Cold weather

[bazie]

I need to take tookie to get his wings clipped soon but I am worried about taking him out in winter. Wont he be cold?? How do i get him there without being cold?
My father is always telling me how drafts kill birds so quick is that true?

[Astrid660]

drafts are not GOOD for a bird, but I'm sure tookie will be okay if the car is pre-warmed and there is a blankie in the carrier for him and a towel over the carrier to block from wind.

[Tom Lawless]

Yup...what Astrid said.

[Lori~D]

I warm up the car real good or plan on another short trip before you get him to make sure the inside is all toasty warm. I wrap the carrier in a thick blanket. Go from house to car and then open blanket for air. Make sure car is warm agin before leaving vet office. You should be fine.

[Monica]

Drafts don't kill birds, however a sudden change in temperature can bother them... particularly if the bird is unhealthy. With that said, in the winter my house is usually 65-74° F in the winter, but as cold as the 50's in my room and the bird room. I've taken Charlie outside in below freezing temps (with snow on the ground) and nothing "happened"... sure, he flew, and he didn't really like his feet being cold, but he didn't fall over an die! He wasn't out there for long, either!

If drafts killed birds, then we'd have no wild birds to speak of! A bird who is used to 75-85° F temps year-round wont die if they are outside in the cold for a few mins, however, if they are outside, in below freezing weather, with no food, no water, no protection from the elements, and they don't know what to do, out there for hours, then yes, that will affect their health.


With that in mind, if you want to keep your bird more comfortable, warm up the car before you take your bird out. Take him out in a small cage/carrier, and cover with a towel or blanket. You can even add in some hot water bottles for the extra heat.

[Lori~D]

I disagree - Drafts DO kill birds and will kill a bird in a heartbeat. I believe you are referring to breezes. There is a big differance between outdoor birds and a breeze than a cool draft in an otherwise warm house. Even a "draft" in a cold unheated barn can make a horse very very sick. But My open breezy shed is fine. There is a difference. Drafts DO kill birds! And yes sudden drastic temp changes will hurt as well. I keep bird outdoors until the temps drop in the lower 40s but I could never put them out in those temps now while they are acclimated to 68-72 indoor temps.

[bazie]

okay thanks
I will prewarm the car and wrap the carrier up!!
I havent taken him yet because i was too worried i would make him sick!

[alohashark]

I have the vet tech come to the house on a house call to clip Mister Nibbles' wings. I sometimes leave them out fully flighted so he can fly, and clip them occassionally for some calmer time (like around the holidays when there might be candles, more cooking, etc.)

I live in Manhattan so there are a lot of options, and distance is not an issue, so this might not be possible for you, but with the weather and all, if your vet tech is willing to come to your house you might be surprised that they are willing to offer this service - especially an avian vet's office - it is so convenient for the birds when the weather is cold.

[bazie]

Well unfortunatly I wont be able to get a vet tech to my house. And the avian vet is out of the question too. I do live in a rural area and there are not vets here i would trust to clip him. (i dont think theres any avian vets around here).
I was thinking about taking him back to were i bought him from. Which is a pet store but a good one!! Every bird there is loved and proberly taken care of.
I would feel better taking him back there to have his wings done. It is about an 1.5 drive from me.

[lcgrey]

Hello,

We normally keep our house from 59-63F but we've discovered that our furnace is broken and the house is currently 50F and dropping. It's in the 20s outside tonight. What is 'too cold' for a cockatiel? Also, I know this is a silly question, but how do I cover his cage properly - doesn't he need good airflow? Thanks for your help.

Laurie

P.S. Little fellow in question is Maggie, 5 year old male cockatiel in excellent health (who's never had his cage covered by his newbie bird family).