How do you / how often do your birds bath? [Archive]

Islandzoo

04-26-2005, 07:57 AM

Depends - Bob sometimes baths in his water every day, then not at all for a couple of weeks - IF i put a proper bath water dish he won't go near it, and he tries to fly off if I spray him
Basil gets sprayed weekly in the warmer weather. she too flings her drinking water over herself (cos she obviously too big to get in her dish!)
I also have a perch in the bathroom over the bath (stuck to the window with a sucker) it's meant for showers, and bob sits on that, and gets a fine sprinkling.
basil would love it I reckon but Trevor wont take her in the shower with him..

Shirley

04-26-2005, 08:49 AM

Our finches and canary will take a bath every time we put their bath tub in there cages... a big messy fun bath! no one else will except on rare occasion.

It's really important for the parrots to get a bath for a number of health reasons, one being to prevent feather plucking... to keep their skin in good condition... so Holly, Skyler, and Michelle are spritzed several times a week and showered thoroughly once a week, sometimes twice.

The Bourke's and Tucker ('tiel) don't take baths very often, nor are they spritzed very often.

They all prefer cool to luke-cool water rather than warm to luke-warm water.

Majj

04-26-2005, 10:00 AM

The Boys bathe 2 to 3 times a week , usually when I vacuumn :scratchch , sunny only likes the little drinking coups to bathe in BUT love to be sprayed till he is soaked , hangs upside down and opens his wings for me :wub: too cute...Buddy hates the spray and loves his big bath ...:emot-danc

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v373/Maj/BuddysplishsplashIamtakinaBath.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v373/Maj/BuddyabeautifulwetBoy.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v373/Maj/SunnyOhhhhhhhIlovemybath.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v373/Maj/Sunny.jpg

Sue

04-26-2005, 10:16 AM

Ollie likes a bath so I always leave a dish in his cage with clean water otherwise I catch him bathing in his drinking water. He also likes to be sprayed if he's in the right mood but I don't push it if he's not.

Toto ADORES being wet:roflmao2:He would let me spray him for hours.

He get's a really good soaking at least twice a week and I spray him most days.

Don't soak them through, too late in the day, they need time to dry off. They won't preen until they are dry.Heres some pics of Toto enjoying a shower, hope you enjoy them.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v383/SueSi/IMG_0301.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v383/SueSi/IMG_0332.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v383/SueSi/IMG_0320.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v383/SueSi/IMG_0316.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v383/SueSi/IMG_0304.jpg

And this is him shouting for more when I stop:roflmao2:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v383/SueSi/IMG_0347.jpg

Sue

04-26-2005, 10:18 AM

Majj,

We must have been posting at the same time I just saw your pics....

Absolutely adorable:heart:

vmtwriter

04-26-2005, 01:03 PM

I haven't noticed Bailey trying to bathe in his water dish, and I tried spritzing him and he got all pissy. Do I spray him anyway?:shrug2:

gregt

04-26-2005, 01:04 PM

I haven't noticed Bailey trying to bathe in his water dish, and I tried spritzing him and he got all pissy. Do I spray him anyway?:shrug2:

We're pretty humid here all the time, so I'm not sure dry skin is a real concern for us. :confused:

Shirley

04-26-2005, 01:18 PM

The humidity makes for the musky musty damp skin though, which needs a good washing -- birds will sometimes feather pick if they feel itchy, of if bacteria starts to find a home in their humid skin, and then once they break their skin from picking their feathers, they can get a bacterial infection, and next thing you know you have a sick bird wearing a collar and an $800 vet bill... (ask Skyler... and our bank acct!) I just put them in the tub and hold the sprayer up so it fall down on them like a rainfall, and lift their wings so they get wet underneath. Like Sue said, they won't preen 'til they are dry. I try to do this well before 3:00. I forced Skyler to get used to the spritzer... I had to. Now he loves it. Holly hates it and hates baths, but it's for her own good and she gets both.

This is Shelby, our Bare-eyed cockatoo, getting a shower:
http://home.insightbb.com/%7Essmorgan/birds/Shelby/images/Shower-stand.jpg

And then I lift the wings and spray directly under each. Holly won't stay on the shower stand, so she sits on the tub floor and I spray her there, lifing her wings, spraying under her tail, everywhere. Takes about 3-4 minutes, then wrap in a towel and then back in the cage. Blow drying is NOT necessary.

Annie, our neighbor, with Shelby in a towel after giving her a bath:

http://shirleymorgan.com/misc/BF/equipment/Annie-Shelby-towel.jpg

Shelby didn't always like a bath... some things you just have to do, and the bird will realize it's safe and fun. :)

vmtwriter

04-26-2005, 01:26 PM

ok, so the next question is.. how often should I spritz? and should I do it until he's soaked?

