots can roam free about your house, and they will like prancing around bigger cages.
Other birds are quiet and skittish, so they might prefer smaller, more private homes.
What size bird cage do I need?
When you are considering bar width for your bird, you want to make sure your bird’s head can’t poke out of the cage.
Large Cockatoos, Macaws, and African Greys need large cages, and the good news is they can’t fit through widely spaced bars.
Budgies, canaries, and finches are tiny. These small breeds need bars that are closer together to keep out of human business when it isn’t safe. They are also social birds who can live together in larger cages.
Pick a bird cage with multiple perches when feathered friends cohabitate.
You may also want multiple openings for easy cleanup. Pet parents will need to remove wire water hangers, bird feeders, and bird baths often.
Furnishing a bird cage
Most bird cages do not come fully furnished, so you will want to stock up and check your options (there are many!). With so many toys to choose from, you can pick up several and swap them out to add variety to your bird’s life and keep the cage exciting.
With an instinct to nest and seek warmth, your bird will need these basics to get settled. To make them feel like home you’ll need to pick out bird supplies such as bird litter and nesting materials for bedding.
To keep your feathered friend in high spirits, check out bird health and wellness supplies. These include cuttlebones that keep beaks trimmed, as well as mineral supplements and drops to calm anxiety.
Once you have a cage, nest, and wellness supplies, bird perches and toys are ideal for climbing and play.
Play isn’t just for fun. Interactive, sensory objects like ladders, wooden perches, and cozy corners (which are plush blankets for birdies) are stimulating.
Games improve motor skills and social behaviour.
There’s even birdie basketball for sports fans. And mirrors, which every pet parent knows is a bird’s best friend.
Bird food and treats
Seeds may seem boring, but birds love them. Your bird’s species and beak type are two of the biggest factors to consider when choosing their food.
These include varieties that are designed for pet birds such as parakeets, cockatiels, finches and canaries. Wild bird food
Bird lovers who want to feed their winged friends in their backyards or while out on walks should consider wild bird food.
There are waste-free blends, woodland blends, and shell-free blends.
Suet, which is hardened fat, hangs from feeders to attract birds to one tree instead of scattering seed over the ground. It’s beloved by many, including woodpeckers.
You can also opt for squirrel-proof wild bird seed that will deter rodents from stealing those sunflower seeds.
Bird food and treats are nutritious—and delicious. Honey-flavoured and fruit-flavoured sticks, as well as dried orange slices are sweet indulgences.
Millet, a small seed often found in the wild, is highly nutritious with lots of calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium.
Bird treats also come in papaya and mango flavour. How exotic!
Give your bird some variety in their habitat and in their diet. Your bird will love you for it.