Purchasing the right Bird Aviary

A bird aviary is the most important piece of equipment you’ll need to purchase for your new bird. The right aviary will assist in keeping your bird healthy and safe. There are a lot of bird aviaries on the market, which can make it difficult for the the new bird keeper.. How do you choose the right one?

Firstly, make a point to research about the the type of bird you wish to keep. When housing a parakeet, cockatiel or any other long tailed species, you will need to have enough room for your bird to exercise. Ideally, the bird aviary will be adequately long enough so the bird can fly from one side to the other. Any birds that have a heavyset body, such as a lovebird or a Senegal parrot, gets a good deal of exercise by climbing around in the aviary. This type of bird would do well in an aviary that is taller than it is wide.

You should then consider the size of the aviary. Generally it is a good idea to buy the largest aviary you can pay for your bird, a newly weaned handfed baby bird may feel lost and terrified in a large aviary. Some younger birds may have trouble finding their food and water bowls. If it is affordable to do so, then buying a smaller bird aviary for your baby birds’s first few months is a good idea and then change to a bigger aviary when it is older.

Another thing to take into account is the spacing between the bars of your bird aviary. A great looking bird aviary is not very effective if your bird can fit through the bars! If you are thinking of using wire mesh in your aviary then you should compare the size of the hole in the mesh with the size of your bird’s head prior to making your choice. A bird aviary built with one inch mesh is just the right size for a cockatiel to stick a head through. When cockatiels bring their heads back through the bars, they have been known to bend into a ‘U’ shape and put their heads into a different hole.

When you have decided on the aviary size and bar spacing, you should then consider other facets of bird aviary design. Seeing the cage tray. When you remove it to clean it, is there a grate in the aviary to prevent the bird from escaping? Is the tray deep enoough to hold the mess your bird makes? Even if the aviary has a deep tray, you still may find that your bird scatters a lot of seed hulls and feathers on the floor if there’s no cage apron. You can put a plastic apron base on your aviary or have a built in metal apron which is a good option.

Finally, do not forget to have a look at the aviary cups. Ideally it would be a good idea to enter the aviary to get to the cups without having to reach through the main door. If you are buying a bird aviary for a larger bird, the cups should actually bolt to the aviary unless you want to spend every morning and afternoon for the next 50 years reaching for cups that your bird has flung onto the bottom of the bird aviary

If you a replacing a bird aviary for an older parrot type bird, some owners have told me it’s crucial to get a bird cage of the same colour. They believe that a bird that is comfortable with a white painted aviary will not be just as comfortable in a metal cloured one.