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rivx
02-12-2019, 01:00 AM
We've been looking on craigslist with no luck so far, so I'll likely be better off ordering online. This will just be for a little 'tiel to sleep in, so it doesn't have to be very large, just safe. Any ideas?

We plan to only put a perch in it (probably a natural rope, like sisal or something similar), a toy, food and water. Let me know if there's anything else they need in their sleep cages!

Casper's 2nd best friend
02-12-2019, 01:17 PM
A travel cage could serve two purposes :)

Casper sleeps in his travel cage when we take him to stay on our sailboat.
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Note the cozy for him to snuggle up against :)

Dragonlady2
02-12-2019, 01:44 PM
Yes, a travel cage will serve two purposes...sleeping and trips.

rivx
02-13-2019, 02:23 AM
Good idea! Is there any you'd recommend for a bird her size?

Casper's 2nd best friend
02-13-2019, 09:44 AM
Our criticisms of Casper's travel cage:
It is over-built and very heavy despite being made of aluminium.
But the sliding catches holding the food tray doors shut vibrate open in the car as they've not got a locking device (we use a bit of sticky tape). I wonder how many birds escape in aircraft holds because owners are not aware of the problem?
It cost more to buy than his big cage at home.

Dragonlady2
02-13-2019, 06:11 PM
Look up Prevue Hendryx travel bird cage and you will see a variety of different cages. Definitely get one with bars, not acrylic. I have two or three different ones. The lightest one is a white rectangular cage with feeding dishes and a perch. It has enough room that a bird is not confined to one spot and there is room for a toy.

rivx
02-14-2019, 04:49 AM
Thanks! The white prevue one looks very nice, I'll probably aim for that one! It's a bit too wide for my shelf but I can get another, I need more storage anyways.

Is the bar space truly 3/4", though? Our little chicken has a prevue cage for day time as well, and though it says 3/4" online the true spacing between the bars (rather than including the bars) is 5/8", which has been fine for her. I saw some comments saying it's the same for this one but thought I'd ask. I wouldn't want to push it and I've heard 3/4" may be too large.

Dragonlady2
02-14-2019, 01:48 PM
I will try and dig out my cage and measure the bar width after I run my errands. I think I had my plumhead in one when we moved and he is smaller than a cockatiel.

Casper's 2nd best friend
02-14-2019, 06:51 PM
The specification of bar spacing is usually between the centres of the bar diameters so subtract one bar diameter (because two halves).

Dragonlady2
02-14-2019, 09:18 PM
So using casper’s best friend measurement, the bar spacing on the white travel cage is 3/4 of an inch.I think Gracie should be fine in one of those.

rivx
02-15-2019, 12:17 AM
Edit: Here's a picture of her current bar spacing. I thought it was closer to 5/8 but it may be 3/4 using that method. I always doubt myself with rulers, lol. I just fear she'd get caught in something larger, she's not the biggest I've seen, but then again the difference is so small I imagine it'd be fine.

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Dragonlady2
02-15-2019, 12:38 AM
She should be fine with that measurement.

rivx
02-16-2019, 02:41 AM
Our bird store had one set up when we went to get more food today and I definitely feel more comfortable getting it now. If there's any difference in the spacing between this and what she has, I couldn't tell from looking at it!

Last question, I promise, but some reviews on Amazon show a larger gap between the door and the cage, did you have that issue? I didn't notice it on the one I saw in person today, so I'm guessing it's just an occasional flaw you send back for?

Thanks for the suggestions! I have a feeling she'll be happy with either of the travel cages prevue has, both look nice. I'm aiming for the lighter one, though, easy to travel with.

Dragonlady2
02-16-2019, 03:29 AM
I didn’t notice a bigger gap. However I had one cage where the door didn’t quite meet the cage when closed leaving a gap at the bottom. I used a twist tie for the trip, but I would have rigged up a metal hook if I was using it regularly.
Questions are always welcome here:th_biggrin:

Quakerella
02-19-2019, 06:27 PM
My cockatiels cage has a bar spacing of 3/4" and I have never had an issue. :th_smile:

rivx
02-20-2019, 10:10 PM
Fantastic. We went ahead and got it set up for her. Now just to get her adjusted to it!

