Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Avian Adventures Bird Cages

Midwest Homes for Pets and Avian Adventures provides their customers the most innovative bird cages with the best quality on the market.They combine Avian Adventures innovation and Midwest quality in order to the best bird cage at the lowest price. Their lines of high-end bird cages are designed to satisfy your bird’s needs and its comfort and safety are the main priorities. Their cages have stainless steel bowls for food and water with an access from outside and they are very well designed. They ship their cages with natural hardwood perches which can be found in South East and are constructed from “Yellow Cow” hardwood . They produce powder coated cages in attractive colors which fit with any home décor. These cages provide your pet bird a comfortable, safe environment and an environment to exercise and moreover they are very good looking.

Some of their cages have a doom which provides more space for your pet bird to move around and stretch the wings inside the cage. The playtop which gives your bird the chance to get out of the confined cage space has natural hardwood perch, removable tray, stainless steel water and feed bowls and a toy hook for your bird’s entertaining. What ever pet bird you have, they have the perfect cages for it.
Avian Adventures is one of the most well known bird cage companies in the world today, and for good reason too. They manufacture high quality bird cages that are assembled using no bolts, tools, or screws. Plus, their cages are made in beautiful colors that other brand names don't offer. Avian Adventures bird cages come in multiple sizes and styles. Their smallest model, the Nina Dometop Cage, works great for small birds like Finches & Canaries. Their largest model, the Hacienda, is great for large birds like Hyacinth Macaws.

Avian Adventure Bird Cages are especially known for their lift-off play top bird cages. Unlike other play top bird cages, these playtops can be removed from the cage and placed on a stand or table, away from the cage. Your bird will love the change of scenery while still enjoying the security and familiarity of his or her playtop.
The following is general information on what to look for when comparing Avian Adventures bird cages as well as other brands.

• Avian Adventures bird cages come in a wide variety of styles, sizes and colors and they are made from either mild steel with a powder coat finish or 304 grade stainless steel. All powder coat finishes on Avian Adventures bird cages are bird-safe and have a 6-month warranty covering defects in manufacturing. Historically, Avian Adventures bird cages have been particularly popular with parrots and parrot owners. Some people don’t realize that in addition to parrot bird cages, they make premium quality bird cages for all breeds.

• If you have multiple birds or if you breed birds, then surely you have heard of Avian Adventures Multi Vista Stackers for multiple birds. These stackable & breeder bird cages are designed for maximum versatility and even creativity. You can buy a base unit and later on buy expansion units to make multiple cages. Or, you could make a really big cage because the panels separating the units can be removed! We won’t say the sky’s the limit, but you do get a lot of options with Avian Adventures Multi Vista Stackers for multiple birds.

• For fewer birds you might consider the Avian Adventures Nina which comes in a dometop or with a Liftoff Playtop. These cages are ideal for parakeets, small conures, finches, canaries, cockatiels and lovebirds.

The best selling models for small to medium sized parrots are the Avian Adventures Chiquita Cage with Liftoff Play top as well as their Chiquita Dometop Bird Cages. Both models are ideal for senegals, conures, quakers, lories, caiques and pionus.

• All Avian Adventures bird cages come with natural wood perches made of mangrove or yellow cow wood, which are lighter yet harder than manzanita. Real wood perches have various widths and textures that occur naturally, and that promotes foot health. If a bird has access to only one size perch he or she will be at risk of foot cramping or even pressure sores.

• Part of what makes a cage “suitable” is that it is roomy enough to provide your pet with more than just breathing space. It’s cruel to confine an animal in an area that doesn’t have ample space. Can you imagine living hour after hour, day after day, year after year, in a space that doesn’t allow a little walking around?

So the bottom line is that if you want your feathered friend to be happy in his or her home, it is best to get the roomiest cage your budget allows. America’s Pet Store carries the full line of Avian Adventures bird cages, so we will definitely have a nice selection for you from which to choose.

