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What's On The Bottom Of Your Cage?


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Never ever use cat litter, Corn cob bedding or the like it all harbors bacteria plus there is no such thing as "non- toxic" cat litter it is all very dusty! and that is NOT good on the birds lungs at all

 

Must be said there is a big difference in types of cat litter between countries. There's a cat litter here thats clay based and is really good for bottom of cages and even nestboxes. FUSSYCAT cat litter is good.

We dont have corn cob bedding here or the carefresh stuff I hear talked about in the USA and I am kinda glad we dont.

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Guest K&M Breeding

Never ever use cat litter, Corn cob bedding or the like it all harbors bacteria plus there is no such thing as "non- toxic" cat litter it is all very dusty! and that is NOT good on the birds lungs at all

 

Must be said there is a big difference in types of cat litter between countries. There's a cat litter here thats clay based and is really good for bottom of cages and even nestboxes. FUSSYCAT cat litter is good.

We dont have corn cob bedding here or the carefresh stuff I hear talked about in the USA and I am kinda glad we dont.

 

 

I've never seen cat litter that wasn't all dusty - but I'll have to look for it maybe there is some here and since I don't have cats any more I just never noticed it

 

I use care fresh and Like it very much, Actually last breeding season i did switch to Aspen bedding after being told its the BEST to use (at least in the U.S.) and that care fresh dries eggs out and other stuff

but I will be going back to care fresh here soon as soon as I can get to the store to get it, I've had MORE problems since Switching to Aspen bedding then I ever had in 2 1/2 yrs of using Care Fresh since switching to Aspen I've had a Higher rate of Babies dying at a 1-2 days old, Eggs never hatching , and Dead in Shell eggs .. I had some of the problems with care fresh but I only had maybe a total of 4 issues a breeding season when using care fresh rather it was a baby dying at just a few days old, Dead in shell egg or eggs never hatching or a combo of all the above

This season alone I've had at least 8 babies die within being 2 days old, well over 12 eggs either never hatch or was dead in shell oh and I have to change it More often than I ever did care fresh it gets wet and icky and stinky really quickly after the parent(s) poop in the nest box and it makes my nest box stink bad that after 1 clutch I have to spray it out with soap and water and sit it out side to dry (when i clean it when the babies are no longer with the parents) when I used care fresh I only had to do that with my Lovebirds because they shred it up and make their own nests and they pack that stuff in thick I'd give them 1" of bedding they'd turn it in to 8 or 9 inches by the time they had it made to their liking I always had to use a trowel to dig the bedding out because they'd pack it in so tightly

 

so for me that is a big enough difference to go back to using Care fresh the biggest issue I ever had with it is when I bought the White Care Fresh - and never could get good pictures in the nest box So now I stick to the brown :)

 

I wish they'd stop selling the Corn Cob bedding I know its intended for Rodents But I'm sure its not really good for them either since it is very good at harboring bacteria and all the rodents I know just potty where ever they stand So i'm sure its gross for them too

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Oh gosh, haven't been on here in a while. LOL

 

Just to let everyone know, Dalek is happily sitting on newspaper on the bottom of his cage. He loves to run around it to make it crinkle and rip the corners up when I don't put them down flat enough to keep him away from them.

 

Thank you so much for telling me about the dangers of sand sheets, and i'm sure to tell any of my friends not to get them if they buy budgies. I have also started to only buy what I need from the pet shops and ignore their suggestions for things that I don't need. Such as one of those darn bird snuggies!

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Oh gosh, haven't been on here in a while. LOL

 

Just to let everyone know, Dalek is happily sitting on newspaper on the bottom of his cage. He loves to run around it to make it crinkle and rip the corners up when I don't put them down flat enough to keep him away from them.

 

Thank you so much for telling me about the dangers of sand sheets, and i'm sure to tell any of my friends not to get them if they buy budgies. I have also started to only buy what I need from the pet shops and ignore their suggestions for things that I don't need. Such as one of those darn bird snuggies!

