Your bird’s cage is more than just a place to stash him when he?s not with you. It is your birds safe haven where he will play, sleep and eat. A suitable cage is his protection from other pets and children. It is where he should be when you are performing dangerous tasks such as cooking and when you will have doors or windows open.
Birds can be very territorial and possessive of their cages. This is a very natural behavior. In the wild birds guard their nests and favorite trees from other birds. Your birds cage becomes his nest at night where he feels safe enough to relax and sleep. Covering his cage will add to his sense of his security.
What size cage should your bird have? Purchase the largest cage you can afford and accommodate in your home. (The first cage a new bird owner buys often ends up being used as a travel cage and/or the next birds cage). At the very least, a bird must be able to fully open its wings and flap without hitting the cage itself, toys and perches. Long tailed birds like macaws, conures and those in the parakeet family need a cage tall enough to accommodate their tails. Small flighted birds like canaries and finches need enough room to fly to and fro for exercise. When choosing a cage be sure to take into consideration room for extra perches, toys, ladders, swings and additional food/water bowls.
Another thing to consider when purchasing a cage is bar spacing. Small birds should not be able to stick their heads between bars and large birds should not be able to get toes caught between bar spaces. Budgies, finches, parrotlets, canaries and lovebirds should have bar spacing from 3/8 to ½ inch, Cockatiels, small conures and other small parrots from ½ to 3/4 inch, Amazons, small cockatoos, African greys, Pionus and Eclectus from 3/4 to 1 inch and Macaws, large cockatoos and some of the bigger Amazons from 3/4 to 1 ½ inches.
Other cage considerations are: Large entry door, pull out trays, grating, outside feeder access, seedguard, handle to carry small cages, casters to roll away large cages, secure door and feeder openings for houdini type parrots and a cagetop play area.
Note: And, now for the sales pitch!! We have a wide selection of cages for the smallest finch to the largest macaw at Bird Is The Word.