Tag Archives: housing

Thinking of getting a Bearded Dragon?

Posted on May 11, 2012 by admin| 2 Comments

I am thinking of getting a bearded dragon. I have had alot of pets (dogs, cats, birds, rodents…etc.) over the years and am fairly experienced at keeping pets, but I have never had a lizard of any kind. I was told a Beardie was a good first lizard. I need advise on feeding and especially housing. Are crickets better then worms? What is the best housing? I was looking up habitats on petstore sites, but I don’t know what’s better, the aquariums, or the screened cages. It seems like the airflow in the screen cages wouls be better, but I am worried the lizard will damage it and escape, and one reviewer on one site said he had problems with CRICKETS eating the screens! Also, what is more important to the Beardie, floor space to strech out, or head space to climb up (a long enclosure or a high enclosure)? If you know a good website to order good habitats from that would be apreciated! ThanX.

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Posted in Bird Feeding

Tagged airflow, alot, aquariums, Bearded, bearded dragon, beardie, birds, crickets, dragon, enclosure, floor space, habitats, head space, housing, kind, lizard, pets dogs cats, rodents, screen cages, screens, space, thanx, thinking, worms

Is it OK for me to make my cats toys and such or should I spend the money and buy them.?

Posted on March 12, 2012 by admin| 4 Comments

I have 13 other animals (small farm, I know) and between feed, meds, housing and basic uptake, it gets expensive. I buy my dog bones and such, horses get bread treats and “jolly balls” rabbits get treats but don’t care for toys, and birds get toys especially designed for them but I made a scratch post for my cats and have thought of some other toys I could make for the cats without spending a lot of money. As long as they are happy and enjoy playing with what I make and it is safe for them, should I worry about buying them the expensive toys and kitty habitats, post and such things from petco and petsmart.

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Posted in Bird Feeding

Tagged animals, balls, birds, bones, bread, cats, dog, expensive toys, Farm, Feed, habitats, horses, housing, kitty, lot, money, petco, petsmart, post, rabbits, scratch, scratch post, uptake

pigeon housing advice needed?

Posted on April 3, 2011 by admin| 2 Comments

Hi there, i need to build a loft, aviary,coop or whatever you call it for 12 runt pigeons, because there are allot of cats in our neighborhood, and the neighbors will complain to the council the birds will have to stay locked up at all times , so to begin with how big a loft do i need to build for those sort of circumstances? i plan to have 6 double nesting boxes, an area where they can bath, and get plenty of sun as well, what type of paint do i use over wood and or would it be better to use builders lime instead? the floor will have to be 12 ml waterproof ply wood, do i spread newspapers over the floor or can i use sawdust, wood shavings and have it removed every two months or so in order to keep things clean and germ free?

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Posted in Bird Nest Boxes

Tagged advice, allot, Aviary, birds, cats, circumstances, coop, floor, germ, housing, lime, loft, ml, neighborhood, neighbors, nesting boxes, newspapers, paint, pigeon, pigeons, runt, Sun, waterproof ply wood, wood, wood shavings

Training Birds to Enter Nest Box’s through “Doors” that can be Closed Behind them

Posted on March 14, 2011 by admin| Leave a comment

Purple martins often die during cold snaps. They either starve for lack of insects or because their energy is exhausted by the cold environment. This author has had the sad experience of finding dead chicks and parents during nest checks at these times. Many martin landlords have solved the feeding problem by tossing food into the air near the martins but a good way to keep them warm has not yet been developed. This author has long dreamed about having some kind of “storm door” to reduce or eliminate heat losses from the nest box and so when it was noticed a starling was regularly entering a winter roost box (in MN), some tests were performed with some interesting results. In short, it appears this bird was capable of being trained to enter a cavity even though the “door” was completely closed off to the elements. It is hoped similar techniques can be used to train purple martins (and other birds) to do the same thing. It is interesting that one critic said that just because it worked for a starling, does not necessarily mean a purple martin can be trained. After all, it was pointed out; starlings are very smart birds. While that may very well be true, the obvious rebuttal is that, if starlings are smarter than martins, how is it that the starling is trying to keep itself warm in MN in Dec, Jan, and Feb while the martins are all in Brazil or, at worst, on their way back!

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Posted in Bird Nest Boxes

Tagged climate, cold, cold temperatures, cold weather, environment, European, housing, inclement weather, Martin, martin house, martins dying, Purple, starling, warm housing, weather