 

 

They also make (And try very hard to get customers to buy them) Perch covers - that actually is nothing more than a piece of sand paper that goes over top of a dowel perch- Don't buy those either- its the same thing as the Sand paper sheets they sell for the bottom of the cage

 

and those stupid "mite protectors" I really wish they'd be outlawed I see so many cages with them on there when people post pics of their birds on line I spend a lot of my time messaging them (specially when i find them on craigs list) explaining how those things are actually toxic to the birds and have been known to be the cause to kill them.

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and those stupid "mite protectors" I really wish they'd be outlawed I see so many cages with them on there when people post pics of their birds on line I spend a lot of my time messaging them (specially when i find them on craigs list) explaining how those things are actually toxic to the birds and have been known to be the cause to kill them.

Me too :D But luckily they arent sold here in Australia

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and those stupid "mite protectors" I really wish they'd be outlawed I see so many cages with them on there when people post pics of their birds on line I spend a lot of my time messaging them (specially when i find them on craigs list) explaining how those things are actually toxic to the birds and have been known to be the cause to kill them.

Me too :D But luckily they arent sold here in Australia

 

 

Yeah, I agree with you both! And I read somewhere on line when I got my first two budgies, because their cage came with one, that the mites those are meant to repel aren't even a common problem among pet birds in America. You don't need to repel something that isn't there in the first place!:huh:

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Oh gosh, haven't been on here in a while. LOL

 

Just to let everyone know, Dalek is happily sitting on newspaper on the bottom of his cage. He loves to run around it to make it crinkle and rip the corners up when I don't put them down flat enough to keep him away from them.

 

Thank you so much for telling me about the dangers of sand sheets, and i'm sure to tell any of my friends not to get them if they buy budgies. I have also started to only buy what I need from the pet shops and ignore their suggestions for things that I don't need. Such as one of those darn bird snuggies!

 

 

They also make (And try very hard to get customers to buy them) Perch covers - that actually is nothing more than a piece of sand paper that goes over top of a dowel perch- Don't buy those either- its the same thing as the Sand paper sheets they sell for the bottom of the cage

 

and those stupid "mite protectors" I really wish they'd be outlawed I see so many cages with them on there when people post pics of their birds on line I spend a lot of my time messaging them (specially when i find them on craigs list) explaining how those things are actually toxic to the birds and have been known to be the cause to kill them.

 

 

Yeah, they've already tried to make me buy the perch covers. I ran my finger along it and my finger actually got cut a little and I was like 'Right, if it does that to my finger, what the *** do you think it's gonna do to my budgies feet?!' And the woman looked at me and just sighed. I was completly shocked that they would try and sell me something like that! I just stick with the plastic perch my cage came with, because I am getting a new cage hopefully tomorrow, it's a huge one and when I get it, i'll be sure to change the perches to some wood ones like the ones in our aviary.

 

What about those calcium perches? What are they like for their feet?

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Guest K&M Breeding

Oh gosh, haven't been on here in a while. LOL

 

Just to let everyone know, Dalek is happily sitting on newspaper on the bottom of his cage. He loves to run around it to make it crinkle and rip the corners up when I don't put them down flat enough to keep him away from them.

 

Thank you so much for telling me about the dangers of sand sheets, and i'm sure to tell any of my friends not to get them if they buy budgies. I have also started to only buy what I need from the pet shops and ignore their suggestions for things that I don't need. Such as one of those darn bird snuggies!

 

 

They also make (And try very hard to get customers to buy them) Perch covers - that actually is nothing more than a piece of sand paper that goes over top of a dowel perch- Don't buy those either- its the same thing as the Sand paper sheets they sell for the bottom of the cage

 

and those stupid "mite protectors" I really wish they'd be outlawed I see so many cages with them on there when people post pics of their birds on line I spend a lot of my time messaging them (specially when i find them on craigs list) explaining how those things are actually toxic to the birds and have been known to be the cause to kill them.

