What You May Need:
Paper Towels (or some kind of strong alternative for wiping)
Tough Bristle Brush Or Sponge For Cleaning/Scrubbing
Spray Bottle
Poop Off
Vinegar or Bleach
Water
Bucket
A Shower/Tub (or area that can get wet, such as outside)
Fresh Cage Bottom Lining
The first step is to remove all of the loose food, poop, and other dirt to the bottom of the cage. I start by simply cleaning the droppings off of perches and the grate.
Spray bottles are particularly useful for parrot cage cleaning, especially if you can control the pressure of the spray.
A product called poop off comes in handy for cleaning cages. It comes in wipes and it spray bottles. It says that it is completely nontoxic for birds, but I would avoid spraying/wiping it near your bird or while your bird is inside its cage, and wash the area off with water after you've used the product just in case.
Poop-off Wipes
After all of the droppings and waste are off of the perches and other cage areas and below the grate, remove the cage tray and empty the contents. Whatever you decide to use for the bottom of your parrot's cage below their cage grate, the lining should be changed a few times every week. This is especially important if your parrot is a messy eater because a mess of rotting food under the grate is a breeding ground for bacteria.
Remove everything from inside of the cage such as the bowls, perches, toys and other accessories. Some of these accessories will need to be cleaned. Take the cage apart completely if you can. (With small plastic cages, it is easy to take them apart into pieces, but with large iron cages are obviously impossible to take apart except for the bottom tray and grate.) Wash bowls separately with hot water and hand soap and rinse thoroughly. Depending on the type of bowl, some can be filled with boiling water and left to soak to sterilize them, but this is probably not appropriate for plastic bowls.
Cage emptied of all toys, bowls, perches, swings.
Take the cage to your shower, tub, or outside to be washed. In the shower or tub, you can use the shower head or faucet. If you are outside, you can use a hose. If your cages are so, big that they don't fit into your shower or tub and you can't bring them outside, you can still wash your parrot's cage inside. Use an area with a tile floor or roll your bird's cage onto something to protect your floor from getting wet.
You can mix a solution of half water and half vinegar, or a very mild bleach solution to clean out the rough spots really well. When cleaning your parrot's cage, it is important to keep your parrot away from any chemicals and prevent the fumes from getting to your parrot. Keep chemical usage to a minimum, keep doors closed, keep vents on and keep your parrot as far away as possible. If you'd like, move your bird into a completely different area into their travel carrier (to keep them out of trouble).
Cleaning a small plastic cage with a mild bleach solution in the bathroom shower.
A sponge is great for absorbing the solution to wash the cage with, but a bristle brush or rough sided sponge would be better for scrubbing the hard to remove poop and dirt. You can wipe off your perches with some of your solution or dip them and soak them in solution, and rinse them thoroughly with plain water. Let the perches dry completely before putting them back inside of your cage. Many toys cannot be washed, but if your toys are plastic or acrylic, you can wash them with your solution, rinse them thoroughly with water and let them dry. Be sure to rinse your entire cage off with clean water thoroughly after you are done.
Wiping down and sanitizing a dirty foraging tree.
You can also use the same solution to clean your foraging tree, activity tree, play stand, or play gym.
After you are done washing and rinsing, you can dry your cage off with a towel or let it air dry. Now that you have removed everything out of your parrot's cage, it could be a great time to do some rearranging, add some new perches, and surprise your bird with a new toy!
or when I am playing with him outside his cage. Should I be concerned?
- Sheldon
- Evey
