• Welcome to Avian Avenue! To view our forum with less advertisments please register with us.
    Memberships are free and it will just take a moment. Click here

Aspen or pine?

BrianB

Rollerblading along the road
Avenue Veteran
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
2/22/17
Messages
1,780
I've been using aspen in my nest boxes and brooders for years without a problem. I recently pulled two crimson bellied conures because the parents weren't feeding them enough. They went into a brooder with a layer of aspen at the bottom and a paper towel on top, then surrounded by a ring made from a small washcloth. I do those to keep them from wiggling away from the heating pad that is underneath and getting a chill. Once they get big enough I remove it and let them move around. The paper towel is just for the first few days so I can see their droppings. The babies did really well for the first week and then one of them died. My other half said he went to feed them and the largest looked pale. The smaller one was doing fine. The older chick died a few hours later. When I got home I checked out the one that has passed and it was almost white in color. I looked at the little one and then I picked up everything in the brooder, I noticed that the aspen was dark. It was blood. Apparently the older one got a scratch or a puncture from a piece of aspen and bled out. The smaller one had some small abrasions on the back but seems to be doing ok. I emptied the brooder and put it on a pile of old washcloths that I rotate out every day.

I talked to a fellow breeder and they said they have been using finely shredded pine for the last few years. I've heard a lot about the anti-bacterial properties of pine, and the bird store I work at recently switched to it without any issues. It is much softer than aspen. On the other hand, I hear about chicks developing respiratory issues from the volatile oils in the pine.

Does anyone have opinions, comments, complaints? I've used it for years without a problem, but I've also never lost a chick from it either.
 

Ali

Biking along the boulevard
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
4/16/20
Messages
8,043
Location
Dorset, England, UK
Real Name
Alistair
@Zara I think you usually recommend aspen?
 

iamwhoiam

Ripping up the road
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
4/16/12
Messages
28,269
Location
the zoo
I used to use pine shavings and never had any issues.
 

Zara

♥❀Livin´ in Lovebird Land❀☼
Super Moderator
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Avenue Concierge
Joined
1/8/18
Messages
31,373
Location
Reino de España
Aspen or course pine - either or are fine.

Fine pine is the problematic one, and so I avoid that.

Cedar is toxic so I avoid that one at all costs.
 

BrianB

Rollerblading along the road
Avenue Veteran
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
2/22/17
Messages
1,780
No cedar for me. I’m allergic to it and don’t even like the smell. I have a little bit of aspen left and some conure chicks coming out of the box soon. I think I’ll leave the aspen for the bigger birds and break open the pine for the new ones.
 

BrianB

Rollerblading along the road
Avenue Veteran
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
2/22/17
Messages
1,780
The chick on the right is the crimson bellied conure chick that survived the bleeding caused by the aspen chips. It hatched on 8/21/2020 and is just starting to show the tips of the pin feathers breaking the skin. The chick on the left is a turquoise green cheek that hatched on 8/30/2020.

I've suspected that the CBC was behind on growth, but this is our first one and I had nothing to compare it to. When I put the GCC in with it, the visual difference was huge. The legs are fine. I put them down on the paper and tried to take the picture as quickly as possible. The naked one usually has the legs underneath, but I do notice some weakness with the right foot.
 

Attachments

  • Like
Reactions: Ali

BrianB

Rollerblading along the road
Avenue Veteran
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
2/22/17
Messages
1,780
What a difference a week makes. The crimson bellied is now 33 days old and the pins are growing like crazy. I'm so glad it's finally catching up.
 

Attachments

melissasparrots

Rollerblading along the road
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
1/9/11
Messages
4,081
Location
Iowa
I've used aspen for many years with no problems. I had one chick swallow a wood shaving, but I can't remember if that was a pine shaving or aspen. I'm allergic to pine so that is what inspired the switch to aspen for me. I always put a layer of paper towels over the shavings though. Mostly to prevent another baby from eating shavings. I also really liked either shredded news paper or that crimped paper shredded stuff that you can get at pet stores for bedding. I really liked it for amazon babies that were just a little older.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ali
Top