If you can’t find an Avian Adventures bird cage that is large enough and fits your budget, you might want to browse our Discount Bird Cages section to check out what’s on sale at America’s Pet Store.

• Interior space is not the only dimensions you’ll need to consider. For example, for safety purposes it is of the utmost importance to follow recommendations on the amount of space needed between the bars for a specific breed. If there is too much space, your bird could get stuck in between, or even escape and get lost or injured. If there is not enough space between the bars, a wing, beak or foot could get stuck and could cause injury.

It is also important to choose the appropriate gauge or thickness of the bars themselves. If they are too thin or flimsy, birds could bend them or even break them. Follow recommendations for minimum bar gauge for your breed of bird.

Friday, October 30, 2009

Setting Up The African Grey Cage

Position the cage with its back against a wall as all cages are made of wire on all sides and they do not have very solid section and your bird to be able to see out of a window how other birds come and go. This way the bird will feel safer and more interested. Do not put the cage in full sun as the bird could be overheated. Put it high enough the top perch is at your eye-level. If your bird is often nervous, increase the height of the top perch so that the bird looks down on you. If the cage has a drill just above its floor-tray, remove it because the bird should have access to the floor which you should cover with newspaper sheets and change it day.

HOW TO FIT DIFFERENT TYPES OF PERCHES

There should be a various types of perches with different thickness in the cage to be sure that the bird exercises its feet properly. Most cages are supplied with excessive thick perches Parrots have a special locking mechanism in their feet to grip the perch with little effort which does not work on thick perches. The best (top) perch for a grey, will be about ¾ in (2 cm) in diameter. The bird can wrap its toes around the perch. Other perches can be thinner or thicker. Choose perches from any natural untreated hardwood such as hawthorn, maple, hazel, willow and ash or you can choose rope perches of natural fibers such as jute, cotton, or hemp. Avoid softwood and plastic perches. Perches should be disposable items to be renewed frequently as almost all birds chew the perches to exercise their beak. It will be great if you have two sets of perches for each cage as they quickly get dirty so you will always have a spare set when it is necessary. Sometimes it is advisable to have an abrasive perch to keep a bird’s claws less sharp but place it low down in the cage if your grey need fairly sharp claws to grip smooth surfaces properly.

HOW TO FURNISH THE CAGE

Make the cage as interesting as possible, with different toys in it like larger hanging toys and smaller foot toys. The hanging toys have longer life than the second but they also can be destroyed by the bird. You should keep a collection of hanging toys. Accommodate three hanging toys of it in the cage at a time to keep your bird interested and change them every few days and your bird will not be bored. Foot toys are often a bird’s favorite toys as they are small enough for the bird, they are designed not to be long-lasting.

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Marvelous Bird Cages

There is a new bird cages brand which is called Marvelous Pet Supplies.These are top quality bird cages which look like pieces of art. Every single cage reaches for higher quality and higher standards, functionality and style. Bird owners should have something more than a simple bird cage and Marvelous bird cages are those which can accomplish this idea. They have rounded skirts, easy to clean and assemble two toned colors and patent pending unique designs. You can find more information at their Marvelous Bird Cage Selection.

Bird cages are essential for your pet bird as a good living environment. These bird cages are decorative and fully functional and they look great at your home. Marvelous Pet Supplies offers cages which cross style and functionality together. They can be assembled in even less than 15 minutes. Also they are very easy to clean. They have small, medium and large cages which are ideal for all kinds of birds, from cockatiels to parakeets, Amazons to conures, Macaws to Eclectus. Marvelous Pet Suppliesc develop great aviary products.


Marvelous Bird Cages are in all variety of Jasmines, Chateaus, Pavilions, Verandas, Bungalow and Gables. Also they are in different shapes – round or with rotating frames, all made for your birds' needs. Colors vary from black/beige to black/gray, green/gray or green/beige.
Click on the bird cage for more specifications and features.
You can buy online from BirdsComfort.com or at your local pet retail store as they work with independent pet shops, several retail chains and online pet shops. If you are not sure what bird cage to buy and where from or if you have any questions , you can contact admin@birdscomfort.com.

