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Health Care for Your Bird |
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Bird Hygiene
Good hygiene is an important part of husbandry for caged birds because most are confined to a relatively small living space. Consequently, droppings often accumulate on cage parts and perches, and tend to contaminate food and water cups, resulting in bacterial proliferation and mold growth.
Perches should be kept scrupulously clean at all times.
Soap and water,
cleansers and sand paper may be used to clean them, if necessary.
Cage-bottom coverings should be changed daily.
Cages should be given a
through scrubbing and cleaning at least once a month. Sanitizing
products work best if the cage and perches are first given a thorough
soap and water scrubbing to remove all of the major contamination.
Diluted chlorine bleach can be use if thoroughly rinsed off afterwards.
Food and water containers should be thoroughly cleaned once or twice
daily before they are refilled.
Bottle brushes work best for cleaning
water tubes and bottles. Water tubes and water bottles with ball valve
at the drinking end (water bottles for rodents) are increasing in
popularity. They greatly reduce the possibility of contamination of the
drinking water with droppings, uneaten food and saliva, all of which
contribute to massive bacterial proliferation within the water and its
container. The corners of food and water containers are the most common
areas for bacterial buildup. Therefore, concentrate on those trouble
spots while cleaning these containers.
Several sets of food and water cups should be maintained and used
interchangeably.
One set not in used can be soaking in a disinfectant
solution. When possible, use a dishwasher for the final cleaning of
these food and water containers because their extremely hot
temperatures aid disinfections.
Rigid standards of hygiene must be
maintained at all times.
Disease-causing bacteria grow freely in most
water containers. Small numbers of these bacteria from food, saliva or
droppings can quickly multiply into millions of organisms in a water
container, yet the water appears normal to you. Allow the water tap to
run for about 3 minutes before filling the water container. Bottled
water dispensers should be allowed to run for about 5 seconds before
filling the drinking container. These bacteria do not affect most
people but can have devastating consequences for caged birds if allowed
to multiply.
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Source:
Posted with kind permission of Animal Hospitals - USA where you will
find pet health care information for keeping your pets healthy.
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