Shirley

04-26-2005, 01:56 PM

Spritzing is the inbetween bath, and you can do it daily, or every other day, and about mid-morning if you have free choice. No, you don't have to soak him. It does encourage preening, though, which is a good thing. I do lift Skyler's wings during spritzing, but with Holly, I just spritz her through the cage, and then I spritz upward at her, and she sort of spreads her wings a little to avoid the spray, which gets her a little wet underneath.

It's awfully hard to get a bird wet to the skin... even in the shower... but a good soaking once a week is pretty important. ;)

vmtwriter

04-26-2005, 02:03 PM

Well, since Bailey won't let us touch him yet, I guess it's spritzing through the cage. It's after 2 now, I'll wait until tomorrow to give it a try. Maybe he won't be in a bad mood afterward if I promise him some yogurt. :D

Shirley

04-26-2005, 03:00 PM

Go easy at first, tell him how good he is through the whole process, make it last less than a minute... keep it a mist at a distance...He'll get used to it and realize it's not punishment or scary. :)

vmtwriter

04-26-2005, 03:15 PM

Good advice, Shirley, thanks.

Sue

04-26-2005, 05:45 PM

Toto loves a spray so it's easy, we make a game of it, I say "wings up" and he lifts them .. (this only came from me saying it when his wings were up already).

I would say if they don't like it at first, go easy.

Ollie (tiel) would get a bath about once a week but if it's particualrly warm I would mist over his cage, then one day he actually enjoyed it and came for more.

If Bailey doesn't like it, use the finest spray and keep a distance so he doesn't really notice. Don't scare them with it.

Shirley

04-26-2005, 06:21 PM

:bestpost: *

Jean

04-26-2005, 06:34 PM

I give Elvie a shower every other day and in between if he wants one. As Shirley pointed out it is a major part of their healthy feather growth.

My suggestion is, keep on with a gentle upward spray with a spray bottle and let it fall on Bailey not a direct spray for now. It may take awhile, eventually, she will learn to like it.

vmtwriter

04-27-2005, 01:43 PM

Well, Bailey got his first spritz today. I mostly did it from the top, so it drifted down upon him. He kept running away from it. But didn't get pissy like he did before. I guess cuz I wasn't shooting straight at him.

I'll keep trying it, every other day and see how he accepts it.

Shirley

04-27-2005, 02:15 PM

:goodjob: Yeah!!! :emot-danc

Sue

04-27-2005, 04:01 PM

:emot-danc

Keep it gentle and he will come to trust you.

Try leaving a saucer of shallow water in his cage he may go down for a bath, it's the best when you see them rolling around in water:rotflmao:

Junkzoo

04-27-2005, 04:28 PM

Yup, give the bird time, it ought to at least accept a misting better over time.
My 'Too loves a bath/mist, will hang upside down , spread it's wings , and carry on like a lil kid!(if kids liked baths LOL)My Amazon will tolerate a spritz,and i will have to back over him , after the water has penetrated his feathers, my other birds will try to avoid the water bottle, but too bad, i'm gonna mist em anyway!;) .If it's not summer weather, i'll put fairly warm water in the spray bottle, so when it comes out, atomized, it will not be as cold as if it would starting with cold,,,like a babie's bottle i spray my hand to make sure temp is OK,,
Back to your thread topic, most people say to spray/bath daily, i end up spraying everyone every few days, and give them a more than normal bath/spray just before i change out the cage litter,,,

Jean

04-27-2005, 07:14 PM

Woo Hoo, this is the beginning, it may not take to many weeks before you can progress to a good spray.

Jean

01-04-2006, 05:19 PM

This is another old post to bring forth for the newer members.

Junkzoo

01-05-2006, 11:19 AM

This is another old post to bring forth for the newer members.

:thanx:

parrotgirl

01-05-2006, 03:18 PM

Yeah thanks Jean,

Errol and Flynn love their bath, they get in there and splash around everyday as soon as I put the bath in there. Bucc would not allowe me to come anywhere near him with water until he saw the other two having fun, and when he heard Mum saying how pretty they looked, he thought he would try in, in his water bowl :doh: I went out and brought him a nice big stainless steel bowl, that looks like his water bowl only bigger, he won't go near it:shrug: When I go up for a shower he comes to (his idea, not mine) and I started putting a little water on him and from there he now lets me put the shower on him, doesn't like it much but again he hears Mum saying how good it is and thought he was missing out, have brought him a shower perch, as he sits on top of the shower curtain and when I put the shower over him the floor gets a good soaking as well,:doh: Ah well, whats a little more work if he gets his shower LOL. The only thing he won't let me do is dry him off with a towel, so I make sure that I have my shower when the heating is on. I keep trying and telling him how good that feels, but at the moment he's not falling for that old trick.

suzyque

01-06-2006, 05:44 AM

Harry seems to be terrified of water. I have tried spritzing her in the kitchen but she jumps down onto the floor and I end up chasing her up the hall spraying as we go. Yesterday I took her up to the bathroom with me and tried to get her to sit on the linen basket so that maybe I could splash her a bit. She didn't like that at all and started to run round the bathroom floor. She didn't even try to eat my glasses that had fallen on the floor in all the kerfuffle. I shall now go and spritz her in her cage. I am afraid I haven't been doing it to often because I didn't want to traumatize her. Will come back and tell you how it went.