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I would have added another toy or two but decided since cockatiels are known for their night frights, I'd best give her room. I figured it's just for sleeping anyways, but would you add anything else? We've never had a night fright with her, but I'm terrified of them, lol. Glad to have her in my room so I'll be right there. :th_smile:

Dragonlady2
02-21-2019, 02:53 AM
It looks great. When she sleeps in the big cage does she sleep by something? Most of my birds sleep beside, on or under something soft. There are little snuggles that you can attach to the bars and the birds lean up against them. She shouldn’t need any more toys. Will you be covering this cage while she is sleeping?

rivx
02-21-2019, 03:09 AM
Nope, she just sleeps on her high perch by the wall. I don't want something too nesty, though I reckon a snuggle by the wall wouldn't bother her hormones. We do cover the cage, though not completely, so as to let some light from the nightlight in. We cover three sides.

Reminds me, do you have any tips for introducing her to it? I was thinking about letting her hang out in it for a few hours a day for a couple of days before putting her there overnight, not sure if that's all to be done.

Casper's 2nd best friend
02-21-2019, 09:26 AM
Put treats in the food bowl inside and let her find them from outside.
When the bird cage is covered for the night do not approach the cage without talking to her so that she will know who it is and will not be flustered when you suddenly lift the cover. :)

Dragonlady2
02-21-2019, 01:46 PM
Letting her see it and explore it will help her getting used to it. Good idea with putting treats in the bowl for her to find.

rivx
02-21-2019, 11:45 PM
Thanks all! I've only had the bare minimum time for one-on-ones with her for a few days now due to an ongoing family emergency, so today was my first day to get her used to it.

Unfortunately, I forgetfully left a balloon in the room and once she noticed it about an hour into being out (I lightly brushed against it, so it moved), she freaked and crashed into the wall. She's fine, and the terror was removed, but after she got her cuddles she went to the cage and refused to come back out, so I guess I'll start tomorrow. This may set us back a bit, but with time. Poor angel. :(

I'll update when I have some cute pictures of her actually with it, lol.

rivx
02-25-2019, 03:51 AM
We've made some progress...

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She's much more comfortable on top of it, though. Doesn't much like it closed, but things are moving.

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((Sorry for sort of spamming this thread, I just thought the pictures of her in it might be helpful to anyone interested. Hopefully I can get more once she starts liking it...meanwhile, she's just cute.))

Casper's 2nd best friend
02-25-2019, 09:40 AM
Yep, she scores well in the cute ratings :)
Its good to hear that progress is being made with the cage. We sometimes have a problem getting Casper to settle down for the night, he likes routine and if we forget or are distracted from playing his night-night music we get a lot of muttering and bars rattling from under the cage cover.

rivx
02-26-2019, 05:09 AM
She gets grumpy if we don't cover her!! She's more comfortable in it today -- not enough that I'd want to leave her there overnight, but improvement.

I admit I am still nervous about it, though!! I'm overprotective a tad. She can get her beak out more -- image attached Worries aside, I don't think she'd actually try as she seems to know she can't get out of cages so easily and hasn't made attempts, but my anxiety flares at everything with her, lol. It's been improving as she spends time in there as she clearly doesn't like it but still hasn't tried anything, but you know me. Serial worrier. :th_wink: Just in case: what do you do in the case of an emergency where they do get caught? Do you just nudge them back?

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Casper's 2nd best friend
02-26-2019, 09:40 AM
Its always best to have an escape plan. In order to ease your mind and be prepared have a rummage in your kitchen for something that could be put between the bars and twisted to bend them apart. Preferably not something with a cutting edge :)

rivx
03-03-2019, 03:43 AM
It's her first night in it tonight! She still wasn't very happy in it but due to her behavior I assumed she was just more angry about being in a little cage as opposed to scared of it at this point, as she loves hanging out on it and around it. So far she's been in bed a little over two hours and seems to have gone to sleep. I'll update with more pictures in the morning.

