Is it OK for a pet bird to be in a cage?

Question

People keep bringing us their pets they can no longer take care of, and I simply don't want to believe that birds like being in cages, even if they've been inside them all their lives - but maybe I've got it all wrong? Can you explain the psyche of birds to me? I really would like to know one way or another, and make those birds happy, even if it means releasing them into a big aviary or something that I may yet have to build. Thank you.

Answer 1

i think of a bird kept by humans as being in a cage to protect it (i.e. when there is no one home:so it doesnt eat something bad or put its beak in a socket)
I babysit my friends bird all the time and let it out to run around whenever I am in the room and can keep an eye on it. He's very curious so I have to watch him closely!

Answer 2

I call the cage her "room" too. Someday I hope I have a space to build an outside aviary for nice warm days - when we move down to Tennessee in a yr or 2.- Living in a warmer climate - I would like to see her get more fresh air than she does up here in Mi.

I think my bird just likes to be close to me. I take her and her cage with me in the kitchen if I am cleaning or cooking in there. If I am on the computer she is right next to me in her cage or sitting on my shoulder - when i know I won't drop her. She is only put in the bedroom at bed time so she can sleep in quietness.

I think she feels safe in her cage and she knows it is her room. But she also loves to be out and loves it when i hold her and talk to her - so I try to give as much of my attention each day as I can.

The sad thing is - when I got her - I was totally against the idea of keeping a bird in a cage. It seemed cruel to me and I wished I could take her back to Brazil or where ever she is from in S. America and let her fly free in the jungle, find a mate and make baby birdies... But then I came to the realization - she was born in captivity and this is all she knows.. She wouldn't survive in the wild - and even if she could - I can't get on a plane and fly down with her.

She had a hard life - being locked in a basement with a barking dog most of her life. My boyfriend surprised me and brought her home - and I was against it in the begining. But then I realised this is the life she has - and I can love her in her predicament as much as I can and try to give her the nicest life I can. So, I clean her cage regularly, feed her the best food I know of, buy her toys and her fuzzy sleeping tent. And most important I play with her and hold her and talk to her every day. So, you just have to love them the best you can - knowing that going back to the wild is not likely - or even a good option for them.

Answer 3

Birds come to view their cages as a safe space and feel secure in them. Also, when they cannot be supervised it just isn't safe to let them roam - they could chew electrical wires, drown in the toilet, eat poisonous items, etc. To be sure, the larger the cage the better, and if you can build an aviary or large flight, go for it. I am sure they will love it.

Answer 4

You are totally correct in your thinking.
And i applaud you for that, we need more people like you in the world, with your logic.
I totally disagree with "surfinthedesert's" answer.
2 weeks ago I was given a peachface that was given to a lady, from another pet shop that did not want this bird that had an abnormality with its beak, which turned out to be (severe sinasitus) i have taken her to the vet and am currently treating this bird with antibiotics, and daily swabs.
She is on a strict nutritional diet, which she is slowly tring to adjust to, for better health.
While im at work she is in a flight cage, measuring 90cm long when i get home she flys around the house. so i believe they should only b in a cage at night to sleep, and while you are not there.
So keep to what you believe in, i too share your beliefs, and i know that when birds are out flying around, they are sooo much happier

