BATHING BIRDIES

How often should you be bathing your bird?  There are no definitive rules.  I bathe my birds once a week and more often when they are molting.  Bathing is a natural, healthy activity for birds. It stimulates preening, which removes dirt and dander from their feathers. Birds also seem more contented after a good bath and preening.

I enjoy taking one of the birds into the shower with me.  To ease any possible stress, I talk to them and play games with them while we are in the shower.  Some of my birds start to fluff up as soon as we enter the bathroom.  Trixie, our peach-faced lovebird becomes a peach colored cotton ball.  I keep the water slightly warm and place them on a shower perch.  Let the water bounce off of you onto the bird so as to mist them like a waterfall.  I also hold my hand in the water to direct the mist.  This works especially well for the smaller birds, such as our parrotlet.

For some unknown reason (at least unknown to me) our birds will usually bathe using their water dish whenever I vacuum.  There must be something about the noise of the vacuum that reminds them of bathing.  It is hilarious to see all three of the mini macaws bathing out of their water dishes at the same time.  Cory, our Illiger's mini macaw, dips as far as he can to the bottom of his water dish and all you see of him is his tail sticking straight up in the air.  He resembles a Hawkhead after he’s finished.  

After your bird has finished bathing, place him/her in a warm area of the house that is free from drafts.  Blow drying your bird is unnecessary and can leave your bird's feathers and skin without necessary moisture.  Blow dryers may contain Teflon or other toxic substances that can harm your bird.  If your bird becomes chilled after bathing, dry the feathers with a towel.  Make a game out of wrapping the bird up in the towel and playing peek-a-boo or tickling through the towel.

Make the bathing experience fun for both your bird and you.