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Perches
What materials are perches made from?
Fabric & Rope Perches
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Grooming Perches
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Hardwood Perches
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Plastic/Thermo/Shower
Rubber Perches
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Shelf Perches
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Swings
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Recommended Perch sizes
Parrots when
roosting in the wild are heard but rarely seen. They hide in the treetops away
from the eyes of predators. When people walk up to your bird’s cage, you want
to hear – “where’s the bird?” A parrot in captivity does not know that their
natural predators cannot get to them in your home, so we need to provide them
with the ability to hide or camouflage themselves within their home.
Parrots on
display with few items to hide behind will develop behavior problems such as
feather destruction, biting, and screaming as a result of feeling insecure.
Weave paper
products and shredding toys in the cage bars and around the upper back corner
where the rope perch extends
Three
perches of diverse size thickness and texture (at the minimum) are required to
stimulate and exercise your bird’s feet. The main perch should be a
hardwood dowel or Manzanita running horizontally, in the middle of the cage.
Perch two, a rope or Booda “U- shaped” perch for sleeping should be placed in
the upper third of the cage near a privacy corner. Beyond offering a
sense of security, the rope provides a shredding alternative to feather pickers.
Introduce a
third texture for perch three. Sandy, concrete, Plexy-glass; diversity is
important here. Unless birds are in flight, they are on their feet. Humans will
shift posture while standing to seek comfort. Bird’s feet must consistently be
challenged for foot health. Nature doesn’t make life easy for prey birds, you
needn’t either. Making the birds work for food keeps them challenged.
Perches don’t have to be placed by food dishes. More perches provide more
“challenging” opportunities
Often over
looked but essential is the cage door perch. A bird “coming to you” on a
perched fastened to the inside of the cage door, encourages the bird to come to
the door perch before opening the door. With the bird on the door
perch, open the door – say, “Step – Up” while extending a firm hand. This
allows you to retrieve your feathered companion from their cage without entering
their territory.
Bringing
branches from the backyard may seem practical and economical, but harmful
parasites and other menaces may unknowingly be brought in as well. Woods such as
Apricot, Cherry, Peach, Prune, Plum or Nectarine belong to the Prunes species,
and contain cyanogenia glycosides, which releases cyanide if ingested.
Apple,
Arbutus, Ash, Aspen, Beech, Cottonwood, Crabapple, Dogwood, Elm, Fir, Hawthorn,
Larch, Magnolia, Mulberry, Pear, Pine Poplar, Redwood Sequoia and Willow are
safe but must be introduced with caution. Branches should be boiled to kill any
parasites before installing in a cage
What materials are perches made from?
Mitch Rezman
WindyCityParrot.com
The Avian supply Experts
Fabric & Rope Perches
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Grooming Perches
|
Hardwood Perches
|
Plastic/Thermo/Shower
Rubber Perches
|
Shelf Perches
|
Swings
|
Recommended Perch sizes |