 

 

Yeah, they've already tried to make me buy the perch covers. I ran my finger along it and my finger actually got cut a little and I was like 'Right, if it does that to my finger, what the *** do you think it's gonna do to my budgies feet?!' And the woman looked at me and just sighed. I was completly shocked that they would try and sell me something like that! I just stick with the plastic perch my cage came with, because I am getting a new cage hopefully tomorrow, it's a huge one and when I get it, i'll be sure to change the perches to some wood ones like the ones in our aviary.

 

What about those calcium perches? What are they like for their feet?

 

 

The pet shops are in it for the money - they'll do anything to make a sale

 

I use the calcium perches all the time, LOVE THEM as does my birds

 

I also use ones made by Sandy Perch(that is the brand name of them) they're grooming perches and I have some swings Made the same way for grooming

 

Also rope perches are loved by all my birds My budgies love theirs, my lovebirds love them TOO much I can't give it to them they destroy them to make a nest with the material :(

 

I have some like this

sandy%20perch.jpg

 

 

My swings are like this only sized for the bird they go for - this is the size I use for most of my budgies but in my community cage I have tiel sized so more than 1 can sit on it at once and share the swings

 

pedicure_bird_swing.jpg

 

And I have ones like this

lg-26368-40660-bird.jpg

 

Been using them all for 4 years They're AWESOME none of my birds get sores from them(and most sleep on the perches or swings no matter where I put them in the cage) and the only time I've ever had to trim nails is when I get a bird with over grown nails I trim them when I first get them if they're over grown and I never trim their nails again

Edited by K&M Breeding
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I dont have calcium perches, sandpaper perches or pumice stone perrches and none of my 240 budgies or any of the hundreds of budgies I have ever had have had nail growth issues :(

 

I cant believe how many unnecessary petshop products are sold to dupe the public and how many people believe that certain things are needed when they are NOT.

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I have one small perch in the cage that's got calcium and iodine in it. It's made of the same stuff that those blocks are that they munch on, just in perch form.

 

For a domestic situation, I quite like it. It saves me hanging up mineral blocks or bells, and kinda complements the mainly natural perches I have.

 

Absolutely not necessary if you prefer to hang up a calcium and iodine bell though.

 

Anything with sandpaper on it should be trashed. It can do terrible damage to their little feet.

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Anything edible that is dual purpose and they use it as a perch is going to get pooped on and contaminated in a very short space of time. Not my idea of a safe thing for a bird.

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hmmmmm. I haven't had a problem with that, but see your point.

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I have one small perch in the cage that's got calcium and iodine in it. It's made of the same stuff that those blocks are that they munch on, just in perch form.

 

For a domestic situation, I quite like it. It saves me hanging up mineral blocks or bells, and kinda complements the mainly natural perches I have.

 

Absolutely not necessary if you prefer to hang up a calcium and iodine bell though.

 

Anything with sandpaper on it should be trashed. It can do terrible damage to their little feet.

 

I had one of those perches, Spent a nice amount of money on it too Then I put it in a cage with 12 budgies and about 4 hrs later it was nothing but the Stainless Steel rod that held it to the cage They destroyed it lol

 

I knew it wouldn't last forever BUT i really thought they'd at least allow it to last a week But at least I know they liked it even if in my mind it was money down the drain since it only lasted 4 hours before they had it devoured lol

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I cant believe how many unnecessary petshop products are sold to dupe the public and how many people believe that certain things are needed when they are NOT.

 

Kaz, is there a place in this forum that has a list of what pet shops try and sell you that aren't really needed?

 

Because I would love to read it if there really is one, because my pet shop that I go is forever trying to sell me stuff, and for a teenager who is new to budgies, it is extremely confusing to try and work out what is needed to give the bird the best life, and what isn't needed due to safety issues or it just being a waste of money.

 

 

And we have the calcium perches in our aviary, but on the floor we also have some logs and that for the quails, which the budgies like to muck around on and also some branches. So it's pretty silly that we have them, I think dad just likes the extra bit of colour they give lol.

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Hello all,

i used to use newspaper on the bottom of the cages w/o the grate cause I didnt like them walking on the wire but, they would shred the newspaper to tiny bits.

