Best bedding option?

[StodOne]

what is the best bedding i can use for finches , for bow i have been using sand , but the more i use it the more i have a bad feelibg about it for some reason . Your thoughts?

[cindy]

Are you using a grate or are the birds able to get to the substrate on the bottom of the cage?

[Stuart whiting]

StodOne

Hi there,

I personally do not like using grates or grills as I don't think it can be particularly comfortable for birds hopping around on the wire also feacies can also go quite hard on the wires and the birds are constantly walking about on this and not forgetting they they could also be wiping their beaks on the wire where there's feacies, not good.

I used to use sand many years ago when I was a child, there is no problem with fine sand as such but the problem that I noticed was that the sand would slightly ruffle the end of the birds tail, this is not really a problem for most but as I'm an exhibitor of birds I can't obviously afford this to happen.

Now for many years I much prefer to use normal pine wood shavings and have found this to be best for me, it's soft on the birds feet and more importantly it quickly soaks up feacies rather well and what I've noticed is that when the birds are on the cage floor any feacies seems to get buried slightly and so the birds are still hopping around on reasonably clean wood shaving,

I clean me cages out roughly every week and to be onest the cages still look quite clean but still obviously clean regardless

Incidentally I must strongly stress to never ever use saw dust as when the birds fly in the cages the dust will kick up and go into their eyes,
This will then cause severe irritation to the eyes.

[debbie276]

I used sand for many many years without an issue. I noticed that near the water dish it would get wet and smell a bit so I switched to a product called oil dri for several years. For no other reason then convenience I switched to plain clay kitty litter, which is basically what oil dri is.
I also do not use grates and enjoy watching the birds use the bottom of the enclosure. I'm sure cindy asked about the grates because if the bird can't get to the bedding you would have other options.

[cindy]

some use walnut shell or aspen or pine flakes under grates.... walnut shell look pretty but is very sharp and if ingested can gut the gut lining, do not let the birds get to it.

I tried play sand a long time ago in trays under grates in the breeder cages, I had several cages and clean up was a bit of a challenge with a lot of sand with debris in it....the garbage bags got heavy and one tore (did not know it)...left a pretty trail from the birdroom down the hall and into the garage!!!! Cat litter can be dusty.... avoided that, dried the plain clay and for the birds that bathed a lot the tray was muddy....

I use butcher paper cut to fit using templates now, easy to monitor droppings.

Avoid the pine pellets... they look pretty but when wet they can smell terrible, swell then when dry they fall apart into sawdust.... showed them to my vet and she said do not use it, the sawdust is very fine, easily spread with movement and can be inhaled by the birds, once in the lungs it can irritate and cause respiratory issues. We did a test outside on the porch with one brand, the odor was terrible, made my eyes water.

Corn... when wet with food debris, bath water droppings and urine it can mold quickly and grow aspergillus, avoid it.

There are several products made from paper that are used in rodent cages and tanks.... I used them under grates since it was seen as nesting material by zebras.

[jimenezl]

I use Feline Pine litter (under a grate) and have noticed no bad smells; on the contrary, the room smells good even after three weeks.

I may remove the grate on the big F040 cage.

[StodOne]

Thanks for responses , I see that sand can cause no negative effects so I will keep on using it .
@cindy I do not use that , I prefer my finches touch the sand , wood shavings or what ever is on the bottom of the cage , heck when i clean my cage where gouldians are , it is in 2 parts , I first put the cage in the bottom part and then pour the sand in so that i get the sand over the wire , i am afraid they would cut theirselves or something .
Although I have seen shiny things in the sand , i am afraid it is glass , or maybe some kind of small shiny rock , have no clue .
It knows to get a little bit dusty , but nothing too much

[Tish]

I have no choice with my cage to use a grate, so under that I just use paper.

[Stuart whiting]

I have no choice with my cage to use a grate, so under that I just use paper.

I ve also used news paper at times, some people worry about the print on the paper but to be perfectly onest I've never found that to be an issue as I've never had any problems,

Incidentally most grates can be removed from virtually any cage if one really wants

[Barbara]

StodOne I always wanted to try bedding but I never had a good feeling or knew what to use,I bought a 1200 ft roll of of kraft brown mailing paper,I also bought the cutter best investment I ever made it is so easy to roll out and it tears off straight.I do not like to use the grates,on the one cage I have too I put paper on top of grate very easy to roll up wipe down new paper daily .

[Sally]

StodOne I always wanted to try bedding but I never had a good feeling or knew what to use,I bought a 1200 ft roll of of kraft brown mailing paper,I also bought the cutter best investment I ever made it is so easy to roll out and it tears off straight.I do not like to use the grates,on the one cage I have too I put paper on top of grate very easy to roll up wipe down new paper daily .

I have the same, a cutter and rolls of paper, though I have the white butcher paper. It is so easy to roll out and cut off paper for each cage. With multiple cages and different sizes, I just do each type of cage at once. Cut all the papers for that size, then it is a simple chore to pull out the tray, dump the contents, and put in clean paper. I also remove the grates, so the birds are hopping around right on the paper.

[FLDoc]

I also use Feline Pine pellets. I use the grates, because in the flights I use. There would be too much space between where the grates slide in and the tray for me to trust them. In my aviary there is no grate, and smaller cockatiel-type cages, I take the grates out. The Feline Pine is changed every two weeks or so, so don't break down that much, and I have found no issues with dust. I have used Yesterday's News also, but found that it can sour sooner. I use a non-abrasive scrub pads on the grates and periodically slide them out and wash them down to keep the poop build-up low. The negative part to the grates are that the birds can't rut in the bedding for arent seed, so there is more seed waste. However, the seed feeders I use are set in pans to lessen waste from seed being thrown by the birds.

[cindy]

the pine pellets I mentioned is not the cat litter product but used in horse stalls.

[Sojourner]

I removed the grates from both cages and I use paper in the bottoms. Changing the paper is a simple matter of dumping the pan directly into the trash can. I bought some brown kraft paper in a roll at the hardware store. I keep that on one end of the metal shelves I keep one of the cages on and simply pull it down to the mark I made on one of the posts, stabilize the roll with one hand and pull the paper off with the other. I get a pretty straight tear.

Once in awhile (there are only 2 birds in this roughly 20x20x36 cage) I will also wash down the pan.

All in all its simple, cheap, sanitary, quick, easy to explain/demo to a birdsitter, and supplies and refuse take up very little space. It can also be used on top of grates if you have a cage that you can't (or don't want to) remove the grates from.

[Celeris]

jimenezl

Be warned that when you remove the grate, there's an approximately 3/4" gap left at the bottom of the cage. I keep my grate off and use a seed guard from Prevue to cover the gap. Can't say I've ever seen the birds even notice the gap, but better safe than sorry, to my way of thinking.

@StodOne

I use newspaper pellets for my bedding. I tried the pine cat litter and found myself continually aggravated with how the stuff exploded with even the slightest bit of moisture. It looked awful and tended to get caught in every nook and cranny of the cage. The newspaper pellets do a good job of catching the droppings, but keep things clean enough that my birds can hop about and enjoy pecking around for dropped seed. I've tried butcher paper, but the stuff is more trouble than it's worth, I think. I find their wings create enough of a draft to blow any dropped seed hulls and feathers everywhere. Not worth it, to me!