Guide to Happy Lovebirds (Part 4)

[Indy]

Guide to Happy Lovebirds
Part 4 (Final)
by Indy


(Continued from Part 3)


Additional Suggestions

Indy and Mindy enjoy the following two additional benefits. At first I debated whether they were too trivial to share, but decided the first is indeed important, and the second is important in geographic areas where it gets very cold. Lovebirds require a minimal temperature, ideally around 80 degrees (although with a heated perch they seem to get by at 75 degrees without showing signs of discomfort).


Night Light

Last but most certainly not least (!!) is a white LCD night light. Using minimal power (pennies a year in cost) it has a light sensor. When the lights in the cage go out, the night light immediately goes on, illuminating the cage. I plug the night light onto a short extension cord, plugged into one of the power strips. The light is mounted to the upper corner of the cage. It is bright enough that I suggest aiming it at the cop of the cage, where it reflects off the cage bars and cover. This creates a pure white glow on the top of the cage that creates distinctive shadows of the cage topography, allowing the Lovebirds to safely navigate to their bath water if they must.

I noticed in the dark the Lovebirds would try to leave their perch, but fail. I wondered, "Why don't they just drink from the dripper of the hampster water tube, like they do during the day?" Although I don't know the definitive answer, I suspect at night they are disoriented and only remember their "giant" bath tub (at least large relative to their size). So they gravitate there to take a few sips of water, then return to their heated perch.

Trouble is that in complete dark, they sometimes trip and fall. There is nothing more distressing and disquieting than hearing a Lovebird's plaintive and panicky chirps as she falls to the cage floor, flutters around, and sometimes bumps her precious little head on a perch trying to right herself! I would hear this in the middle of the night, run into the room where they Lovebirds were, turn on the light and spend 10 minutes gently talking to them to quell their panic.

After getting the night light, I noticed the Lovebirds confidently walk over to the end of their heated perch, jump over to the bath, take a sip or two, and return to their heated perch to nestle with the other and immediately go back to sleep. That $5 night light is an incredibly good investment considering the alternative of pure darkness.


Small Heating Pad

This is important but optional, based on whether your Lovebirds may ever get exposed to unusually low temperatures in winter months.

I place a small heating pad from Sunbeam, on the LOW setting, on top of the cage cover over the heated perch.

The heating pad is plugged into a third timer, plugged into the power-strip. The heating bad goes on for 30 minute intervals starting at 10:30 PM through 6:00 AM, when it's coldest outside. The timer is set where the pins are up and down, so that the heating pad turns on and remains on for 30 minutes, then turns off and remains off for 30 minutes, the cycle repeating during the night hours.

The reason for on/off is because after 30 minutes, I noticed the Lovebirds started squirming as if it was getting too warm. Heat accumulates under a heating pad, which is meant to stay on a short time until it warms you up. So I experimented and discovered the Lovebirds are most comfortable when the heating pad remains on for 30 minutes, then turns off for 30 minutes to allow the area to cool down. By the time the area starts to get chilly, the heat goes on again for another 30 minutes. Necessity is the mother of invention.


("Guide to Happy Lovebirds" written by pen name Indy, November 2008 to share with readers of BirdBoard.com for the benefit and quality of life for all sweet little Lovebirds everywhere. Article inspired by Indy and Mindy. All rights reserved to post or publish elsewhere. End of article)

[Indy]

Small Heating Pad

This is important but optional, based on whether your Lovebirds may ever get exposed to unusually low temperatures in winter months.

I place a small heating pad from Sunbeam, on the LOW setting, on top of the cage cover over the heated perch.

To reword the obvious, heating pads are designed to be placed ON TOP of the target, and NOT under or wrapped around it. Sunbeam warns in its manual you must NEVER place a heating pad under you, or wrapped around you, or in areas that might get wet.

This applies to the Lovebirds in this manner:

• Never place the heating pad inside the cage!!
• Never place the heating pad under the cage!! (Duh?)
• Never place the heating pad near the cage bars where the Lovebirds can sink their beaks into it!!

As I said, slightly reworded, drape the heating pad OVER the top of the cage (and OVER the top of the cage cover) where it gets optimal ventilation. The heat radiates downward. Difficult as it is to believe, it heats FAST. After 30 minutes of heat on the medium setting, the Lovebirds started moving away from their heated perch under the heating pad. That is when I started to worry and rethink my strategy.

I found the LOW setting is best, and 30 minutes maximum "on" time is best (with 30 minutes "off" time) with a timer that has pins you push down or pull up to set on/off. As I said in the article, the pad reaches maximum intensity after 30 minutes and needs a cooling off period. That is why Sunbeam warns users not to leave the pad turned on for extended periods.

