Expert: Chrys Meatyard - 11/4/2007

Question
Hello again. My daughter, Jenna, and I have been worrying about the temperature. It is getting cold, and one of our two parakeets just died from the cold. I was thinking of moving the cage away from the windows(drafts) and putting them closer to the fireplace. They are effected by cold, but are they effected by heat? They were originally wild in Australia, and it is hot there. Please email back!

                          -Mark and Jenna Maida

Answer
Hi, Mark and Jenna,

How do you know your bird died from the cold?

Yes, you should move your birds away from drafty windows in the wintertime.  Birds have problems with heat, too.  Even though they were originally wild in Australia, in the wild, birds have ways of coping with/getting out of the heat.  Inside a cage, we have to help them cope with the heat.  Your birds will be comfortable enough in a room heated enough where you would feel comfortable in a T-shirt.  Temps over 80 degrees F can be a problem for caged birds.  If you see your birds panting (open mouthed breathing), they are too hot.  Cold drafts are a problem with birds...birds can get used to cool temps, but cold drafts will make them sick.  Warm/hot drafts are OK.  I don't know that I'd put them right next to the fireplace, but in the same room away from cold, drafty windows should be OK.

My only fear with the bird dying is that the bird may have died from something else if you didn't have avian vet involvement...I'm thinking of the other bird's health if the bird died from something else.

Chrys