Outdoor temperatures

[neoow]

Hi all,

I have an outside aviary for Alfie now which he went out in a few times over the summer.

We had the longest and hottest summer I have ever known this year and so Alfie didn't go out as much as I would have liked, because I was worried about him overheating. I took him out one day and he wanted to fly and climb around but started panting and holding his wings away from his body. I misted him with some cool water and encouraged him to calm down a little and he was absolutely fine after that- but it did worry me. I didn't take him outside if I couldn't stand the heat out there.

What sort of temperatures are safe for a bird who lives indoors? If we have a sunny autumn day is it safe to take him out or will it be too cold for him now?

I think I'm being a bit paranoid about it. I have a wonderful aviary for him to use and I think I'm being a bit too overprotective and worrying about him getting too hot or too cold. 😂 I'm just worried because he's not used to staying outside for several hours at a time so I don't want to make him uncomfortable or ill!

[SRSeedBurners]

It's all about acclimation.   My birds can withstand temps in the 100-115F range as long as they're in the shade.  Starting around 95-98F I will turn on a fan for them.   However I can't just throw them out there in that kind of heat after being inside for months.    They go out daily and as the season heats up they acclimate.  Keep in mind at those temps they will lower their wings and open their mouths for cooling.  If mine start to pant, that's when I take action for more cooling or just remove them from the situation.   One thing that really helps is to have a casserole dish fulll of ice during the hottest part of the afternoon.  I have caught my birds cooling off just by standing near the dish.

Edited October 3, 2018 by SRSeedBurners

[neoow]

1 hour ago, SRSeedBurners said:

It's all about acclimation.   My birds can withstand temps in the 100-115F range as long as they're in the shade.  Starting around 95-98F I will turn on a fan for them.   However I can't just throw them out there in that kind of heat after being inside for months.    They go out daily and as the season heats up they acclimate.  Keep in mind at those temps they will lower their wings and open their mouths for cooling.  If mine start to pant, that's when I take action for more cooling or just remove them from the situation.   One thing that really helps is to have a casserole dish fulll of ice during the hottest part of the afternoon.  I have caught my birds cooling off just by standing near the dish.

Thanks for this.

I did put a tray of iced water out for him when he was hot but he just ignored it. He only ever baths in his water bowl, which is why I ended up misting him. He was standing next to it but wouldn't go in it or touch it.

And what about lower temperatures now we're heading towards winter?

[SRSeedBurners]

Winter temps all depend on the sun and wind for us.   If it's a clear day and no wind, they can be out there at 45F no problems.  Clouds or wind and I pack them inside at anything 55F and below.   I just don't like seeing them miserably cold and they do tend to act miserable the couple of times I put them out for a short outing at around 45 in cloudy.   I only did that because they were going to be locked up all day and they were only out there for 15-20 minutes.

Our Huey is a special case.   He doesn't like cold at all and he panicked when I left him in the aviary when it was cold.   So I have a heat lamp I use for him and he's snug as a bug in a rug next to that thing.