Friday, August 28, 2009

How to Keep Birds As Pets

Having Birds as Pets: Responsible Ownership of Pet Birds
There are a lot of people who think that if you want to have a pet bird, it is like buying it and sticking it in a cage. Owning pet birds is not just feeding them when necessary and sometimes changing their paper. You have to be very responsible if you have decided to keep birds as pets. Even if you consider to give them some bird toys, it does not mean that you will have healthy and happy pet bird.It is a great responsibility and if you really want to acquire a companion, think in advance whether you are able to handle.
Before you start, consider a few things which are important if you intend to have a pet bird and after that you have to make the final decision to keep birds as pets or to choose a different type of pet.

Think about the cost
Depending on what pet bird you are going to have and how big it is, the expenses are different. For example, the larger the cage is the more expensive it is. Also there are other supplies, be ready to pay for some additional things.
Not only the cage, the same is with the food- the larger your pet bird is the more food you will need for it. Probably you think that all this sounds really expensive and you are right, do not forget that there are also toys and maintenance of the cage, all of them very important.
There are unexpected costs, for vets, for example, who are maybe not very helpful with birds and you have to seek for an avian specialist who is very expensive.

Think about the time
You may think that you do not have free time to have a dog so you’d better have a pet bird because they do not require a lot of attention. You are wrong! Some people even do not have time for a nap, they will not have enough time for pets, either. For good bird health it is very important to handle them and play with them as much as you can.

Think about the space
Also there are a lot of people who think that birds do not require a lot of space and they are wrong again. The bigger your bird is the bigger space it needs, so be ready to move out some furniture. They also need to fly so if you do not have space for it, you’d better reconsider the things.
But do not forget the great advantage of having a pet bird - you can have a friend for life if you look after them properly, they are real characters and they bring joy and color in your home. Also they live long and they are commitment for a long period.

Monday, June 8, 2009

Are Peanuts Good For Pet Birds Or Not?

There is no argue that peanuts contain a lot of essential ingredients like fiber, unsaturated fats, protein, amino acids, vitamins and minerals.So this is probably one possible answer to your question are peanuts good for pet birds?It will be good to think about feeding your pet with them because there are also some possible negative answers.

Actually peanuts are seeds , not nuts and they grow under ground, they are from the legume family. Their environment is damp, warm and dark which gives the best condition for mold and fungal growth. Actually those traces of a mold called Aspergillus Flavus cause the problem with peanuts. The toxic substance -
Aflatoxin ,is in fact produced by Aspergillus Flavus. It is known that Aflatoxins cause severe liver damage for humans and animals and they are carcinogenic (cancer causing). The level of toxicity depends on the amount of toxin ingested at one time, age, size ,accumulation of the toxin, etc.

If the officials detect contamination after inspecting all peanuts for sale in this country, they reject them. The USDA and The FDA determine the safe levels for Aflatoxin in human food stuffs and if the product is dangerous , they ban it from going to market. But this safe amount of traces of Aflatoxin in pet food is not very clear , especially for such small creatures as birds.
So the question- are the peanuts bad for your pet birds?- still remains unanswered for all pet owners. Some of them continue to feed their pet birds with peanuts, of course the amounts are not big and they announce that they haven’t found any illness effect. They assume peanuts as high-energy nutritional and because their birds love them and have fun, they outweigh the risk.
If you have decided to feed your pet bird with peanuts, neglecting the risk, there are some precautions to avoid the deadly Aflatoxins:

1)Be informed about the recent research on pet bird consumption of peanuts

2) the risk of Aflatoxins in dried, heated peanuts is lower so you’d better feed your pet bird unsalted, roasted peanuts

3) To decrease the risk of the growth of Aspergillus Flavus
if you feed your bird raw peanuts, you must be sure they have been grown, stored and shipped properly

4)Give your pet birds no more than 2 or 3 peanuts daily
5) Valencia or Spanish peanuts contain less Aflatoxins so use them if it is possible
6) human grade peanuts are less contaminated than bird seed mixes or animal feed

7) Buy your peanuts from reliable and quality sources you can trust
Consider carefully the risks and benefits of using peanuts as food for your pet birds and the decision is up to you.

