Can I move my grey to an outside building?

[Rambo]

we have just remodeled out house and it is small but nice, the room my grey stays in has only one window and we don't have room in the living room for his huge cage. my grey has been living inside in his own room for eight years. we have a really big shop and their are alot of windows in the room i want to move him in but there is no heat in there.Except for his electric heated perch, wich does provide some heat also he has an acrylic cage so that too, holds in heat. I would bring him inside to the playstands when we're home, but can he stay in the shop during the day and night when it's bedtime and his own playtime? will the change in the temperture change from inside to outside make him get sick or can he stand the changes? ( of coarse I would have a radio or tv on during his awake time.) and also, I home during the day and he stays in the living room on his playstand and my boyfriend is home at night and also keeps him in the main room too.<br><br>Post edited by: Rambo, at: 2008/01/28 13:55

[danmcq]

That would depend on the temperature extremes Rambo.

 

Too hot or cold and you will have a dead Grey. This would affect him, as he is used to being in the Big Cage that his cage resides in and he can hear you even if he isn't with you at the time. Out in the shop would mean total isolation for him when you do not bring him in the house with you and family when home.

 

I personally would not recommend moving him out, but that's me.

[judygram]

I see from your profile that you live in NC, I would say that it gets too cold in an unheated building for a grey to be housed especially at night, I imagine it gets colder than below freezing. I live in VA so I have some idea of NC weather.

 

Also the difference in temps of bringing him in when you are home to a heated space and taking him back to unheated space would be hard on him, but then I could be mistaken. Maybe a chat with your avian vet would answer your question, but in my opinion I am with Dan on this one.

[Shamelessmuse]

I agree, much too cold for a Grey! An unheated building even here in Atlanta is too cold for a Grey in the winter! Not to mention that other than bedtime they are much happier in being with their families...they don't do well when away from their flock.

[MazyAK]

Rambo: Let the Alaskan tell you about cold. -27F this morning. I agree that in NC you are subject to colder temps. and risk the bird getting too cold. The heater perch won't help enough if temps. drop. I also agree about moving the bird to a more isolated area from the normal comings and goings in the household. These birds need to be included and around their flock not in a separate area. I understand you are constrained by space but try all you can to keep your bird in the social area of the home.

Good luck & hope you're warmer.

Bruce & Mazy

[Tari]

If you work out the temp thing my biggest worry would be neglect. Not on purpose but unseen is usually not remembered. And then it well be "oh Im to tired to go out and get him today or to cold or its to wet or..." and then it would happen more and more. The reason I say this is cause I could see it happening with me and that is why my porch is still not screened in.:silly:

How long would you make the effort? Be honest about it.

I think I would rather see him in a smaller cage with lots of out time in the family room instead of moved out of the house.

Just my opion based on what I know would happen if I moved my birds out.

[Talon]

The answer to your question is NO! A grey is a special bird that requires being nurtured by it's flock/you and any family members you may have. To isolate him alone in a room is ridiculous, especially at night! Never mind the cold!! They are from AFRICA and can not take the cold. Even a draft can make them sick. Never mind fluctuating temperatures!!

 

Everyone here is being way too nice, because I know that no one here would even think about putting their grey where you want to. Tari is right, there will be chilly days where it will be easier to say, Oh, He won't mind. I'll see him tomorrow. What you will end up with, should you NOT take our advice, will be a VERY depressed bird, one who will develop behavior problems that probably will last a lifetime, a feather plucker, and a trauma he will experience, that he MAY get over, but never forget. If you can't love that grey like a member of the family, then you should GIVE him to a family that will. I'm sorry if this sounds like I am coming down on you, but I am!

This grey deserves better than being left in a shop because it's cage is too big!

[Shamelessmuse]

Rambo, calm down. No one is making an attack on you. You asked questions and you got honest answers. No one is saying you are a bad bird mommie or daddy! We are just giving you our feedback with the best interests of your bird at heart, we know you have the best interest at heart to or you wouldn't have even asked the question. I can tell you after just a few days on the forum, these are some very nice people! Don't take the feedback as personal attacks, they are just the honest opinion of the people you asked a question of. And an unheated building in North Carolina is too cold at night! You asked is it okay to put him outside durning night, bedtime and his own playtime. The answers that you got were that it was too cold and that even when it is our grey's own playtime they need to be around their people. Sorry if it came across as being cruel...I can assure you that no one here ment to be that way!

