Prevue Hendryx Flight Cage or Hagen Vision Cage?

[DreamerHorse]

May 29, 2015 16:08:02 GMT OP said:

I used the vision medium cage before I got the current one. There is no paint to come off the bars and it does not rust. I think you would have difficulty fitting one in the sink, but then there is always the bath or shower.

True that. I told my mom about cleaning it in the tub and trying to explain that the base is more like a hamster's cage's base, just with a grate. She's just like, "We'll see what they have when we get there." I don't think she wants me to clean it in the tub. Maybe the kitchen sink. XP

[starlingqueen]

I wipe mine round with a cloth and a spray of F10. Only the occasional dunk, maybe once a month. If it's cleaned regularly it shouldn't need much more.

[DreamerHorse]

May 29, 2015 16:30:47 GMT starlingqueen said:

I wipe mine round with a cloth and a spray of F10. Only the occasional dunk, maybe once a month. If it's cleaned regularly it shouldn't need much more.

I'll have to see where I can get this F10 stuff from then. Dunno if Noah's Ark would stock it.

I messaged Noah's Ark on facebook and they said that they do not stock the medium or the large vision cage that I was looking at. And that they could order them but it would be 2 weeks before they got the cage in. Oh well. I guess I just figured they'd stock them since it said they stock Hagen products on their website.

However I am still going in on Monday to get the budgie (I asked if they have any in stock right now) and will get the biggest cage I can afford (about 70-$80 dollars is my max.).

[Hezz]

Shirls, the expression flight cage is simply a name that the manufactures put on it. That is what I was trying to point out to Dreamerhorse. One of those couldn't possibly been flown about in - a hop across is about the best they would be able to do.

I don't understand the reluctance to vertical bars; the budgies can get around fine with them. The only time I would go looking for horizontal bars is if I had a bird with a disability who had trouble getting around. I think the vertical bars actually make the birds work harder which has to be a good thing, I feel. And while I would not buy a tall thin cage, I do have to say that my birds make complete use of the 900mm that is the height of their cage. They are often down on the floor of the cage foraging for seeds dropped from the grass, and they do fly almost straight up from the floor to the next perch. They do prefer a bit of an angle, but again, it makes them work that little bit harder; anything that makes them burn up a bit of that excess energy has to be a good thing.

To save yourself a lot of unnecessary scrubbing, if you lay newspaper down over the grate of the cage and either tuck it in under the grate or weigh it down with small stones or something, all you need to do each day to have a clean cage again is lift the newspaper and put down fresh, OR you can put down a weeks' supply of paper and left the top layer - clean cage with clean paper already in place.

But seriously, I would suggest that you wait until you hear what the doc has to say about your hand first, before getting the budgie. You may only be putting off the purchase for a day or two, or you may find you start your budgie-owner life not being able to interact with him or her. That would be much worse.

[BudgiesBuddy]

Branded ones are much more expensive, at least in our area. Cheap Chinese made are much better.

In general, wider cages are better than tall cages.

[OP]

I have just found out today that Edward has been biting the coating off of their Ferplast cage. That takes some doing. However she has been doing it in several places. I am now going back to a Hagen Vision L01. There is no coating to bite off of that cage. It is a fair bit smaller than this one but should be big enough for these three. I only found out because I gave the bars a good clean on the inside and outside today. I usually just clean the outside with F10. But today I had all the furniture out and that is when I found quite a few places with the coating missing. Now I haven't noticed any flakes on the cage bottom, so there is only one other place for them to go. It also means the bare metal could rust. So out goes the Ferplast and I would say beware anyone who has a female budgie that likes to ping the bars, quite a lot.

[jellybean]

That's a shame OP, it's a beautiful cage too, and I remember you saying at the time it was expensive.
Edward..........your grounded, no more millet for a week, lol.

[OP]

Yes it was expensive jellybean, but not anymore. If I sold it on I would be selling a possible death sentence to someone's budgies. It is impossible to replace the coating. and any other paint could be toxic. Lesson learned I'm afraid.

