a water fountain for the birds. will it be safe?

[datlamb]

hi !
with winter coming, i wanted to get some moisture in the bird room. i thought of buying a humidifier but the bf informed me this will be bad for our computers, which are right by the bird room.

so i figured i could buy a small water fountain for them to shower in without being depended on me for showers! and the evaporated water from it will moisturize the room a bit as well.


i was thinking of buying this one:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000QTUJXS/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

it's very pretty and it looks like it's large enough for the birds to perch on.

i am a bit worried though that there might be a risk i'm not aware of, so, will it be safe?

 

[Nikomania]

It has an electric cord, so I'd be worried about their possibly gnawing on that. Otherwise it's really cute.

 

[Laurul Feather Cat]

I don't feel your choice of fountain is very practical. I use a pet drinking fountain for my birds in winter for humidity and bird bathing. Mine is a 5 inch square glazed China bowl with, of course, a filter. There is no splash of water, nice edges for perching and it is easily cleaned and disinfected; very important as the birds really dirty it: and it is cleaned and filter changed at least weekly. The birds love it. I also keep two other sources of water for natural evaporation in plastic half gallon jugs by the heat ducts. I generally get humidity around 50 percent.

Safety means you cannot have a fountain deeper than the height of your smallest bird's legs to prevent drowning.

 

[finchly]

I use fountains for the finches. Not that exact one, but a couple others. It is very hard ot keep them clean but otherwise they're fine.

 

[Laurul Feather Cat]

I started with that type of fountain, but the Poicephalus birds and the conures destroyed it within a month. So I went indestructible (so far). Oh, I had to buy an electric cord protector, of course.

 

[datlamb]

thanks everyone for the comments! i knew something about the fountain will slip my mind.

i will make sure to buy a cord protector so nothing happens to it or the birds.

@Laurul Feather Cat
i currently have 2 cockatiels so i thought it would fit them. but maybe a water bowl fountain will work better.
did you make it or buy it? do u have any pictures of it?

 

[Laurul Feather Cat]

I bought it from one of those on line pet supply places. I have no pictures. Amazon has several pet ceramic fountains available.

 

[ode.to.parrots]

I love this idea! I have been wanting something like this for my tiels.

 

[MommyBird]

Just keep in mind you should clean it daily if they are having access to it all the time.
You wouldn't let their water bowl go without cleaning for more than a day so neither should this.

 

[ode.to.parrots]

@Laurul Feather Cat : Is it kind of like this one? Just curious.
Amazon.com : Drinkwell Ceramic Avalon Fountain for Pets : Pet Self Waterers : Pet Supplies

 

[CrazyBirdChick]

Oooh, I'm following cause I'm curious which fountain to get!

 

[datlamb]

i actually found this one which looks really nice on ebay
Pets Water Fountains For Cats Dogs Automatic Cute Round Water Bowl Eletric | eBay

i'm still waiting for an answer from the seller regarding where to purchase water filters for it though

 

[datlamb]

found this cute video of budgies using an adorable flower water fountain

maybe i'll buy this one and remove the flower so my cockatiels will have more room to bathe?

3:27 what it looks like witout the flower. could work!

 

[datlamb]

sorry for spamming but as i'm looking into this i want to share.
looked at reviews on amazon for the flower water fountain. one reviewer wrote this:

"Now onto the negative, my big and only gripe: the filters which forced me to knock off 2 stars. I cannot stand the propriety filters that cost $12 for a 2 pack, and have to be changed out every month(3-4/wks). That's $72 a year, for a $20-$30 piece of equipment.

My solution? Just use coffee filters, or even napkins! My cats have always drank straight tap water and are perfectly fine with it, and many others including vets will also tell you it's safe. You could easily just go and also buy one of those $10 PUR/Brita faucet filters to take it one-step further. The biggest reason I really see a need for a filter is to catch any hairs or debris that might try to fall into the fountain. I've had no issues so far.

Also if your concerned about that gunky stuff that builds in up in the fountain, don't be. It builds up even with the official Catit filter, and I found myself constantly cleaning it before. So far, I've actually noticed that with the coffee filters there isn't as much. Maybe I had a defective filter before, not entirely sure what's up with that.

As far as how often do you change the coffee filter, I suppose when you see it start getting dirty, but even if you wanted change it out everyday, a 350 pack of filters costed me $5. That's enough for a new filter everyday of the year instead of $72+taxes!"

there's also a picture of how she put the coffee filter in, but i can't copy it. it's here if you're curious Amazon.com: Catit Flower Fountain: 3L Drinking Fountain with Triple-Action Filter: Pet Supplies

other users also said that the regular filter gets moldy or gets dirty very quickly.

the water filters are what put me off buying a fountain but now that i see there are other solutions for it it seems much more plausible .

i'm planning on putting the fountain where there's no direct sunlight and to change the water daily. i'll also use the coffee filter method. i hope this will keep away mold as some users complained about it but most of them didn't.

if anyone else is planning on buying this for their birds do share your thoughts

 

[finchly]

We have to clean ours OFTEN, and I suppose you would to @datlamb -- so I don't believe mold would be an issue. We certainly haven't had any! (Different type of fountain but same concept)

Also about the filters. We have used fish tank filter media that looks like a sponge, you just cut off a piece as needed and toss when dirty. Almost as cheap as a coffee filter. It would depend on what type/size filter was in there ... just another alternative.

 

[datlamb]

ty so much for the advice @finchly ! this foam does look better suited to keep the water clean

what sort of fountain do you have?

 

[finchly]

I have 2. This one Amazon.com : PetSafe Drinkwell Platinum Dog and Cat Water Fountain, 168 oz. : Pet Self Waterers : Pet Supplies


And I can't find the other... one sort of like this.

I'll have to get photos for you. With finches the water is too deep so I fill in with glass stones.

 

[ode.to.parrots]

Has any one tried making a diy fountain for his/her bird? Just curious!

Edit: Perhaps something like this:

?

 

[Laurul Feather Cat]

I really don't find this funny. Poor bird. Stuff like this is offensive to me.

 

[ode.to.parrots]

I really don't find this funny. Poor bird. Stuff like this is offensive to me.

I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend anyone. Looking at it again, I can see why this meme is problematic. I'll delete it now.

Honestly, I thought it looked photo-shopped to me, but I see now that, even if it is, it doesn't make it much better.
...
I actually don't know what I was thinking when I posted that. I'm usually super sensitive to stuff like that, so I'm feeling pretty embarrassed right now. I'm sorry.

Edit: I wasn't able to delete it myself, or edit it. I just reported myself.