[spookyhurst]

I live in Phoenix, Arizona and get concerned about Nikko getting too cold in my own bedroom :ohmy:. That's where she sleeps at night, and even though the thermostat is set at 72, my bedroom gets as low as 66 (it's exposed to the outside on 3 walls and is on the north side of the house). I added an extra blanket over the top of her cage because I thought her feet felt too cold when I got her out in the morning.

 

However, I know that there are people with outdoor aviaries around here. They have misters to keep the birds cool in the hot hot summers, and heaters for the winter. The Perch Store carries a nice outdoor aviary heater, but it's quite pricey: http://www.theperchstore.net/allwerahefor.html

[Woody6]

Karma to you spookyhurst. It is a tough decision whether to move the grey to the shop and giving a link that could help with the cold is awesome. My only concern would be the temperature fluctuation between the house and the shop, however, I know many bird owners that take their greys with them to work all the time which means the birds are subjected to the temperature change while in transport. If you are going to be in the shop with the bird and you can make sure the environment is warm enough (by getting the recommended heater) then go for it. I can tell you just want your grey to have more to see but if you are not going to be in the shop I would not put the grey in there. They grey may get stressed by the new scenery (all the windows) which may actually make the poor thing really stressed out with all the moment it may see going by all those windows. It sounds like you have a happy bird so it may mean continuing to deal with the large cage in the room instead of the sweetie being alone in a shop. Just my thoughts.

[Tari]

Instead of moving the bird and coming up with money to heat and cool what about a nice full spectrum light for the room in the house he is in now?

No one is attacking you we want what is best for your bird and we are being honest about it and maybe not using the best words.

Also we read these post and one or two words stick out and then we do not really "hear" the rest of the post.

Example you saw the word neglect in my post and did not read the rest. I did not say you neglected your bird but that is what would happen if I moved mine outside and could happen to you too.

[Acappella]

Hi Rambo. Just the fact that you're here asking questions shows how much you care for your little guy!Like Woody6, I would wonder also if a room with many windows would be too stressful for your baby. We all want whats best for our birds and logically feel that lots of windows would naturally be more interesting, but to him it might feel like potential danger from many angles. I was wondering if you could get a smaller cage, maybe with a great play stand on top, and have that in your living room where there is more 'action' with his flock and let him alternate between his room and this one? I don't know, just a thought.

[BMustee]

I'm with everyone else here...it would be too cold for him. I live in FL and I wouldn't put my grey in an unheated area when the temps drop here. My BIG issue is you say it is a "shop"...what kind of shop are we talking about here. Birds are VERY sensitive to chemicals, dust, vapors, and anything else that would be in a shop area and would kill your bird within hours. I don't know what you have in your "shop" but I'm covering the bases because I have had people come into my pet store and want to buy a parrot and keep it in their garage! The heat in FL would kill them, but also all the items around them. If there is any gas powered items kept in the shop, that would kill them. Any paint or varnish cans, that would kill them too.

[BMustee]

Also, I live with my father and I have all 11 (1 grey and 10 finches) of my birds in my bedroom...and not a master bedroom, just a normal sized bedroom with one window. There are 3 cages in there with me that all are 36"wide. They all have F.S. lighting and I'm able to live with them all in such a small area...the birds don't mind ether because the finches breed openly (even my Gouldians) and the grey loves being right there with me and he has the finches to watch when I'm gone. Not to be "attacking" you, but the "cage is too big" reason for moving him really doesn't hold up in my book.

[Woody6]

Great point about the chemicals BMustee. I also wonder if the bird would feel neglected because the bird would no longer be able to hear the normal noises of the house while in the cage. Those normal noises the bird is used to would be gone too if the bird was segregated to another building. It is beginning to sound like a 'cold' thing to do without intending to be that way. I hope the big cage in the house can be reckoned to be accepted as being there because that is the birds home and the best place for the sweetie to be....in the house with its flock.