PrincessTiel X
03-14-2019, 03:14 AM
Is a sleep cage really necessary? I didn't know that was even a thing. lol. Asking purely out of curousity. My pair sleep just fine in their single cage as soon as we cover it with the dark blue blanket. xX

Casper's 2nd best friend
03-14-2019, 11:43 AM
Is a sleep cage really necessary? I didn't know that was even a thing. lol. Asking purely out of curousity. My pair sleep just fine in their single cage as soon as we cover it with the dark blue blanket. xX

More of a luxury than a necessity :)
Only needed if you need to sleep elsewhere from his day cage.

Dragonlady2
03-14-2019, 01:35 PM
Parrots need uninterrupted sleep at night. If they are in the livingroom, the lights are usually on,tv is on, people talking etc. Parrots are not really able to “sleep” through this. A sleep cage allows for a regular routine and ensures consistent sleep hours. This can be important to control egg laying females from laying excessively.

rivx
03-14-2019, 07:52 PM
Yep. Gracie used to sleep in the living room, but we wanted her to get more sleep so she wouldn't feel so interested in laying.

Although, I'm still not sure if my bedroom is the best place for it as it's small and I tend to roll in my sleep. I worry that shuffling combined with me waking up for a drink and such may bother her. With that said, the living room is talking and TV until midnight or later and then commotion early in the mornings so it's better than it was. I'm hoping when I move I'll have a bigger space to she can have a little more privacy. Until then, it'll have to do. I do think it was necessary for her. Maybe not for all birds, though -- it depends on how noisy your family is, lol.

PrincessTiel X
03-15-2019, 12:54 AM
I Agree with Jean though. My birds are housed in my bedroom and I do have a little 13 inch TV in there close to my bed, but it's not always on. The 2 Tiels I have seem to sleep fine when covered with the blanket. Charlie will be singing up a storm, and within like 90 seconds of covering the cage, he stops completely. It works for me, anyway. I don't see myself buying a sleep cage anytime in the future.

Casper's 2nd best friend
03-15-2019, 09:44 AM
Do you have headphones for the bedroom TV?

PrincessTiel X
03-18-2019, 10:06 PM
I guess I should get some. Lol. I don't even know if there's an outlet on the TV that headphones could plug into. I've never tried it.

rivx
03-18-2019, 10:45 PM
One extra unexpected benefit with the sleep cage: Gracie steps up very good at least once a day now. I couldn't teach her to do it usually for the life of me, so that's been a perk. At least I know she knows for sure what 'step up' means...she's just stubborn.

The grate is a pain to clean though. I'm adjusted to removable ones. Anyone got any tips?

Unrelated to the cage, but she's started shaking her head and nodding when you ask her a question which I'm amazed by. I thought I was seeing things but it's been pretty consistent these past few weeks, lol.

Dragonlady2
03-18-2019, 11:10 PM
I put newspaper over my grates. Great news on how her training is coming. You are doing a wonderful job with her.

PrincessTiel X
03-21-2019, 10:03 AM
@rivx ~ Regarding Gracie's Head Shaking - Is it one swift, super quick motion back and forth, as though she has something lodged in her ear? This is common, I have recently learned. No one really knows why they do it for sure, but with my Charlie I think it only happens when I speak to him in a high pitched tone. That most likely bothers his ears someway. Someone said maybe it's a resonance thing. That's my guess.

Casper's 2nd best friend
03-21-2019, 04:51 PM
Is it nod for yes and shake for no? Casper sometimes nods slowly but whether he agrees with us entirely is another matter :)

rivx
03-22-2019, 03:33 AM
When she adjusts her feathers she also shakes her head but this looks a bit different, lol. Yep, it's nod for yes shake for no. She seems to use both appropriately! I'm not sure if she always agrees either, but it's very well timed with our questions. I always shake and nod when I ask questions of her so I reckon she just picked it up that it's something to do when the pitch changes like that. Cute regardless, though.

Casper's 2nd best friend
03-22-2019, 04:32 PM
Ah, I get it, she sees you nodding as you say "you do want to go back to your cage, don't you?" and shaking your head from side to side when you say "you are not going to bite me that hard again are you?" :th_biggrin:

They are intelligent creatures and positive and negative must be easy for them to understand. Much more clever than me, they can understand what we are saying and reply in our language but I have no idea what Casper is saying when he shrieks to the world in the morning.