Lining your cages

[JeannetteD]

Hi!

I was wondering if everyone wouldnt mind posting what they use to line the bottom of cage, and why? And maybe why they don't use alternative methods (ie, they're unsanitary etc)

I've been using paper, and we're thinking of changing over to those 'pellet litter' things. I have no idea what they're called, but it's litter in pellet form.

Others say they use paper, cat litter, woodchips/shavings.. etc..

What do you use?

Jeannette

[alwaysfullofjoy]

I use news paper but only the plain paper not the glossy add pages. It works great for me. With the finches I put several layers and pull a sheet out a day. Makes cleaning of the cages very easy inbetween scrub downs. For my starling I use news paper as well but thick layer and remove the whole thing everyday. She takes a lot of baths .

I love the paper and won't use anything else. I've tried the cob pellets and didn't like them. I don't think its very sanitary if you don't change it out everyday. I may be wrong and I know that a lot of people use it but I worry about germ growth.

Just my 2 cents.

[Crystal]

In my cages I use newspaper (cheap and easy to replace), but in the aviary I use vinyl flooring (easy to disinfect). When I clean the aviary, i either sweep or vacuum up the loose debris, then I mist the bottom with soapy water to loosen any remaining debris. I wipe it down (you could also mop) spraying more soapy water as necessary until it appears physically clean. If I need to disinfect the floor, I then apply a weak bleach solution and let that stand for 10 minutes before wiping it away and rinsing with a fine mist of tap water which also gets wiped up.

I use the vinyl flooring that comes in a 16' roll which I cut to size, and occasionally (maybe once every 2 years in my indoor aviary, more often when I had an outdoor aviary) replace the entire floor with a fresh roll.

The bottoms of the cages I construct myself also have vinyl flooring (adherent tiles), but this is just to make wiping them down easier if they need it--I still place newspaper on top and replace it as necessary. It is best to tear off the top sheet daily like mentioned above, but I tend to go a little longer between floor cleanings especially with breeding birds.

A long time ago (before I knew better), I used corn cob bedding for my parrot's cage; this often became moldy so I stopped using it--turns out bedding like corn cob and wood chips tend to harbor pathogens like fungus. Also some wood chips are toxic (pressure treated, cedar, and red wood), so they are not the best flooring to use. Soil too can harbor pathogens, which makes "natural floor" outdoor aviaries more difficult to manage from a disease outbreak standpoint.

When I visited Vogelpark ("world's largest aviary") in Walsrode, Germany, most of their indoor aviaries had a sandy bedding. The floors appeared meticulously clean, so they must rake the sand very regularly. I imagine the sand needs to be completely replaced on occasion as well, but I did not ask how their aviary cleaning was managed.

For cages, paper products which are absorbant and easy to remove and replace (newspaper, paper towels, paper bags, recycled computer paper, and butcher's paper) are recommended, but you may find you like the look of those newspaper litter pellets better. These are designed to be pretty absorbant and you can probably use a clean cat box scooper to remove soiled pellets. If you place a sheet of newspaper underneath the pellets, you may find that makes it easier to remove all the pellets when you replace them (which will need to be done occasionally).

If you end up switching, please share your experiences with how absorbant you find the pellets to be and what about them you've found good and bad (i.e. if they allow seed to sprout or get moldy, or if they are a pain in the butt to clean or easier to manage, etc.). I have thought about using them too for aesthetic purposes, but currently I do not have any cages where their use would be appropriate. This summer I was planning on building a relatively small enclosure (maybe 3 or 4 feet wide) for my balcony and the way I plan to construct it will make litter pellets a viable option--but it will be an outdoor flight and exposed to the elements, so I am not sure if pellets would hold up well if it rained. ;)

[JeannetteD]

Thanks Crystal and Alwaysfullojoy!

The concensus seems to be pretty much what you both have mentioned. Paper is cheap and easy to replace (although I cant stand the odor when the paper gets saturated with water), soil not a good idea and would probably make a bigger mess indoors anyway, corncob too inviting for bacteria and fungus and mildew..

That leaves those little newspaper pellets. I think I'm going to give them a try. That or diamataceous earth (kitty littler) that is all natural, unscented, NOT clumping, chemical free...

Something has to be better than the paper I'm using. Although I like the idea of the vinyl tile on the bottom of the cages. This is a very good idea, but then I would still be using paper over the vinyl, unless I just let them poop on the vinyl and clean it. If I do that, then I might as well just remove evrything from the cage now and let them poop on the tray at the bottom without paper in it.

I'll do some more research, but thanks for giving me an idea on ewhere to start my research!

I'll keep you posted on how things work out if I try alternative methods to newspaper!

