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Hello All- I am new to upatsix and glad to be here! Vitamin D!? I was told recently at a store that we absolutely needed a special ($90) light so that our new Parrotlet would get vitamin D. Now I know about vitamin D in humans and that live cells under our outer dead skin transforms something from the natural light to make vitamin D, which makes for healthy bones. Too much sun in the tropics, or too little in the arctic areas, can kill you and hence we have skin tones according to where our ancestors came from. Feathers, on the other hand, are not live, they are dead but look nice, and you have to remove a lot of feathers to get to bird skin. Therefore, I really don’t believe the salesperson who tried to say many things, like the store was the only place to by the right food. The question is, does anybody know of a valid reference source that explains how birds transform sunlight into vitamin D or how they might otherwise get it if they were living in the wild, or even that they must have it? Bones-vitamin D-calcium, yea yea yea. But where’s the proof? Responses are very appreciated. I’ll post some other questions in the correct locations. Tom

Hi Tom and welcome to up at six. You can buy florescent UV light bulbs at Home Depot for around $6.00 and a fixture for about $12.00. Also on the market are regular screw in UV bulbs for around $20.00 to $23.00.

Tom

Sorry, I can't exactly help with your questions... but wanted to say that some people see that their birds have brighter feathers, and become more active with a full spectrum/UV light. Of coures, you could try skipping the light and taking the bird outside in a cage or harness for 30+ minutes a day, and a way to get out of the sun if it's too warm. Simply put, sunlight through most windows and screens tends to screen out the beneficial parts of the rays... i.e. if you have stuff in front of windows that doesn't fade, it's not good for the birds! (older windows, before 1980 something? may be fine though)

There are some specific things needed for when you look for a proper UV light for birds (tube lights supposedly better than regular bulb types), but sadly I wasn't able to retain that information... so if you do go out and buy a light fixture, you ought to research the best types for birds... in once case, someone bought a UV light sold for birds, but something in it was too high, and it practically burned her two cockatiels eyes... thankfully she stopped using it in time, and got medicine for their eyes! Another person had an itchy bird and had to stop using the light...

Point being, research the proper light to get before buying!

With proper nutritional food your bird will get vitamin D. If you are interested in breeding, these lights are great. Otherwise if your house is sunny you should be fine.
Good Luck!

I try to put my birds outside in the sunlight but tey hate sunlight? They hide from it!I take them outside but let them in the shade?

Just like us and our children, our birds can bake in too much sun when they're not used to it. I pick the times to take mine out, choosing times when the temp/humidity is low enough that they aren't stunned by it, used to living in air conditioning as they are. And I let them get used to the sun in gradual increments, a little more each day. I drape a small towel over part of the cagetop so they can escape the sun if they need to, and I'm right there watching to see if and when they do. If they do, I give them a spray bath and usually that keeps them cool for another 10 minutes.

It's a matter of going slowly and not letting them get too hot. Gradually they get more used to it and can comfortably tolerate it for longer. But they don't need a lot of sunlight to get the vitamin D they need. Just a few minutes every few days is good for them. They don't even need that if they're eating a good quality pellet.

Ok thanks

The 2nd paragraph of this article is the most relevant to your question: http://users.mis.net/~pthrush/lighting/hotspots.html If you need help determining whether your birds' diet is healthy, we can help you.

Exotic birds don't get enough UV through glass to make sufficient vitamin D (glass filters UV) and they don't like direct sunlight anyway, especially if they can't get away from it in a cage. Birds get their vitamin D during preening. Oil from the preen gland is spread to the feathers, and a reaction with the oil and UV makes vitamin D which they take in the next time they preen. You absolutley do need a lamp or suppliments, but a lamp is preferable. You can pick them up for about £30 UKP.

Cheers..

Just get a full spectrum daylight bulb rated at 5500 kelvins. They can be had for around 8 bucks each and they screw into a light socket.

For all I know that might be true, Fullkeel, but Dr Thrush (link I gave above years ago) says it doesn't work for birds unless it's the 2-tube configuration and at least 24" tubes, placed about 15" above the bird's head. Makes it really, REALLY hard to use lights with birds who're allowed out to play atop their cages.

This topic comes up every once in awhile on these different birdie chat boards. It amazes me that no matter how much it is talked about, almost no one or very few learn anything from the discussions IMO. So if you have doubts about the research you read on F.S Lighting, for whatever reason and/or if you also won't believe those of us who have already used many of these products (for whatever reason), then the solution is simple = try these different F.S. Lighting products out yourself on your own birds and see what works best for your flock.

There had been some research on the subject by a guy named Patrick Thrush, I have no idea where or why he has vanished from the scene. He was starting his own website awhile back and starting to sell his own line of what he calls proper full spectrum lighting for birds. The sight I believe was called Spectrabird.com.

Anyway, do a search (Google) on Patrick Thrush and on all his research. He had put together quite a compilation of findings on the subject. You should find lots of info. that may help you make up your own mind. Read it all, every bit of it and more on the subject elsewhere. Then decide for yourself.

My personal opinion, from all the research I have read, combined with the first-hand knowledge/experience that I and numerous other avian hobbyists have gained from using these good quality F.S. lights is this in a nutshell:

Screw in light bulbs, regardless of what they are called are inferior to linear fluorescent tubes.

I advise you to purchase a shop light type fixture with attached electrical cord. This plugs into an electrical outlet, just make sure none of your birds can chew on the electric cord. You can encase it in a pipe or whatever. Make sure the 4 ft. shop fixture uses an electronic ballast, not a magnetic one. Get a fixture with a downward reflector, white fixture is best.

Next purchase a couple light tubes (fixture uses two 4 ft. tubes). The highest CRI rating for a so called "proper bird tube" is 98 so don't settle for one with a lesser rating. You also want a Kelvin rating of 5000 - 5500.

The tubes I use and numerous others use is the Phillips F32T8TL950 - I suggest you might want to do the same.

Best though is to give your bird outdoor exposure to natural direct sunshine, every day if possible - at least in good weather. Sunshine thru pre -1939 window glass has very little beneficial properties, so they say.

You safely hang the light fixture above the cage or part of the cage about 18 inches away, don't mount on the sides of the cage. I run mine about 8 hrs. usually, although it is said that far less time is needed. I do not cover the whole cage with the light but use one fixture over two side-by-side cages/flights so the birds can get out of the light if they so choose. I have personally seen my birds react to these lights in a very favorable way, having better plumage and a better zest for life, etc. … So believe who or what you will but the best test is to invest in at least one fixture and 2 tubes and then judge for yourself over time. There is no harm to using these tubes, so what has anyone got to lose but a few bucks. Total cost depending on where you purchase the equipment should run between $40 - $75 approx.

I feel we should not just give our birds whatever they can hopefully get by on but instead give them the best that is out there.

Thanks for posting that link. I was going to post the same one today but saw you got it up first. Hope all concerned will read closely every article in that link.