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Preventing diseases

You can save yourself a lot of trouble by sticking to the following rules:

  • see to it that aviary and cages are always clean and dry;
  • use some moisture-absorbing material (e.g. wood chips) to cover the floor;
  • make sure the temperature is right and that light levels are sufficient;
  • do not put too many birds in a small space;
  • closely inspect new birds for any symptoms before you buy them;
  • place each new bird in a separate cage for the first 6 weeks;
  • watch out for possible unusual aspects of the excrements;
  • regularly check for red and black mites;
  • clean the cages at least once a week and replace the floor cover;
  • disinfect the perches weekly, with a disinfectant that is not harmful to birds;
  • take care not to spill water, in order to avoid problems due to fungi and bacteria;
  • if you find any damp spots, clean them with a disinfectant;
  • the mixture of seeds that you give should be clean and – in particular – dry;
  • give 15 to 20% (1.0-1.5 g) eggfood daily;
  • make sure the birds have something to do and don’t get bored;
  • don’t give medicine treatment because you think that it is about time you did;
  • don’t allow the birds to go on laying eggs, the female will succumb as a result;
  • birds that normally live a solitary life should not be put together.