[DreamerHorse]

Hezz, honestly its not that bad. I took my arm out of the sling because the issue was going away. I'm not having the issue anymore unless I raise my hand above my head(and even then its getting better), so its not bothering me anymore. Highly doubt its gonna effect me being able to take care of a parakeet, though I will still go to the doctor to get his input.

I have no clue what brand cages my pet store stocks at this point but since they're not selling the two Hagen cages I had been looking I will just look for the longest cage I can afford.

OP, pity that Edward gnawed on your cage. I can only imagine buying an expensive cage and having it destroyed by a parakeet who had the munchies.

[Susannah]

OP, I have no idea if you can purchase 'White Knight' enamel paint in the UK, but I was informed on another bird forum, - a member wrote to the paint company asking if their paint was 'bird friendly' and was told it was...seems a shame to have the cage unusable due to the biting issue.

[Hezz]

May 31, 2015 21:09:36 GMT DreamerHorse said:

Hezz, honestly its not that bad. I took my arm out of the sling because the issue was going away. I'm not having the issue anymore unless I raise my hand above my head(and even then its getting better), so its not bothering me anymore. Highly doubt its gonna effect me being able to take care of a parakeet, though I will still go to the doctor to get his input.

I have no clue what brand cages my pet store stocks at this point but since they're not selling the two Hagen cages I had been looking I will just look for the longest cage I can afford.

OP, pity that Edward gnawed on your cage. I can only imagine buying an expensive cage and having it destroyed by a parakeet who had the munchies.

No, that's all fine; I understand. It sounds rather dire in the message you first posted and I had visions of you out of action and with a new budgie to play with, but couldn't.

[OP]

Jun 1, 2015 6:06:26 GMT Susannah said:

OP, I have no idea if you can purchase 'White Knight' enamel paint in the UK, but I was informed on another bird forum, - a member wrote to the paint company asking if their paint was 'bird friendly' and was told it was...seems a shame to have the cage unusable due to the biting issue.

Yes we can buy various paints, some quite hard. But getting them to stay on the underlying metal is a specialist process which involves baking amongst other things. The finished product on the cage is quite tough and can take the occasional knock, but I have now watched Edward and she is determined to get the coating off. There are other wooden toys on the cage for her to chew and pull apart but they don't offer her the same satisfaction.
I could make quite a good job of repairing the damage that has been done and then sell the cage on, but the coating would not be anywhere near as resilient as it needs to be. Now if the person who bought the cage put a budgie in it that didn't ping the bars then it may be usable, but I don't want to take that risk.

[DreamerHorse]

Jun 1, 2015 6:57:05 GMT Hezz said:

May 31, 2015 21:09:36 GMT DreamerHorse said:

Hezz, honestly its not that bad. I took my arm out of the sling because the issue was going away. I'm not having the issue anymore unless I raise my hand above my head(and even then its getting better), so its not bothering me anymore. Highly doubt its gonna effect me being able to take care of a parakeet, though I will still go to the doctor to get his input.

I have no clue what brand cages my pet store stocks at this point but since they're not selling the two Hagen cages I had been looking I will just look for the longest cage I can afford.

OP, pity that Edward gnawed on your cage. I can only imagine buying an expensive cage and having it destroyed by a parakeet who had the munchies.

No, that's all fine; I understand. It sounds rather dire in the message you first posted and I had visions of you out of action and with a new budgie to play with, but couldn't.

I didn't mean to make it sound dire, but at the time it had been hard to type, ect. due to me needing to rest my hand. And it hadn't really effected my whole hand, just my pinky.

[OP]

The best thing to do if your hand hurts when you raise above your head is don't do it. That was a stock answer I would get from my old Doctor. Funny thing is he was right.

[DreamerHorse]

Jun 1, 2015 11:26:43 GMT OP said:

The best thing to do if your hand hurts when you raise above your head is don't do it. That was a stock answer I would get from my old Doctor. Funny thing is he was right.

It doesn't hurt, just numbness and tingling. An annoying sensation. It has been going away though.