Buying cages online

[StellaBlue]

Has anyone purchased caging online? I'm thinking about redoing all my cages over the next few months (mostly prompted by the need for better caging for the bratty new severe) and I'm seeing great pricing and selection. I'd love to hear from anyone who has ordered from an online retailer.

Has anyone used

America's Pet Store

We're looking at this cage for Sam and Al, our macaws:

Double Macaw Cage


and this one for our pair of timneh greys:

Medium Cage with Breeder Box Door

We'd then move the little severe into the cage the timnehs are now using, which is similar but does not have the breeder box door (we are considering setting the timnehs up later, so this would allow the option when we choose to do so).

If you have these cages, how do you like them? If you've ordered (anything) from this company, how was your experience with them? If you've ordered from here or ordered any cage online, would you do it again?

Regards,
Rita

[Stizby]

I believe there are several people on this forum who have the double macaw cage and I will let them respond to whether they are happy with theirs, as I do not have one.

I have gotten 2 cages off e-bay and have been very satisfied with them -- both as to quality and price. You might want to check out e-bay.

[The Outlaw]

I think that if you are actually going to use the double macaw cage for 2 birds, you may be a bit dissapointed. It only gives each bird something like 33 inches square inside dimensions, and that's pretty tight for a larger macaw. Most folks that I know who have the double cage have removed the divider and just housed one large bird inside. Or, if your birds aren't bonded, you could house both birds inside without the divider. Close quarters lead to broken feathers, stressed birds and often behavioral issues. That's exactly why I haven't tossed out my regular macaw cages and replaced them with double cages.

And for the record, I have had nothing but bad experiences when housing 2 big birds together. Gary (Winged Victory) routinely does so with no problems. I guess its all about the individual birds.

[Breelynne]

I have never tried buying cages on e-bay but I have purchased other things with excellent results. I research the buyers terms and conditions, shipping prices and I alway read feedback left by others who have purchased from the seller.

A little OT here but I wanted to say Stizby is that your macaw that your using for your avatar?
What a beautiful bird.

[Stizby]

Yes, that's him. Thank you for the compliment. I think he is a stunner too!

[StellaBlue]

Originally Posted by The Outlaw

I think that if you are actually going to use the double macaw cage for 2 birds, you may be a bit dissapointed. It only gives each bird something like 33 inches square inside dimensions, and that's pretty tight for a larger macaw. Most folks that I know who have the double cage have removed the divider and just housed one large bird inside. Or, if your birds aren't bonded, you could house both birds inside without the divider. Close quarters lead to broken feathers, stressed birds and often behavioral issues. That's exactly why I haven't tossed out my regular macaw cages and replaced them with double cages.

And for the record, I have had nothing but bad experiences when housing 2 big birds together. Gary (Winged Victory) routinely does so with no problems. I guess its all about the individual birds.

This would be for Sam and Al (sb/g & greenwing - see the Macaws board) who are already bonded and housed together. It's an attempt (along with controled lighting and diet, per Yehudasf) to keep them from reproducing. This was the largest double cage I could find. I'm also open to suggestions for building one. I was originally going to build them an outside aviary, but that wouldn't permit the strictly controlled lighting, so we are looking for better indoor housing options.

The timnehs, btw, are perfectly charming housed together, and we haven't had any trouble with either one. Even though the male is a parent-raised bird intended as a breeder, he's still friendly, moderately handleable, and cute as a bug. Don't know if you consider greys "big birds" or not - guess it depends on your perspective <g>

Regards,
Rita

[cfulhage]

I have ordered 1 cage off of ebay, and I can't remember where the other came from. I was more pleased with the one from ebay. I got free shipping on both, and the cage prices, IMO, were very reasonable. I'm sure I will always order cages online.

I think greys are considered medium sized birds. But I agree with it depending on your perspective! Before I got my cag, I only had my tiel, so Ollie is very large to me!

[Alika]

I bought Sam's cage on Ebay. It wasn't misrepresented, and I bought it according to the minimum size specifications for BFA's (it was actually a little bigger than the minimum)

But it's hard to tell what you are getting if you haven't seen it in person so you can visualize your bird in it. Sam's cage, though adequate, is a bit smaller than I had envisioned it and I was ultimately disappointed.

I got free shipping on it, and an excellent price (I paid $120, as compared to Beeper's cage of similar size and quality which I bought in a petstore for $500 and it was missing pieces...) I would definitely do it again, but check and recheck those sizes and bar spacing every way you can think of before you buy it. It won't do you any good if you just buy another one a year later because you feel like your bird would be happier in something bigger.

I have absolutely no experience with the double macaw cages, but had a thought when I read through this: if you can't house the birds together in a single cage, I"m guessing there is a reason for it? A divider between a cage doesn't seem sufficient to me to separate the two birds if it is just wiring. My concern would be one bird biting the other bird's toes. This happened to Cami last year, and happened to one of our 'zons at work years ago. My vet says it is a common problem.

I, personally, wouldn't consider housing two birds like that, where they could potentially get at each other's feet. Of course, I haven't actually seen these cages in person and maybe I just have a bad idea of how they are supposed to work. Maybe this sort of accident isn't possible with the design of the cage. It's just my thought.

[StellaBlue]

Originally Posted by Alika

.

I have absolutely no experience with the double macaw cages, but had a thought when I read through this: if you can't house the birds together in a single cage, I"m guessing there is a reason for it? A divider between a cage doesn't seem sufficient to me to separate the two birds if it is just wiring. My concern would be one bird biting the other bird's toes. This happened to Cami last year, and happened to one of our 'zons at work years ago. My vet says it is a common problem.

I, personally, wouldn't consider housing two birds like that, where they could potentially get at each other's feet. Of course, I haven't actually seen these cages in person and maybe I just have a bad idea of how they are supposed to work. Maybe this sort of accident isn't possible with the design of the cage. It's just my thought.

Alika, thanks for sharing your cage-buying experiences. The birds in question are already housed together. I'm not trying to keep them from *fighting*, I'm trying to keep them from, ummm...*mating* <g>

Regards,
Rita