Bedtime and bird cage covers

When it comes to pet birds, if they don't snooze, they lose. Inadequate amounts of shut-eye can lead to many behavior problems in companion avians, including feather plucking, aggression and plain old crankiness. The following pet care advice can help you ensure that every night brings a good night's sleep for your pet.

Most birds commonly kept as pets originally hail from countries near or below the equator, where the sun is up for 12 hours and down for 12 hours nearly every day of the year. As you may have noticed, this doesn't exactly coincide with the standard "human" day, consisting of 16-hour days and 8-hour nights. If you tuck your bird in for the night when you go to bed, and he wakes up when your alarm goes off at 6 A.M., you could have one sleep-deprived feathered friend. While it's true that birds cat-nap throughout the day, most experts agree that companion avians should have at least 10 hours of darkness and quiet each night.

Do you need a bird sleep cage?

If your bird's cage is in a room or area of the house that's quiet, free from drafts and away from the hustle and bustle of family activity, you're in luck. All you need to do is turn off the lights, cover the cage and/or shut the door, and your bird's good to go to sleep.

If you cannot keep your pet's turf dark and quiet at night, it's time for Plan B – the procurement of a sleeping cage. Think of the sleeping cage as your bird's bed. Smaller than your bird's regular cage, it can be easily moved to another room (a quiet one, of course!) so your bird can get the necessary ZZZZs.

We offer an extra word of caution if you plan on bringing your bird into your bedroom at night. His sleep will be disturbed every time you move about, and any late-night TV watching will keep him up, too. And remember, if your windows are not completely covered from the early morning sun, your bird will wake up at dawn – which may not necessarily be when you'd like him to.

Advice on bird cage covers

Now for a little pet care advice on cage covers – it's worth it to invest in a good one. In the wild, tropical birds sleep safe and snug in the treetops, protected by the dark foliage. A good cage cover provides the same security for your pet. There's a wide variety of models available, just make sure you get one without loose strings or fastenings that your bird could get caught on.

Tweet dreams!