Even though I realize that I'm not liable for people's carelessness or improvisation of my suggestions, I do want to warn NOT to use any suggestions you read online without understanding the basic physics behind what you're doing. Recognize that any electronic gadgets in your home (even simple vacation timers for lighting) entails risk, even if arguably negligible.

[Indy]

Night light is in the upper-left corner of the photo.

Small heating pad (light blue) is draped over the cage, upper-right of photo, over the area of their heated perch where they sleep at night.

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Click on this link for high-resolution enlarged image.

[mayaexquisite]

Um... oh my...

I hope you don't think of me as mean or putting you down when you read this, but lovebird welfare is of great importance to me and I want to help you as well as others. I just went through all four posts of your "Guide to Happy Lovebirds." I hope you emphasize that this works for your birds and should not be suggested to others.

First I guess I should mention my experience just so I don't appear to be some Joe Shmoe. I've joined several parrot forums because 1) no one I know in real life gives two licks about lovebirds or birds in general and 2) I want to keep learning from people who are very experienced. I do not in any way consider myself an "expert" on lovebirds but I am constantly learning from other breeders. I've had lovebirds since 2000, when I had an aviary of about 15 lovebirds. I was a breeder for a couple of years, but had to stop due to space constraints. Since then, I've had my Mika for over seven years now (my very first born) and Kano for the past 4 1/4 years (as a rescue). My knowledge is a mixture of what I've experienced, what I've read (books and on-line), and what I've learned through various good breeders ('cause we all know there are people out there that don't know what they're doing) across the US.

Again, I hope you don't take offense to this and I hope everyone can take this and learn because I'm sure we all want our babies to be as happy and healthy as can be.

Things I do not agree with:

- Lovebirds do not need to be paired. Yes, each lovebird has it's own personality but IF an owner can give his/her lovebird lots of attention on a regular daily basis that lovebird can and will be happy. Your lovebirds seem to need each other because they are not getting the interaction from you (at least from what I've read). Neither of them are bonded with you, so they are bonded to each other. Now, it is true that most times when a lovebird already has a partner, whether same or opposite sex, your piece of the attention pie will get cut. But you can always be "second best." Mika was my only lovebird for a few years and he was as happy as can be. He even recognized the sound of my car and would begin chirping, knowing I had come home (as per my mom when I was living at my parents). Then I got Kano as a rescue and I became second fiddle, which was fine by me as long as they were happy. Mika is still bonded with me and wants to be with me and Kano has to tag along anywhere Mika goes.

- Lamps are debatable. I personally don't use them and my babies are happy and healthy. The only time I've heard of breeders or owners using a lamp is a heating lamp for sick birds.

- Music is not necessary for them. Yours obviously enjoy them, but just saying it's not necessary. Of the people I know, the only times music, TV, or radio is on is when they're out of the house and want something to keep their birds "company." The only reason I'm disagreeing on this is not because it's not nice to have music for them but just because it's not NEEDED. When you're home, they should be hearing YOUR voice.

- As far as bathing is concerned, each bird is different and is "happiest" bathing the way they like. Some birds love being misted with a fine spray bottle. Some birds love getting wet in the shower with their owner. Some like to dip into a bowl. Some like to bath in your cupped hands under running water. Some like warm water, some like cold. Also, you don't need to use distilled water. If you do have "bad" tap water, filtered water will do much better. And if you like, you can add a couple drops of apple cider vinegar in it to kill bacteria.

- There is debate about the heated perch. There have been birds that have gotten burned feet from them. Just because they're "warm" to our touch, doesn't mean it feels the exact same way for them and sometimes when the birds are sleeping, they don't realize the perch is slowly cooking their feet. I feel this is an unnecessary item because there will always be that chance they can get hurt.

- Millet sprays should not be given in such large amounts and at once. It's not because they'll "get fat" or anything like that. It's because millet doesn't have much nutritional value. It's really a treat. If you were a bird would you rather fill up on yummy yummy millet or the food in your bowl? Chances are they'll choose millet over most foods. So they're just getting lots and lots of nothing in their system. Also, there are some birds that get used to millet so much that they'll refuse to eat anything else. Lovebirds can definitely be finicky eaters.

