Making your cleaning life easier

The Crystal Parrot - Although living with companion birds is rewarding, keeping up with the mess and clutter that is a part of life with them can be a challenge. We hope some of these tips will make cleaning and maintaining your bird’s environment less time consuming and easier!

Some of this starts with setting up the cage itself. Be aware of how you place things in the cage. For example-if you have a swing hanging directly over a perch, then the bird WILL poop on that perch many times a day! You may be surprised to find what a big difference it makes to move things, sometimes just a fraction of an inch! If you have a bird that loves to hang on the side of the cage and you are constantly cleaning the floor, try placing a toy in that same spot. Your bird will appreciate the toy and will be less likely to share his poop with your clean floor!

If your bird is particularly messy and likes to decorate his toys with bits of food and veggies, try providing him with a variety of acrylic toys. They are non-porous and are washed very easily and dry in no time! The cleaning time is minimal and you never have to wonder if the toys were cleaned well enough to be germ and bacteria free.

Placement is also important when it comes to the cage itself. Try pulling it out just a bit further if you find yourself constantly scrubbing walls. You are vacuuming anyway so a majority of that mess will be taken care of with the vacuum and you won’t have the chore of scrubbing the walls as often!

Being proactive doesn’t cost a thing but will save you lots of time in the long run. A quick clean, change of papers, and vacuum each day is much easier than doing it weekly or every so often. If done daily, it does not become a time consuming chore. And this gives you some “special” time with your bird as many of them like to “help” you! 

Do you have a “dusty” bird? Some birds, such as Cockatoos, Greys, and Cockatiels can make quite of bit of dust and it will make your furniture and electronics look like you have never even met a dust rag! To help keep this at a minimum, try misting your bird each day when you clean their cage. This will be helpful to you and healthy for your bird!

Does your bird like to hang out on the outside of his cage and continually poop on your floor or carpeting? An easy, inexpensive way to deal with this is to buy some plastic placemats from a discount store. They can be place anywhere you might need them and can be washed quickly and easily in the sink!  If you do need to spot clean your carpet, Avi-Clean works very well with no fumes or harm to your rug.

Organization will save a lot of time too! It can be very frustrating when you have a limited amount of time to get things done and you have to constantly look for what you need to get the job done. Keep your bird’s toys in a basket, plastic bin, or cardboard box. When you need to swap them out they are all in one place. Have a designated spot for your cleaning supplies and keep a cabinet or shelf just for his treats and food.

Make the cleaning process easy for you and fun for your bird. It has to be done so make the best of it with planning, organization and time with your bird!

If you have any questions or tips you would like to share, feel free to call THE CRYSTAL PARROT at 413-527-2550 or email us at edna@crystalparrot.com