Sue

01-06-2006, 06:23 AM

Here's an example of taking it VERY slowly.....

Ollie would take a bath in a saucer, maybe once or twice a week and the first time I misted him he ABSOLUTELY HATED it:(

I sprayed him very lightly and regularly from a distance, gradually getting nearer each time but not for long periods. Firstly he got so he didn't mind it but I still moved slowly, then one day he bobbed his head and was really enjoying it. Again I didn't push it just left it so he remembered it as enjoyable.

Here's the final result, he now LOVES it , lifting his wings, bowing his head, I think I enjoy it more than him:rofl:
Here's my wet baby:wub:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v383/SueSi/IMG_0923.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v383/SueSi/IMG_0922.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v383/SueSi/IMG_0929.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v383/SueSi/IMG_0926.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v383/SueSi/IMG_0928.jpg

Sue

01-06-2006, 06:25 AM

One other thing that just occured to me is, start off in the cage rather than take them somewhere thay dont feel as safe.

parrotgirl

01-06-2006, 07:04 AM

Ollie looks so adorable, and all fluffed up like that its hard to see him as being 16, he looks like a youngster.:heart: :wub: :heart: Thanks for sharing the photo's they are great.

swanwillow

01-30-2006, 02:22 PM

hmmm, my little Dragonfly takes showers with me. I have a detachable shower head, and she sits in the loop... gets misted really well, then I kinda make a cup with my hands, and she goes all out in that. BUT my showers are only 10 minutes or less long, so I doubt she gets cold.

and she always has these cute little spiked hairdos afterwords.

Kirby

09-12-2007, 03:52 PM

Jean

09-12-2007, 06:33 PM

Kirby used to take baths about 3 times a week on his own... now it has declined to like... one if any a week... he's getting a forced one tonight as he's smelling funny.... and he has new feathers coming in, so I want to help them come through as nicely as possible.

Skittles, on occassion I see her bathe, but she always smells pretty so I don't worry.

I also bought an aloe vera plant to put the inside 'stuff' into some spritzing water for them both!!!

How much aloe vera are you adding to an 8 ounces of water? Are you using it for any secific reason? I've used it on a couple occcasions when Elvie gets extremely dry itchy skin and it seems to help a little. My avian vet said to mix 1/2 ounce of pure aloe to 8 ounces of water. If I needed more I could increase the aloe up to 1 ounce to 8 ounces of water.

Kirby

09-13-2007, 12:37 PM

I haven't started doing it. I was going to be using the typical 500mL water bottle and put about half a capful in. Swish it and then smell it, if I could smell the aloe then I would dilute it. And god does aloe juice smell bad EWWW haha

I was told it was good for conditioning the feathers as well as moisturising the skin. Kirby very rarely bathes, which out of every thing and all my frustration, I am assuming is the cause of his ratty feathers, and I am at my wits end about trying to help bring them back.

arcadiareptiles

10-13-2007, 02:43 AM

My little guy takes a shower with me whenever i go in(In the morning) is there such a thing as bathing him too much?. i usually take a full shower every day to every other day.

Jean

10-13-2007, 08:06 AM

Kirby used to take baths about 3 times a week on his own... now it has declined to like... one if any a week... he's getting a forced one tonight as he's smelling funny.... and he has new feathers coming in, so I want to help them come through as nicely as possible.

Skittles, on occassion I see her bathe, but she always smells pretty so I don't worry.

I also bought an aloe vera plant to put the inside 'stuff' into some spritzing water for them both!!!

May I ask, what ratio of aloe vera juice/water mixture are you using? On occasion I have used 1 tsp aloe / 8 ounces of water. Is their a specific reason for using it? I've tried using aloe in the past however, found if you use plain water showers often enough it can be as effective unless your bird has extremely dry / itchy skin. Usually that can be taken better care of by a combination of frequent showers/well balanced diet /and adding a few drops of 100 % pure palm oil to his food each day . Proper amounts palm oil varies by bird weight.

morgavin

10-15-2007, 08:48 PM

Pepper gets at least two [I]drenching[I] showers a week. Sometimes more. Like when she waddles in screaming at me for not taking her. She has at times climbed the curtain and then started scolding me from the curtain rod. :eek:

Jean

10-15-2007, 09:17 PM