Jeannette

[Crystal]

I only use the vinyl in this case because I constructed the cages out of wood so they didn't have a plastic tray or bottom. Wood is impossible to disinfect and not as easy to wipe down as plastic or vinyl, so I opted to cover the floors with the tiles.

I was also thinking about gravel (fish tank gravel) as a possibility for california-style outdoor flight cages with a floor made from fine mesh that would not let the gravel fall through. I haven't experimented with it yet or looked around the local home improvement store to see if they sell such a mesh (it would need to be bigger than screen so toenails can't get caught in it, but small enough to hold the gravel). Of course using gravel in this case would mainly be for aesthetic purposes for a "prettier" outdoor cage. I figure I would have to reinforce the bottom of the cage since the mesh probably would bow under the weight of the gravel... but my thought was--gravel comes in fun colors and theoretically should be easy to clean by hosing it down...and since the floor will be mesh and not solid, the excess water will just drain out of the cage and into the ground below. Not really an option for indoor cages, but you got me thinking about alternatives to more traditional bedding and now I'm determined to give this a try.

[dearbhail]

hello...I am new to finches, so take this for what it is worth, but for my rabbits I use a product called Woody Pet, it comes in 35lb bags. I was using paper to line the bottom of my flight cage, then I tried this product and have been very happy with it. it is made specifically for animals.

I have found that it is non fungal forming, easy to rake through to remove the soiled pellets, it looks very natural and it smells good, kind of a foresty smell. I dump the whole thing about every 2 weeks, disinfect the tray and refill. It works well. It is all natural.

I have also used the pellets you would burn in a wood stove, which are more economical, just make sure you get the NATURAL ones, UNTREATED!

hope this helps

[Hilary]

Great thread - thanks Jeannette for starting it! I use newspaper, but have also noticed the funny odor (actually bought boxes of baking soda to keep under the cages - no effect, though). Hilary

[Ragdoll]

Hi, I too am new to finches, so this may or may not be a good idea.

In relation to Crystal's comments about using gravel and the possible weight of gravel - I have used a product called "aerated clay" when I've wanted to fill up a large decorative pot and then stand a plant inside it in a separate container. The clay is very light, but looks exactly like gravel. I purchased it from our local hardware store, but I believe they also use it in hydroponics. Not sure how it would go with things like mould and fungus, but it might be an avenue to investigate.

[JeannetteD]

Thanks Pam!

If you could find the company name that produces that I will contact them and find out how safe it is for finches.

Jeannette

[alwaysfullofjoy]

I got a sample bag of the newspaper pellets from the pet store this weekend. I put it in the cage with the societies. I must admit it does look much better. I'm going to see how I like it in this cage and if I deside to go for it I'm going to put it in the new flight that's almost done.

[JeannetteD]

CAn you let me know how your newspaper pellets turn out? Both for appearance and cleanliness/odour?

I saw a bag at the pet store and I was going to buy one to sample, and then I looked at the price.

I would have to buy hundreds of dollars of that stuff to line all the bottom of my cages over teh course of a month.

There's gotta be a better solution..

Jeannette

[alwaysfullofjoy]

Of course I will let you know. So far so good. I'm going to go find a pooper scooper for it and see how that works with it. The societies didn't bathe much today but so far the odor is well not there. Still look just as good as they did a few days ago just sprinkle some seed on top.

[Gaviota]

We use corn cob. We don't have to much space in our apt., so we have 3 cages in our bedroom and 1 in the balcony . Following your sugestions, yesterday we take out the corn cob and replace it with newspaper. After a while we saw that our bedrooms floor was more messy with the news than with the corn cob. We take the news out and put the corn cob back. I think if you have the birds outside the newspaper its great, because outside you don't clean the floor too much; but I have to keep my room clean. I think the temperatures delayed mold. In every cage we have a nylon skirt (we buy it in Pet Supermarket) that grabs seeds. We have carpet and we use to vacuum every day because of the seeds , but this skirts are great.

[Crystal]

The corn cob isn't recommended because it promotes the growth of mold/fungus which can be harmful to the birds. It tends to become moist and harbor pathogens, especially in humid hot weather like Florida has. If you like the way the corn cob looks but you don't want to worry as much about mold, try newspaper pellets or recycled paper bedding (comes in different colors, looks soft like little wads of tissue).

[Gaviota]

If you like the way the corn cob looks but you don't want to worry as much about mold, try newspaper pellets or recycled paper bedding (comes in different colors, looks soft like little wads of tissue).

Thank's Crystal for this wonderfull sugestion . Is good for a rookie like me to have an expert helper like you . The recycled paper sounds great , but....do stores sell it shreded (cause instead I need a shred machine) and where can I find the news pellets or I have to make them > Thanks.