- Kitty litter should NOT be used as a liner for your birds cage. Even if you think they can't reach it, you never know and they may somehow get to it. Also, if they don't eat it, they may be able to INHALE the powder portion of it which is definitely not good! Birds exhale and inhale 100% of their breaths, unlike us, so inhaling powdered kitty litter (among other things such as smoke, perfume, etc) could mean disaster. It should also not be used so that you don't have to clean the cage as often. Birds can get sick from inhaling the dust of their piled up poop, whether it be piled at the bottom of the cage or on their perches/other items. A bird cage should not be left for weeks without having been changed, for any reason. If having to change the bottom of the cage seems to disrupt your birds life then it's best to look into a cage where you can easily slide the bottom tray in and out. Liners should ideally be changed at least every few days and the cage should be cleaned weekly, including toys, perches, etc. Also, rather than letting your bird "forage" on millet that has been touched by kitty litter, you can provide other foraging activities for them such as putting treats in crumpled piece of paper or brown paper bag. There are also toys made specifically for foraging.

- There was no mention about a lovebirds diet. Rather than providing a bushel of millet, fruits, veggies, pastas, grains, etc. should be offered daily. A good seed (with very little or no sunflower seeds because they are high in fat) and pellet diet is also required. My babies are stubborn and will only eat seed, Nutriberries, carrots, broccoli, popcorn, and dried papaya currently but I never give up in introducing new healthy foods. The ratio of seed and pellet are constantly debated over because one Avian vet says this and another says that. But as long as your birds are eating the things I listed above, lots of pellet isn't really necessary. A "healthy" diet may consist of 70% seed, 30% pellet, fruits, veggies, pasta, grains, calcium rich food like eggs, etc. Again, avian diet is and will probably always be debated over, so consult your Avian vet as far as seed/pellet is concerned. As far as their water goes, if you're going to put liquid vitamins or calcium in it (which is really unnecessary if you provide them all I've listed) you have to constantly change their water. You cannot leave it all day long. A good thing to put in their water, however, is a little bit of apple cider vinegar to kill any bacteria. (On a side note, ACV is also great for rinsing their fresh foods and cleaning their cages.)

(continued in another post because I didn't know posts could only be 10000 characters long)

[mayaexquisite]

(continuation of previous post)

- There was no mention of outside-the-cage time, which is really important for their physical and mental wellbeing. If birds are going to be kept in a cage 24/7, they should be provided a very large aviary to fly in. Birds need space to play and roam in order to really be happy. My babies are in their cage when I'm at work, but once I'm home their doors open and they out playing on their playgyms and other toys. This goes for untame birds as well. If you feel you can't clip your birds flights, you can get your vet to do it or some pet stores will do it for you. You can provide a way for them to get back in their cage on their own if you're afraid of being bitten by providing a ladder of some sorts for them. I, myself, have a wooden bead ladder that goes from the cage to the floor so they can go in and out as they please. Others I know have gotten creative and made rope ladders made from a bird-safe material. Providing them with play gym(s) and foraging baskets/bowls is also a great way to stimulate them. I have a foraging bowl where I have toys such as small wicker balls, jacks, Chinese finger traps, and other shreddables along with snacks hidden in crumpled up paper and a play gym with ladders, toys, bells, and a snack bowl.

- There was not much mention of inside-the-cage environment. Parrots need constant stimulation because they're such bright birds. You should have enough toys so that you can rotate them WEEKLY and have enough toys in the cage. There should be perches of varying sizes and materials - natural wood perches, sand perches (not sandpaper covers - those are a no no), rope perches, etc. They need this in order to have good foot health and we all know they're on their feet all day! A mineral block/cuttlebone should be added to aide in beak trimming/health. Now, some birds don't care for it so if you notice your birds don't ever touch the block or cuttlebone, by all means remove it but make sure your birds have a healthy diet. These are the bare essentials for inside the cage.

- There was no mention of health issues. A really big "problem" with birds is that they often (more like most of the time) show NO symptoms of being sick until it's too late. By the time you see symptoms, it may be and is often too late. There are so many horror stories of people writing about how their bird was "fine and active" one day and the next day breathing heavily, lethargic, and shaking at the bottom of the cage about to die. Take your bird to the vet for check-ups. Also, a bird needs to be quarantined for a good month when bringing it home into an environment where you already have birds. They need to be kept in a separate cage in a completely separate room, and take them to the vet for an initial check up. Even if the vet says the bird has a clean bill of health, it's still good to quarantine. A healthy lovebird is (or at least should be *lol*) a happy lovebird.

I do agree on:

- Having their cage(s) where you frequent most, but that is not always realistic obviously. A lot of people have "bird rooms" and their birds are perfectly fine and happy because they get their outside cage time with their owners. My aviary was in a completely different room because they needed that entire room for their cages and what not, but they always had their "play time" with me in the living area. Even some of my breeders who were not "tame" still had their outside of the cage time with me.

I'm glad that you had emphasized that your birds are "unique." This set-up apparently works for you but I hope you think about this in the long run. I really wouldn't want anything to happen to your birds!