Importance Of Showering

Well here is an update on SweetHeart and her showers! We have been doing weekly showers, building up to twice a week. She is doing great! She will let me still extend her wings and spray under them and let me ruffle her feathers on the back of her neck now to get her all wet! I have been taking her out and having her step up on my hand with the towel on it and she sits there, and today she flapped her wings while I was holding her to kind of dry herself off lol. I have been able to give her little beak rubs, and I even held onto her beak and gave her a kiss on the top of the head today!! I was very excited! She has a boney head lol. She let me sneak one in the last time too, but she was a little shocked at it. This time she pretty much just sat there and let me do it. We are making more and more progress as the time goes on! Thanks J!!

I can do anything with the birds while I am showering them. I can do anything with Liath anyway, but Oisin is a little lamb in the shower. I used to think it was because he was scared, but now I am beginning to think its because he enjoys it. I only shower them when they remind me to, as in they are scratching or preening so it must be soothing to them. I do it about twice a week, so by now both of them know what going up the stairs and turning right means!

Wow Ok! The other night (sorry I'm late to posting this) I decided to take SweetHeart her well needed bath! I took her down the hall and into the bathroom and than put her on a washcloth on the bottom of our bathtub. I than was talking to her all sweet and turned on the water and used the hand held shower. She was kind of running around and had a couple of growls that came out of her, but I kept re-assuring her that it would be ok and that we had to take a bath. She seemed to be getting a little wet, but I decided to be brave and reach down and tell her to give me her wing. She let me pull it out and spray underneath it so I could get her really soaked. I was shocked! She has never let me do this, and I think it was mainly cause she was scared, but I knew it had to be done. Now I don't know if it will be different the second time around or not, but I wanted to share that I did it!! Thanks Joe

Thanks J! After I take my dog's stitches out tonight I will give that a go too! That way they can all be mad at me at once lmao! I'll report back to you and let you know how it went, problem is, she has never been in that part of the house, I know, she should've been, but now she will probably think of that as the "Bad Room" lol haha, just notice bad room, bath room Oh my I crack myself up! Ok I'm sorry I'm in a silly mood today!

OK! Ronda, if all else fails use a Hand towel to hold her, and use the hand sprayer in the tub area. It won't be pretty, but do it IF all else fail. She needs to look like a drenched rat. This is not easy for her or you, but MUST be done for her health. My guys get it done twice a week, very little, if any flaking.
A VERY IMPORTANT MUST FOR BIRDS.

One other way is, fills the tub with cool water and holds the bird under the water with his head NEVER UNDER for a few minutes till soaked through. Again you can use a hand towel to help you along.

Joe

Well Joe I know you kind of know my story on how well I can handle SweetHeart lol. How do you suggest I put her in the tub? I mean of course I know to use the shower head, but being I can't just handle her. Should I place her on the bottom and just try to soak her while talking nicely to her? I do have a hand held shower head so that is good! But I really want to shower her, but I know if I just keep her on my hand she will fly off. Should I just hold her toes and keep spraying? Or would her being on the bottom of tub while I'm trying to soak her be better?

Ronda,
There are many ways people shower, or clean their bird. This is another reason why its so important of being able to handling them. First I would try using the shower in your bath room. Always use cool water, not ice cold and not warm, COOL. If you have the type that is hand held, its best. They need a large volume of water to get them soaked. The top feathers are more water proof, but will soak in, the under part is not, so it’s easy to get soaked. I hold my guys in the shower and turn the every witch way till soaked. I wrap them in a towel and dry them off, then put them in their sleeper cages for about an hour, and I make a big thing of taking them out. Love is restored. If you want to use a mist bottle you don't get them soaked enough, in my opinion. Now! If you do use a mist bottle you have to get into the body area and the inside wings. You have to use the strong setting that has a straight stream. Fire it through the wing area by their body. Make sure you soak them well.
Joe

Ok I have a question for you, Ever since I have had SweetHeart I have tried to mist her, tried to shower her in the kitchen sink and she keep her feathers soo tight the water just rolls off her back. What do you suggest? She still hasn't to this day been soaked! The dust is getting really bad around here! She will soak her belly and head in her water dish, but that is all. Can you give me some advice J?

OH boy! shower time. Kill me now! Sounds like something you say, or feel?

I have constantly heard two statements over and over. One is "my bird won't eat that" and the other is "my bird hates baths". My attitude has always been pretty much the same — so what! Would it be acceptable for a parent to never give a child a bath just because he didn't like it and complained? With a little knowledge and a little work, this too will change. Just as converting a bird to a better diet takes knowledge, time, and patience, so does getting a bath-hating bird used to being misted or showered.

Why are baths so important? Most parrots live in the rainforest where the humidity is intense. Our discomfort in the tropics as eco-tourists is not from the heat -- it's the humidity. Even the parrots that live in dry areas, seem to relish their baths when given the opportunity. Besides keeping feathers clean, bathing encourages preening. Humidity keeps the skin and the tissues of the respiratory system moist. Dry skin creates itching and parrots bother their feathers more when their skin is irritated.

In most areas of North America, we set our thermostats high in the winter and most heating systems dry the air considerably. When the air becomes so dry, we may get all sorts of symptoms including dry skin and nosebleeds. The same drying of the skin and mucous membranes occur with parrots causing them a host of health problems. Some parrots seem to be seasonal pickers, plucking only during the winter when the artificial heat dries them up like little raisins.

Occasionally I see a bird who needs a "real" bath with a gentle detergent (baby shampoo or one of the gentle dish washing soaps). This is best done by someone who has experience. It is critical not to get soap or water in the eyes or ears and to make sure all the soap is rinsed from the feathers. A "real" bath may be necessary only if a bird's feathers become severely soiled or greasy for some reason. So just know it has to be done, so just do it.

Joe