In the natural habitat, many parrots love moisture and therefore willingly bathe in rainwater. You can bathe birds at home. About why this is needed, and how to do it, will be discussed in this article.
Why water treatments?
To understand whether the birds need water procedures, you need to remember where the parrots live in the natural environment. Most of the species lives in Australia and in the territories closest to it. In any case, parrots live in climatic zones such as the tropics and subtropics. Such a climate is characterized by a rather high air temperature. Feathered birds settle in tropical forests, where humidity is higher, as well as near water bodies.
Birds living in natural conditions can splash not only in water bodies, but also wash themselves with dew or rainwater.
In apartments, temperature and humidity are far from natural tropical conditions. Most often, the air in the houses is too dry, and the temperature can reach quite high indicators both in the hot season and in the winter period, if the heating appliances operate at full capacity. It is also worth noting that parrots lack sweat glands. Therefore, in conditions of elevated air temperature and low humidity, it is even necessary to bathe them. Water will help regulate feathered body temperature and reduce the risk of heat stroke. Also, water procedures favorably affect the appearance of birds, as they help cleanse plumage from dust.
The necessary conditions
When bathing a parrot, it is important to follow a number of rules so that Do not harm the bird.
- First of all, it is necessary to monitor the temperature of the water and the room. There should be no drafts in the room, and indicators ranging from 22 to 25 degrees are considered optimal air temperature.
- As for water - its temperature should be about 25 degrees. You should take into account the fact that parrots can drink water, in which they splash, so you need to make sure that the water is clean and suitable for drinking. There should not be too much fluid (the optimum level is the water level to the belly of the parrot).
Many people worry about how often you can arrange water procedures for a parrot. Only the bird itself can answer it. If the feathered one loves water and willingly splashes in it, there is no need to limit it in pleasure. However, it is not always recommended to leave a container of water in the cage, as the bird can wet the food. There are several restrictions on the number and frequency of water procedures.
It is not recommended to bathe a parrot if it is sick. It is also not advisable to carry out water procedures too often in the cold season.
What can I bathe in?
For bathing birds, you can use both specialized bathtubs and other containers that can be found in every house, for example, saucers. Bathing for parrots is a container with a ceiling, closed by walls on three sides. Most often, such bathtubs are made of plastic. They are conveniently placed in the cage of a parrot, but it is advisable to put it away from the food. When choosing, you should pay attention to the size of the swimsuit. If the capacity is significantly larger than the parrot itself, the risk that the bird may choke increases.
Since many parrots love to swim and do it quite often, it is most convenient to use specialized bathing suits. Alternatively, you can use deep plates, but it’s better not to install them in a cage. Typically, such dishes take up a lot of space, and also it does not have protective walls.
Some birds enjoy bathing in a sink under the tap. In this case, you need to ensure that the water pressure is not too large. It is also important that water does not flood into the eyes and ears. You can close the drain hole and draw a little water into the sink, and then turn off the tap. Least of all they use a spray bottle for swimming. However, some birds like this method of moisturizing feathers.
If the parrot evades the spray and is afraid of spraying, repeating this procedure is no longer worth it.
How to teach?
Most parrots do not need to be trained in water. Most often, they themselves begin to swim with pleasure at the first opportunity. However, some individuals are afraid of water and categorically refuse to swim. In this case, it is not necessary to force the bird to take water procedures too actively. Excessive perseverance can cause stress in the parrot, which in turn can lead to disease. You can try to spray some water from the spray bottle. Perhaps the bird will enjoy such artificial rain. After this, it will be possible to offer the parrot other swimming methods.
In addition to the spray gun, you can use fresh grass sprayed with water. It is advisable to pluck grass on personal plots or in forests, away from the carriageway. Also, it must be washed well with clean water so that there is no dust and any contaminants on it.
The wetted grass is best placed in a deep plate. In natural conditions, parrots like to wash themselves with dew or drops after rain, so this way of swimming will be as close as possible to swimming in the natural environment. If the parrot reacted positively to wet grass, it is recommended that the procedure be repeated several more times, after which the same plate should be filled with water without grass.
If it was not possible to teach the bird to take baths in water, then other means can be used to clean feathers. It can be:
- special sand purchased at a pet store;
- baby powder, which can be purchased at any pharmacy;
- rye or wheat flour.
When buying talcum powder, it is important to pay attention to its composition. The powder should not contain any additives.
Talcum powder should be sprinkled on the feather cover of the bird. You do not need to wash it off - the parrot will clean its feathers on its own. Sand and flour are placed directly in the bird cage. The bulk product must first be placed in a deep container. Parrots usually clean their feathers with the help of sand or flour.
How to dry a bird?
After bathing, the risk of catching a cold increases. For this reason, it is important to provide comfortable conditions for the bird, not only during washing, but also during the drying period. Drying the bird with a hairdryer is strictly prohibited. As noted earlier, parrots lack sebaceous glands. Dry and hot air of a hair dryer can ruin the skin of a pet. Small fissures appear on the skin from the hair dryer. Various microbes can easily penetrate into them, because of which the parrot can get very sick. Using a towel is also not advisable.
It is allowed for a while to wrap the bird with a towel. However, rubbing birds is undesirable.
It is best if the parrot dries naturally. It is necessary to ensure that during drying in the apartment there are no drafts. It is recommended to close all windows and not slam the doors. The air temperature in the room should be the same as during bathing - about 25 degrees or slightly higher. To speed up the drying process, you can put the bird in a cage, and install a lamp nearby and turn it on. Near a burning lamp, the bird dries faster.
About how to bathe a parrot, see the following video:
