Thoughts on potty training?

[yellowlovi]

I've had my lovebirds for a year and a half. They have their own room now and its carpeted. I am getting kind of tired of cleaning bird poop off the carpet so I am considering potty training. I want them to either go to their play stand or cage to poop. Since they are flighted it should be easy for them to get to those spots when they have to poop. However, I'm scared that potty training will have negative effects. I don't want them to be holding it in until I tell them to poop. I also don't want them to feel like they have to force it out. Is there a method of training them that won't result in this?

 

[FeatheredM]

Poop on carpet is horrible, but what could be worse is potty training your parrot. It could be bad in the long run since birds bodies are built very differently than other creatures. What I would do is learn when your bird is about to poop, and catch it with a towel

 

[Shezbug]

Put them in a room that isn’t carpeted is the best option, second best option would be to cover your carpet with plastic runners/sheets or rugs and old bed sheets.
If the above options aren’t possible then the only other truely safe option is vacuuming every night when the poop is dry- they’re tiny birds so I can’t imagine it being a huge issue

 

[A.K]

I've had my lovebirds for a year and a half. They have their own room now and its carpeted. I am getting kind of tired of cleaning bird poop off the carpet so I am considering potty training. I want them to either go to their play stand or cage to poop. Since they are flighted it should be easy for them to get to those spots when they have to poop. However, I'm scared that potty training will have negative effects. I don't want them to be holding it in until I tell them to poop. I also don't want them to feel like they have to force it out. Is there a method of training them that won't result in this?

Birds aren’t built to hold their poo in like humans. They need to be light when they take flight (no rhyme intended) so they just go when they need to. Potty training them can have disastrous effects on their kidneys. Birds, frankly, are messy creatures.

 

[Momof3litt]

Potty training birds is generally frowned upon, it could be particularly detrimental to small birds who have to poop very frequently. Holding their poop or forcing to go on command can both have detrimental medical effects.

There are some species, like some conures, who instinctively try not to soil their "home" space, so knowing that they are going to poop whenever they are let out of their cage can make it easier to ensure they use an easy-to-clean spot.

 

[Clueless]

No. Just no on the potty training.

Pay attention to the spots and just buy plastic runners.

It's not worth their life.

I agree, birds are messy.

We swapped out carpet for a different flooring. Life is much better here and I didn't realize how much dust fell each day.

 

[Britnicorn]

Potty training can end really bad. Birds aren’t meant to hold their poo, so when they do it can cause so much trouble.

You can put towels under where they land the most, or better yet, cover all the carpet with those plastic floor covers! You’ll have to be sure your birds don’t chew it up but since most birds don’t go on the floor it should be fine

 

[Teckechick]

I use fabric shower curtains on floor areas we want to protect. They are cheap and washable so no waste. I have several and just rotate them out.

This link is similar to what we use but any fabric shower curtain would work.

Robot or human?