Bird Care

Bottom of the Cage

One of the questions that I am frequently asked is what which material is the best to use on the bottom of the cage. There are many excellent products out on the market today but there are also some products that shouldn’t be used. EVER!

 Keeping the cage clean is very important. It is the first step to keeping your bird healthy.

Cleaning should be done daily and scrubbing down the cage should be done at least weekly. Once a month I pressure wash my cages to make sure they are clean.

 One of the cheapest and best things to use on the bottom of the cage is newspaper. At one time the color print used in newspaper was toxic, but today’s color print isn’t toxic. So newspaper is safe to use. It is absorbent, easy to roll up and throw away. It can be precut to fit perfectly in any size or shape of cage or even stands. Since most people get a daily newspaper they don’t have an extra expense. The negative is that some birds enjoy shredding the newspaper or they like to flap their wings as hard as they could to watch it go flying everywhere. In extremely rare cases the bird may ingest the paper and have an impacted crop. This, like I said is extremely rare, maybe one in a million. Another positive about newspaper is that you could see what they droppings look like. This is very important since it can alert you to any possible health problems your bird may have.

 Corncob is also a very popular bedding material that many bird owners use in the bottom of the cage. It can be found in any pet store and is relatively inexpensive. It is very absorbent and it looks nice. You could see what the dropping look like as well. There are many problems associated with it however. If you use it you have to make sure that you are very diligent about cleaning it. Food, water or droppings need to be removed daily. This is because mold can easily form. Asperigillosis is an extremely toxic mold that can kill you bird. But if you clean it daily this shouldn’t be a problem. The other problem with corncob is that when birds flap their wings it can go flying. Some birds enjoy throwing it and some may eat it. Like the newspaper, in extremely rare cases it can cause crop impaction.

Also on the market is walnut bedding. Walnut bedding is made from crushed cleaned walnut shells. This may be harder to find, but some pet stores do carry it. It is more expensive than the corncob and it also needs to be changed daily. Though they say it has been cleaned there is still some controversy about this product. The walnuts may have been treated with chemicals or pesticides. Though the majority of the walnut bedding material on the market is safe it is best to make sure you know the source. One the positive side it looks great and is absorbent. The negatives are that it can also be a source of mold.  When a bird flaps their wings it can go flying everywhere and it is hard to see what the droppings look like.  It can also cause crop impactions if ingested. While still very rare, it occurs more often than other bedding materials do.

Another popular bedding material is wood shavings. Like the corncob bedding, this bedding material can also be found at most pet stores. There are many types of wood shaving beddings sold so you must be careful to buy the right type. Pine shavings are the best to use. Avoid cedar shavings or those that contain chlorophyll because those are toxic to birds. Also since wood is a natural source of chewing for birds you will need to talk to your avian veterinarian about their views on using wood shavings for baby birds. Baby birds tend to explore their environment by tasting everything. They are more likely to develop a crop impaction than adult birds with wood shavings. It is also a great source of entertainment for some birds who like flapping their wings to watch all the shavings go flying. Wood shavings do look nice and very absorbent they do need to be changed daily. Because they are most often used they are relatively inexpensive. Dropping can be easily seen on this material.

Pelleted bedding is also popular though it is harder to find. Some bird stores do carry it. Pelleted bedding material is made from two sources. The first source is paper. The negative is that birds that are on a pellet diet tend to eat it. Because it is made from paper there are very few reports on crop impaction. The second source is grass. The grass is chemical free and once again there are few cases of crop impaction ever reported. Because it is heavier it doesn’t fly all over the place when the bird flaps their wings. It is absorbent and it looks nice. However since it is darker than the corncob or even the walnut bedding droppings are hard to see.

 Paper towels can be used as well. They are very absorptive, inexpensive and something that almost every household has on hand. I use them in an emergency in my bird carriers. I always carry paper towels when I go anywhere with my birds. If the newspaper gets dirty I replace it with the paper towels. It is very easy to see droppings on paper towels. However they go flying easily when the bird flaps their wings. Like all other bedding materials the bird could ingest it. Though luckily, like with almost all the other bedding material, this is rare.

 Some people even use computer paper. This is their own personal version of a paper shredder. Computer paper, like newspaper it is cheap, easy to use, absorptive and it looks nice.

 Citrus rinds were once popular but are hard to find today. They are non-toxic, smell good and look nice. The citrus rinds used could be orange, grapefruit, lemons, limes or a combination of any of these. Like some of the other bedding material if it becomes wet or food or dropping accumulate mold can easily form. So you must be diligent about changing it daily. It is more expensive than some of the other materials but for some owners they feel the extra expense is worth it. It is light weight so it can go flying when the bird flaps his wings. Make sure that the citrus rinds are fresh because they can go “bad” rapidly. This means that it can develop mold. Like all the others they can also cause crop impaction, though this is rare. Droppings are harder to see on the citrus rind bedding material.

 Pulp bedding is another popular material. It is found at most pet stores and is relatively inexpensive. It looks nice, but is can go flying when the bird flaps his wings. Made from recycled paper, it doesn’t contain any chemicals that can harm the bird. Crop impactions are very rare so it is safe to use. However droppings are hard to see sometimes. It comes in both gray and white.

What materials should never be used? Sand and cat litter. Sand will cause crop impactions and kill your bird when they ingest it. Cat litter usually contains chlorophyll or other chemicals. These chemicals will kill your bird.

 So what is the safest to use? Nothing! However, this method is very impractical. Very few of us can take the time to pressure wash or scrub the cage daily or more often than that.

 Whatever material you decide to use just make sure that you change it daily