Tips to Prep Your Pet Bird for Fall

Tips to Prep Your Pet Bird for Fall

With the cooler temperatures and less daylight, the end of summer is often a relief to you but it’s important to consider how these changes impact your pet bird. To help prepare your bird for a new season, there are several things you can do to ensure the health and happiness of your pet!

UV Rays

As the leaves start to change, now is the best time to take advantage of the warm temperatures and to allow your bird to revel in the natural UV rays from the sun. Since most birds are native to tropical environments or else migrate away from winter-heavy environments, sunlight is an essential component to their health. To prepare for the lack of daylight hours and the minimal exposure to UV rays, investing in a broad spectrum UV light to shine on their cage for at least 6 hours a day during the winter months is an excellent tool to keep your bird happy and healthy through the new season.

Behavioral Changes
When the seasons shift, it’s possible that you will notice new and potentially unwanted behaviors in your bird. Examples include aggressive behavior, chewing, and an uptick in vocalization can all be attributed to stress levels from the changes in weather. To help keep your pet mentally and physically occupied, new toys, perches, and wooden chew toys can provide stimulation and the necessary opportunities for play and excitement.

Respiratory Concerns

With the reliance on furnaces and heaters as the weather turns downright chilly, these bursts of warm, dry air and accompanying spores and dust can be particularly hard on your bird’s respiratory system. To properly prepare for fall and winter, you should clean all air filters, run a humidifier, and keep your bird away from any of the vent openings. Look out for any debris in your bird’s nares (nostrils) and watch for tail bobbing that accompanies each breath as this is a sign that something could be wrong with your pet bird’s respiratory tract.

Big Clean

One other task you should perform to prep your bird for fall is a big clean. Since with cooler weather, it can be harder to remove your bird from their cage to do necessary cleaning duties, now is the time to do an intense cleaning and get into all of the hidden corners of your bird’s cage. Since many birds are encouraged to molt with the onset of cooler temperatures and shorter daylight hours, dander may be a big part of what you need to clean out!