Heat lamp

[Wolf]

I thought that the article that we read on that suggested that it was the curvature of the earth that affected the light at dawn and dusk giving it the particular qualities to set and reset the internal clock, more so than the specific wavelength of the light itself.
But what are the effects of infrared light on the bird when it is used as a heat source? This is basically the question that the OP is asking and I don't know that answer.

[Pajarita]

If I remember correctly (light is a super difficult subject and I barely grasp the basics, mind you) it IS the curvature of the earth and the way the sun light 'hits' the atmosphere that makes it refract differently than when it's straight down but this ends up in less UV and more IR.

As to the question, you can use any kind of light as long as it doesn't shine at all on the bird (especially at night) but in order for this to happen, you need to use some type of black out material between the light source and the bird itself which, when it comes to heat lamps, you can't because putting a material near a source of heat will end up creating a fire or smoldering. Aside from this, heat coming from a single focus (as in a lamp which you need to put outside the cage and, usually, at mid height) doesn't diffuse as evenly as when it comes from a surface (as in a panel or pad, in this case), so you end up with a central spot that is super hot and radiating from this center the heat diffuses more and more until it's nothing left so the corners of the cage would be cold - while with a pad under the cage, you are heating up the entire cage (as long as you cover the sides and top to 'hold' it in)

[LJ4RockPebbler]

Which vitamin d3 supplement do you recommend?

[Pajarita]

For the parrots, I've been using a powder avian multivitamin/mineral supplement that you add to their soft food (I mix it in the gloop) once a week at a 1.5 daily dosage (I take the daily dosage, add half more to it and use once a week). But for the birds that don't eat gloop (canaries, finches, cardinals and button quail), I use a powder one that dissolves in water, also once a week and also 1.5 times the daily dosage. I have found this is more than enough to cover any potential dietary deficiencies and for vitamin D3 (and I know because I've never had a single hen eggbound or even producing a soft shelled egg -so much so that my button quail laid over 20 eggs this spring and all of them have perfect shells).

[LJ4RockPebbler]

Ok, good to know...thank you. One last thing. I read up on coconut oil being a good fat that would be beneficial to birds. I purchased an all organic coconut oil from Mrs. Greens and fed a little to my bird with a piece of broccoli which he seemed to love. An hour later, he began to throw up and how stop since then and has been fine. I'm obviously not going to give it to him again and wanted to know what your opinion on coconut oil was....Thanks for all your help and every one else in this forum.

[Pajarita]

I do not feed coconut oil to any of my birds. I know people recommend it but, as far as I am concerned, parrots don't eat oils that become solid when cold in the wild so it's not something that I would consider feeding. As a matter of fact, I don't feed most of the stuff other people give them like red palm oil, ground eggshells, commercial birdy bread or muffins, baked treats, etc. I do give them probiotics as well as aloe vera juice and Apple Cider vinegar with the mother, they always have cuttlebone available and I do supplement the laying hens with Calciboost but, aside from that and the herbals I use with the ones with liver damage, I don't really give them anything else.

[Navre]

For the parrots, I've been using a powder avian multivitamin/mineral supplement that you add to their soft food (I mix it in the gloop) once a week at a 1.5 daily dosage (I take the daily dosage, add half more to it and use once a week).

I haven't been using vitamins at all.

[Pajarita]

Well, if you are feeding pellets, you shouldn't but, if you are feeding gloop and seeds and not taking the bird out for sun exposure, you need to supplement D3 UNLESS you feed animal protein on a regular basis (which I don't).

[flappybird]

91 CRI is too low, you need 94 or more. It's not that you cannot use it but it won't provide as good a light as the one with the higher one. Full spectrum lights should not be relied upon for vitamin D3 production, you either expose the bird to direct sunlight 20 minutes a day (but always early in the am or in the evening) and/or supplement.

Infrared is not only light, it is actually the wavelength that travels through tissue the fastest.

Is there a specific brand of light you use or recommend?

[Pajarita]

There are no bulbs that are higher than 93 with a good Ktemp - this is the only one I've found: http://products.mercola.com/light-bulbs/

You can get better specs in tubes but most people don't have tube fixtures in human living areas...