Is it traumatic for birds to change cages?

Answer 1

it can depend on the bird. you could just swap cages but the bird could become very stressed and not eat/sleep properly. it's best to gradually change the cages.

let the bird have both cages. sleeping in the old one at night. and having the new one sit next to it. during the day allow the bird to travel between both cages at it's leisure so it gets used to the new one.

when it seems ok with the new one place it in that cage at night but keep the old one beside it. when it seems happy with the change you should be find to remove the ld one entirely.

i really hope this helps. just be sure that your bird stays happy and eats enough and it should be fine.

Answer 2

It depends on the species of the bird.

Intelligent species such as parrots may be stressed by the change. Whereas low-intelligence species such as canaries won't usually be too bothered.

To get your bird used to the new cage, allow it to have access to both cages. Let your bird sleep in its usual cage during the night and encourage the bird to sit near the new cage during the day (ie - place the food and some toys near the new one - notice the use of the word "near". Near does not mean "inside"). Encourage your bird to spend time travelling back and forth between both for leisure.

After a few days, place the food and toys inside the new cage and allow the bird to venture in there on its own. Do not force the bird in and do not close the door behind it while the bird is exploring. When your bird is comfortable with wandering into the new cage alone, encourage it to spend the night sleeping in the new cage, but make sure you keep the old one nearby so the bird can see (and to move the bird if you are woken by sudden bird cries in the night).

If done correctly, your bird will love their new home. But if you pressurise or force the bird to adapt then it will view the new cage as a prison, leading to stress, which causes the bird to refuse food and pluck out its own feathers.