feathers feathers everywhere and not a bird to eat

Message 133 of 440

its harder these days to keep the kids cleaned up. anyone have any good bird keeping hints?

posted by jay v.

Hi, You might want to ask some specific bird keeping questions. I know with respect to keeping the area around the birds cleaned up, I've been fortunate in that mine don't fling wet foods, though they do the dry stuff which is easily vacuumed up. Cages are another matter as some of the wet stuff that gets dried onto the cage can be like cement to remove. I do know some take the cages out doors and power clean. The cages are too heavy for me to do that so I'm stuck with elbow grease. For dried poop I use a product called Poop Off that works wonders and easily removes dried on poop from just about any surface from cloth to carpet to hard surfaces smooth or grooved.

posted by mshadow22
about 1 year ago

Our dearly departed Blue Crown - I used to tell her that her poop was more effective than any glue I knew of. I wash cages and stands outside.

If you're a "neat and clean freak", birds aren't for you! After all these years with birds in the house, I'd feel outta place if there weren't feathers and seed hulls EVERYwhere! Until recently, I've used sheets of ASB plastic situated right under the cages/stands. It helps, but I've quit using it of late - can't explain why!

posted by Arcade
about 1 year ago

I have a Parrotlet who can be messy for such a tiny bird. She is very easy to keep up with since she is an "only" bird and so little that her messes are small. Parrotlets are great apartment birds with their small noises and messes. But huge personalities.

posted by laateedaah1949
about 1 year ago

Thank you Mary for your tip about Poop Off. Ordered it online and tried it for the first time today. It does quite a remarkable job of getting the "poop off," much better than conventional household cleaners. The only thing that worried me a bit was the odor. Do you think its silicone I smell? Its not unlike the Shown Sheen I use on my horse's tail which is largely silicone. The manufacturer claims it is safe to use with your bird in the cage. But just to be sure, I put Pepper on the porch for a few hours while I cleaned the cage & let the odor dissipate. I was pleased with the effectiveness of the product.

posted by MizTerry
about 1 year ago

It's perfectly safe and is biodegradable - developed by a bird owner - so I don't think it's silicone. I've used it for years with no problems whatsoever. I've gotten used to the odor

I found the following ingredients listed at: view link

Ingredients
Water, Active Enzymes, Surfactant, and Fragrance.

posted by mshadow22
about 1 year ago

i simply use warm water and vinegar. been using it for years and it cuts thru the poop better than poop off i think. not to mention cheaper and no chemical smells to deal with. even use it when my chihuahua can't seem to find her paper.

bought an empty spray bottle and on cage cleaning day mix 1/2 hot water and 1/2 white vinegar and go for it.

posted by mollyputts
about 1 year ago

I use the Vinegar solution for basic cleaning of the cage bars, but I have to admit I'm not fond of the vinegar smell.

I use the Poop Off for poop at the bottom of the cage and any that gets on the floor or in extremely rare circumstances, the wall. I really don't mind the poop off fragrance & the odor is not from chemicals.

posted by mshadow22
about 1 year ago

I'll give the vinegar & water a try too. Thanks for the suggestions all.

posted by MizTerry
about 1 year ago

my little dogs scarf up anything the birds drop on the floor, one even goes and sits up and begs for my grey when he's eating.
I have a large galvanized tub out by my well that I soak the cage trays in when they're bad then rinse them off with the hose.
I recently started lining the cage bottoms with freezer paper droppings don't soak through it, the corncob litter I have used for years was getting too expensive.

posted by marly
about 1 year ago