upatsix.com - Your Source For Pet Bird Information

We are the proud servants of several different birds, including Peaches, a Muloccan 'Too. Ever since she moved in, we have had a terrible problem with dander from her. The living room has a light coat of snow after a couple days. We tried to bathe her a couple of times, but that didn't work very well. She does not like water very much.
Does anyone have any suggestions?

Do you have any SAFE air cleaners? i.e. something along the lines of a HEPA, NOT like-hepa, and no ionizers? Daily bathing/spritzing helps, as does spritzing the papers before cleaning, and wiping the bars every day.

We have 2 Kenmore HEPA filters that get cleaned weekly. The trouble is, at the end of the week, the prefilters are packed full. I am also starting to worry about some of the electrinonics(TV,VCR etc).
When you asked about filters, you mentioned SAFE, are there unsafe ones? Or is SAFE a type of filter?

I mist daily year round and we have no problem with dander, 4 cockatoo's.

Air cleaners that ionize the air are hazardous, thus unsafe. Maybe you could try cleaning the HEPA filtures more frequently?

this is very true- I do ours every other day.

Hi everyone...
With 3 greys and a U2 , I also have plenty of dust around.... LJ. you mentioned that you mist daily..... how often do you give them a full fledged scrub down in the shower? ( soak to the skin)? Winter doesn't really like taking a bath either...but I figure it's a must at least a couple of times a week.... Also, doesn't that powder have a use? Should we be trying to wash it off all the time?
Misting the papers..that's a great idea !!! Thanks all!
Cheryl

Fully soak- every 3 weeks, yes their oil and dander is for a reason, misting does help with over all health and dander.

There are several possible ways to try giving her a bath. A fine spray mist, a shower with you, a bath in a shallow tub or sink or??? sometimes it depends on where they are..such as they may not be thrilled with being sprayed in their cage but put them out on a hoop where they can hang upside and stand back! If nothing works.....then work on a systematic desensitization program...where you teach her that getting wet is fun...but you teach her at her own pace never pushing past her comfort zone. It might start out like...you walk into the bathroom..praise her look around and walk out. As long as she appears comfortable the next step might be walking into the shower...as soon as she looks uncomfortable stop...don't push...praise the good part and continue to work on that until she's ready for the next step. You might start out just turning the water on....showing it to her and walking away.

I use Venta Airwashers. They are filterless...as water is your only filter. They also humidify the room and even though I live in the Pacific NW its been good for my guys. You fill them with water daily...there are 3 settings and the container is easy to clean and can even go in the dishwasher. Also furnace filters can help.

Shauna