Is Your Pet Bird's Breed One That Requires Bathing?

Bathing is an important part of life, whether you have feathers or not. Birds should have access to bath water at least once a week, to keep their feathers in perfect order. Some will prefer a bowl of water that they can hop into and splash around in. others will actually allow you to take them into the shower. But some won't even let you get near them with water. It's just a matter of figuring out your bird's like and dislikes.

Bowl washers. These are the birds that see a bowl of water, can't resist and dive right in. They splash around and get everything within a 5-foot vicinity soaked. Sometimes they'll sing or talk while they're doing it, just to let you know how much fun they're having. As long as they aren't using their drinking water, let them go. If they are using their drinking water, change the water often. This is often a favorite of smaller birds like Parakeets, Cockatiels and Quakers.

Shower takers. These are usually the bigger birds like Macaws and Cockatoos. They will let you place them on a perch in the shower while you spray them with luke warm water. Sometimes they'll lift their wings just to make sure you get all the right spots. These are also the birds that usually don't want to get out of the shower and will complain when you turn of the water. These birds have no problems being wet and enjoy a good soaking often

Bath Haters. No matter what you do, these guys refuse to get even a drop of water on them. They scream, fight and have a virtual fit. Unfortunately, these can be any species or size of bird. There's no rhyme or reason to them except they hate water. You can work with them and offer them bowls of water, but they never use it.

One trick I have learned with bath haters. Give them access to a bowl of water and then run the vacuum cleaner. Yep, they'll start splashing around. It's something I do with my own Umbrella Cockatoo that hates water. The loud sound just triggers something that tells them to get wet. The vacuum trick works almost every time.

Some birds will fight you all the way, they just don't want to get wet. Hopefully with a little time and patience, you can coax your feathered companion into a bath. You just have to find the technique that works for you. If not it's still an important part of bird ownership. Whether they love it or hate it, every little birdie needs a bath.