Guidelines For Good Care                                                                                                               

 

 

Household Hazards 
 

 

Teflon is Deadly!
Birds can die within minutes of a Teflon pot overheating. At normal temperatures it is safe, but when it gets overheated it puts out a poisonous gas that we can't smell. Some home heating appliances have Teflon or other coatings on the wires to prevent corrosion before sale. These MUST be "broken in" before being used around the birds. Using the "self-clean" function on a self-cleaning oven around a bird can be deadly. Heavy cooking fumes and burnt foods are also potentially dangerous.
 

Cleaning Chemicals
Use mild soaps and detergents. Keep birds away when cleaning carpets or any strong cleaners. No aerosols including Fabreeze, air fresheners, hair spray, perfumes, etc.

 

Bug spray is designed to kill!

Keep it away from your bird and do not use the mite killer boxes that some pet shops sell for your cage as the chemicals inside can be harmful.
 

Scented candles and room fresheners
These can be very dangerous. Do not use them anywhere around your birds.
 

Other pets
... may seem to get along with the birds but cats and dogs eat birds naturally in the wild and their instincts may take over. Keep thinking Tweety and Sylvester. They MUST BE SUPERVISED when near one another. DO NOT PUT TWO BIRDS TOGETHER IN ONE CAGE unless you have seen them play together well for a very long time, and ESPECIALLY don't do it if the cage belongs to a bird that feels it is "my cage". Birds will pick on one another and will fight with one another. They are very territorial and their play together MUST be carefully supervised. There are many horror stories of one bird killing another because of jealousy or because they got put in cages together and were not compatible.
 

Houseplants can be deadly
Do not let your bird chew on them. Tree branches can be fun to put into cages for perching and play, but make sure they are not poisonous and that they are organic - no sprays and pesticides.
 

Veterinarian Exam
The rescue committee will give you as much information as they can about the history of the bird, including its last vet exam. You may be asked to take the bird in to see the vet. It is imperative that you follow the vet's advice about diet, medicines, etc. In general, an annual exam is very important, because birds in the wild hide their illnesses. Once a bird shows signs of illness it is often near death so do not delay getting it examined.

 

E-mail: info@greyhaven.bc.ca