Answer 5

HI!
Cages are practical, fairly easy to clean and safely contain your bird in what is ideally an
"in-side out play gym". They can see what is going on, and can climb all over the inside.
I sure as hell couldn't do that in my room when I was growing up. I would have loved it!
I remember when I was a small child I was occasionally put in a cage-like enclousure to play while my Mother did housework...it was called a play pen.
Some people put up "Baby-gates" to prevent their child from going into areas where they could be hurt...like down a set of stairs.
What is the difference?
In our lives we have gates, walls, fences and barricades. We learn to live with them.
Do you have an extra room? That would be fine for your birds as well. Make sure you have
bird-proofed it and can clean it. Please be sure to put perches up so that the birds can have a place to roost. A lot of people have bird rooms.
But you are asking about cages.
I think what you are troubled by is the thought of what a cage represents. You are thinking of negative connotations. I can't blame you, but I can assure you my birds would prefer to be in their "Rooms" ( their cage) and in the living room, rather than off somewhere in their own room and away from me.
In my home, they are never referred to as "cages".
If I want Parker, my African Grey to return to his "Roost", I ask,
"Parker, please go to your room."
And up the ladder he goes!
You are projecting a personal feeling about the enclosure and what it represents. It isn't really that way as long as the "Room" is clean, and tidy, has everything they could possibly want in the line of toys, fresh water and fresh food.
There is something else you must consider:
I am in Florida and it is 10 p.m. My 3 birds haven't been in their "Rooms" since 7:30 this morning and I can assure you, they are now tired and can't wait to get in there, roost and go to sleep. In 10 minutes they will be very happy to go roost in their room and sleep about 11 hours. Please do not let the term "Cage" spook you. It is simply a practical enclsure.
I understand how people feel and I empathize.
People want to do the right thing and it is often dangerous to the bird. Sleeping with your bird can be tragic and a loose bird who is unaware of household dangers: hot pots on the stove, ceiling fans, electrical wires, unsafe plants, toxic paint...it can be a nightmare. I've just touched on the basic dangers but it goes on and on.
Call them "Rooms"..."Houses", "Roost"...it doesn't matter...
it is simply a safe place for your bird to stay in when you cannot supervise their activities.
I hope I've helped.
Thank you for such an interesting topic!

Answer 6

My philosophy is similar to yours and, like you, I have a small "flock" of castoff birds. I wasn't looking to have birds, and in fact I sort of despise the whole idea of domesticating and caging them, but somehow I wound up with a bunch that had been abandoned or were otherwise unwanted. So be it.

My birds return to the cage to eat and sleep there at night. I also use a cage to take them to the vet, to protect them from visitors who might absentmindedly slam a door on them, or to take them outside so they can get some fresh air. Otherwise, they have the run of the house. This has meant a serious change in lifestyle, including getting rid of most houseplants and other potential hazards. It has also meant lining the areas they like to perch on with newspaper, and gradually teaching each new bird about window glass, which can kill or injure them if they fly into it. And of course, I have to be careful when entering and leaving the house.

However, the birds seem to really like their flight time. They come boiling out enthusiastically when I first open the cage in the morning and do several laps before settling down to chirp at outside birds.

As far as the mental health of birds who've been caged all of their lives, one of our birds had spent ten years in a two foot by two foot cage devoid of anything except a single wood perch, a couple of feeding bowls, and a bell on a string which he would jingle very nervously. He was initially nervous about coming out of the cage and learning to fly, and we had to be very careful so that he wouldn't injure himself.

However, since learning to fly and becoming part of a "flock", he's literally a different bird, quite confident and friendly compared to the nervous little fellow who first came to live with us. He has also trimmed down quite a bit, having lost the alarming double lump of fat that was around his abdomen.

I surmise from my experiences that birds need a lot of the same things we humans do: good quality food including fruits and vegetables, companionship and entertainment, and plenty of exercise.

If letting your birds loose in the house simply isn't practical, then I do highly recommend building them an aviary. And bless you for keeping their mental health in mind - people tend to think of birds, particularly little ones like budgies, as decorative objects like a vase with wings. However, they're actually amazingly complex creatures once one gets to know them.

Answer 7

Pet birds are perfectly happy in cages, and they don't see it as them being in a cage, they see it as you being in a cage, and their cage is their comfort zone, protected and away from harm. Cages provide proper avenues for exercise, too, like different sized perches and various toys, and it's where their food and water is. Exotic birds and pet birds WILL DIE if you let them out into the wild--parrots are not capable of surviving inner city life with all the foreign diseases city birds carry.

Answer 8

Freedom is natural. Captivity is man-made. Birds, especially don't like being caged. The evolved with wings, were meant to fly, soar, how can they like to live in a cage? I have even read that captivity lessens their life span. Release them!

Answer 9

a cage is a birds home. would you like to go outside to play instead of staying in the same house every day? let them spread their wings and fly.

Answer 10

Keeping birds in a cage is the safest, cleanest method of taking care of them. I dont know what kind of bird you're fostering but i had a budgee and the one time i let him out of his cage on his own he flew out the window..(then again i was 5 years old.. and it was probably my fault)..

plus i dont think they're built to soar about sanctuaries.. well budgees i mean. They can't endurance fly :P don't feel guilty.