 

Then after I got birds again, i thought the newspaper wasnt all that safe to them with the ink on them and all. I thought it would be toxic. so, i went with Kaytee's Wood Pellet Bedding that they sell at my local PetSmart store. When I first started using it, it was great since I had a medium sized cage for two but as I got more parakeets I went with a bigger and wider cage meaning more wooden pellets. I change their bedding every week to a week and a half and it's starting to go by quick with two cages now. I'm thinking of switching back to newspaper but i dont know yet. :| The wooden pellets smell fresher. And if water or a bowl accidentally touches the floor (which is rare since I got those water feeder tubes) the pellets absorb all the water. still don't know if that's good or bad but kinda cool.

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Guest K&M Breeding

Hello all,

i used to use newspaper on the bottom of the cages w/o the grate cause I didnt like them walking on the wire but, they would shred the newspaper to tiny bits.

 

Then after I got birds again, i thought the newspaper wasnt all that safe to them with the ink on them and all. I thought it would be toxic. so, i went with Kaytee's Wood Pellet Bedding that they sell at my local PetSmart store. When I first started using it, it was great since I had a medium sized cage for two but as I got more parakeets I went with a bigger and wider cage meaning more wooden pellets. I change their bedding every week to a week and a half and it's starting to go by quick with two cages now. I'm thinking of switching back to newspaper but i dont know yet. :| The wooden pellets smell fresher. And if water or a bowl accidentally touches the floor (which is rare since I got those water feeder tubes) the pellets absorb all the water. still don't know if that's good or bad but kinda cool.

 

 

newspaper ink is make of Soy - at least here in the U.S it is which makes it 100% Safe I just don't use the slick ads in any cage they can reach them

 

I wouldn't use any sort of bedding as They harbor bacteria

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i use sawdust on floor my flights which is also used as nesting materials

they do not harbor bacteria :blink:

splat had a great idea of moving the wire and trays position so as the birds are on tray not wire

look in her new bird room thread will find it in their

nothing wrong with what your using

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Guest K&M Breeding

i use sawdust on floor my flights which is also used as nesting materials

they do not harbor bacteria :blink:

splat had a great idea of moving the wire and trays position so as the birds are on tray not wire

look in her new bird room thread will find it in their

nothing wrong with what your using

 

 

do you have a lot of babies or adults die from breathing in saw dust??

 

Saw dust isn't even good for humans to inhale, it's even worse for birds to inhale

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do you have a lot of babies or adults die from breathing in saw dust??

 

Saw dust isn't even good for humans to inhale, it's even worse for birds to inhale

 

 

A lot of nesting materials used here in australia is saw dust or wood shavings from safe wood. I have not been able to attribute any deaths to using this for bedding.

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I don't use saw dust, I use wood shavings bedding for rabbits etc. Perfectly safe for the birds. I buy it from the pet store.

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concrete floor, dusted with some garden lime, wood shavings over.

 

cabinets local newspaper, changed weekly

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I have always used the grate with newspaper in the slideout tray. I recently had someone suggest to me to put shellgrit on the bottom without the grate. (Pet shop sells bulk 4kg shellgrit so not too bad an expense factor). He said it would save the seed the babies flick out and help sharpen his toenails. I thought i'd give it a go and did this 2 days ago. What do u guys think of this??

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Interesting i have never heard of this.

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I have always used the grate with newspaper in the slideout tray. I recently had someone suggest to me to put shellgrit on the bottom without the grate. (Pet shop sells bulk 4kg shellgrit so not too bad an expense factor). He said it would save the seed the babies flick out and help sharpen his toenails. I thought i'd give it a go and did this 2 days ago. What do u guys think of this??

Not necessary......more petshop blurb selling shellgrit for budgie cages.....wont save seed....its going to land on the floor of the cage no matter whats down there.........and will NOT help sharpen toenails.....not that they need them sharpened anyway.

Just another petshop employee selling a person something they dont need. :blink:

Edited by **KAZ**
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Saw Dust is a common term used in Australia for Wood Shavings. There is no harm to the birds using Wood Shavings from untreated pine wood.

 

 

 

It is advisable not to use Wood Shavings from treated timbers.

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