Monday, April 27, 2009

Building a Canary Cage

You can build your canary not perfect but nice cage alone and all what is needed is to be slightly handy,. Even you’re not a carpenter, if you know how to do it your cage will be cheap, large, and easy to be done with these few steps here.
Use these simple directions:
1. Buy a j-tool, door fasteners ,a small wire clipper and some j-clips from a feed store and understand by asking the salesman how to use the tool. Buy some work or gardening gloves just in case the tool is hard on your hands
2. Buy a roll of ¼-inch (0.6 cm) hardware cloth which is your cage wire from the hardware store (or feed store.
3. Take the hardware cloth outside when you are already at home and hose it down thoroughly. The next step is to spray it with white vinegar and after this scrub it with a stiff copper or metal brush. This should be done because most hardware cloth are usually galvanized against rust which so it has a coating of zinc on it which is toxic to birds .
4. The hardware cloth should be left outside for about two weeks in the elements, then repeat the vinegar scrub and hose-down every second day.
5. The shapes easiest are round or oval if you’ve never done it before. The next step is dragging the end of the hardware cloth to a large place in the wire because you are building a big cage. Clip the end of the wire with the j-clips and j-tool to the chosen spot . You a ready with a round wire circle with no bottom or top.
6. Lay a flat piece of wire over the top of your circle which is overlapping the whole thing by about 3 inches (8 cm) and then clip the piece to the top of the circle. You can use a new roll or the rest of the wire.
7. Flip the circle over . Do it again with the other end.
8. You cage is like a circle and you have two square pieces overlapping each end. Now what you have to do is to flip the thing onto one side. Lay a piece of wire the squares and then clip it to them.
9. You should flip four flat pieces of wire onto each side .Now your cage is circular within a square cage. Cut a square hole about 6 x 6 inches (15 x 15 cm) into the center of it .
10. Cut a smaller square out of the circular part of the cage- a door within a door.
11. Then you should cut a few squares, clip the squares onto the left side of the door holes and the door fasteners to the right side of the doors .Be sure that they close flush. Usually two fasteners per door are needed.
12. When your double-wired cage is almost ready and safe from the weather to be kept outside, place it onto a stand or two hobbyhorses beneath a covered area.
13. Add water dishes, perches and food and you are ready now to keep a few canaries!








Wednesday, April 22, 2009

African Greys Cage

African Greys need to be out of the cage many hours every day and to interact with people and/or other birds . This is very important if you want to have a mentally healthy bird as the quantity of the time spent in the cage has a great effect on its quality of life and behavior..

The African Greys require large cages enough to flap their wings while they are inside. So when you decide what the minimum cage size to buy , the main factor you should consider is the size of your bird’s wingspan; this you should measure from wing-tip to wingtip when they are fully outstretched as when the birds fly. Generally African Greys have a wingspan of approximately 28 in (71cm); but the Timer’s are smaller at about 24 in (61 cm). A cage has three dimensions (height, depth, and width) so you should choose this cage which size allows the bird to flap its wings. It is not very easy to find a cage of these dimensions. Far more important dimensions are the width and depth of the African Greys cage than its height .

African Greys Cage Construction

Most cages are made of mild steel which is coated with different layers of enameled paint so that it cannot be damaged or removed by the bird. Of course, the best and the most expensive are made of stainless steel. Choose a cage whose bars are sufficiently thick and strong and your bird cannot bend
or damage them. African Greys like climbing so the cage should have horizontal and vertical bars with space between the bars no more than 1 in (25mm)so that bird can not poke their heads out between the bars . You may choose a African Greys cage with the food bowls hanged on swing–feeders and this way the food can be changed from outside .It is better the sliding tray in the base to be metal rather than plastic.