What Is Better, An Aviary Or A Cage?

When it comes to planning how you are going to keep your bird or birds there are many things to consider. So if you are buying a pet bird, what is beter, an aviary or a cage?

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Plan Ahead

Although birds are less demanding to look after than many other pets like dogs, they still need to be cared for every day throughout the year. This is something that you need to consider right from the outset, before you finalize your choice of bird species and whether your will keep them in an aviary or a cage.

What if you work away from home a lot?

Luckily it is usually not too difficult to find a friend or neighbour that will be prepared to look after your bird or birds if you go away, remember that it is not a good thing to leave a bird like a parrot with no company for longer than a day or so as they are highly sociable birds and get lonely very quickly.

A change in their routine, especially when it results in isolation and boredom can be sufficient to trigger feather plucking or other undesirable behaviours. Once these problems develop, it is very difficult to cure even if the underlying stress is removed. If you have a bird on its own in a cage, it is better to move the bird to the person’s home that will be looking after it.

So if you are the type of person who will be away a lot, maybe a companion bird is not for you and your pet may be a lot happier in an aviary with other birds to keep him company.

So what is better, an aviary or a cage?

Let’s look at the pros and cons to both.

Cage Pros:

• If you want a pet bird that you can tame and pet, a cage is better.
• Easier to keep clean.
• Easy to transport if somebody needs to look after your pet while you are away.
• Can be attractive in your house, and there are many different styles you can choose from to match your decor. If you like the look of any of the cages below, click on the picture to get a better look at them.
• There are less injuries in a cage than an aviary in general.
• Less chance of your pet catching a disease.

Cage Cons:

• Having a cage inside means constant sweeping, as birds tend to mess seeds all around the area that they live.
• Can be noisy, especially in the morning if you want to sleep late.
• You will need a larger cage for larger birds, and they can take up a lot of room.
• You can’t keep too many birds in a small cage.
• You will need to clean it more often than an avairy, depending on the number of birds that share the cage.
• Birds can get lazy as they can’t fly in a cage.
• It is harder to breed birds in a cage than it is in an aviary.

Aviary Pros:

• An aviary can become a very attractive focal point in a garden.
• You can have a collection of birds in a aviary as opposed to just one species, provided they all get along.
• You only need to worry about cleaning it out about once a week.
• See some gorgeous examples of aviary’s that can be purchased online below.
• Birds kept outside get vitamin D from the sunshine, which is great for them especially if you are breeding.
• In a large aviary, birds can fly and live much more like they would in the wild.
• Aviaries provide hours of entertainment. Just sitting in the garden watching the birds is also a great destressor.

Aviary Cons:

• Cleaning it can be quite a lot of work, depending on the design of the cage.
• Neighbours might complain about the noise, especially if you house parrots.
• It is difficult to make pets out of the birds, as they will be more like wild birds.
• You may battle to get somebody to come in a look after the birds if you go away.
• Pests like rats and mice are common, as aviaires give them a food source.
• Cats are also attracted to aviaries and might injure you birds if they catch a body part through the bars.
• You need to keep the cage hygenic, or disease can break out and spread to all your birds.

So Here Are Some Musts If You Decide On An Aviary

Aviaries must be equipped with a safety porch to prevent  your birds escaping.

The floors should be concrete not earth (unless you’re particulary fond of animals burrowing in, the wooden supports could also dissolve in less than three years and your birds could also get worms from soil.

Aviaries can be any shape though the rectangle is preferred for breeding flights. If an aviary is outdoors they must be provided with a roof and at least two sides should be covered.

Aviary wire should be as small mesh as possible to exclude unwanted intruders (this goes for any outdoor cage). Remember that mice can squeeze through 1/4 inch wire.

So remember to give some careful thought to whether you are going to prefer an aviary or a cage, as there are many factors that will come into play when it comes to making the final choice.