Parrot travel advice

Hi
we are getting ready to begin full timing with our two African Greys and would love advice about cages, keeping the mess under control. We are thinking toyhauler fifth wheel for the garage to allow them to have their normal cage and play area. We will use the other half of the garage area for desk stations for both of us. We love the party deck for the ability to roll their cages out for sun shine and cleaning. During travel they will be in the cab in travel cages with us. Looking to hear what worked for you.

Hi Bonnieknitting,

Welcome to the Heartland Owners Forum. There's a great bunch of friendly and helpful people here who are quick to reach out with help when needed. I don't know if any have traveled with Parrots, but if they have I'm sure you'll hear from them shortly.

Welcome Bonnie Knitting,

I do know of one couple in the NJ Chapter who traveled with a large parrot. Duane and Debbie (also Cyclone owners), may chime in with some of their experiences.

Again welcome to the heartland family. Consider Joining the Heartland Owners Club and attending some of the many Rallies we have across the country in your FT travels.

Kevin

We have a cockatoo but have not yet taken her on a trip with us yet, but we do plan to do so in the future. I think that the only way to keep the mess to a specific area would be to change over to an enclosure made with plexiglass. My biggest concern is the loose seeds. RVs have always had a problem with rodents getting in them. Any one who has had any birds know that seeds get everywhere. Once those seeds get into places like the cracks and crevices, any not cleaned up will be an invitation for a free meal for the rodents. They will find a way to get to that type of food. Cockatoos are very opposed to changes. So going from a cage to an enclosure would be difficult on our bird and plenty of toys and climbing area would have to be used for her. I have had greys in the past and I think that they would have an easier time with such a change.

As far as travel cages, we have used cat kennels fitted with a perch like most bird owners and I have never had a parrot or cockatoo that liked being in such a cramped container for any length of time. I suspect that Debbie and/or Duane will chime in very soon.

We traveled with a large Blue and Gold macaw for many years before he passed, along with a cat and 2 Golden Retrievers. He did well on the travels and seemed very content. Parrots are very social, so I think what he lacked in space - freedom camping that he enjoyed at home, was made up by the close contact he now had 24/7 while on the road.

We used a large pet carrier with a wood perched mounted for movement in and out of vehicles.
We used a custom plastic "cage" while in the trailer.
It wasn't a cage exactly, more of a plastic enclosure that had a clear plexi front. He slept in that and mostly spent his time on a perch on top.

We used a "under a washing machine" catch pan as a base for the either portable perches or the cage. He didn't eat seed much, but, we had to stay on top of that, as one of his favorite games was throwing food down for the dogs to get our attention.

We kept wings clipped but left the outer two feathers full for appearance mostly, but also to allow him some lift. He couldn't fly, but could maintain a controlled crash dive.

Before camping we would board him when we went away. Two times with that made it clear that NO ONE takes care of your parrots or dogs like you do. So we camp.

We have a cockatoo. We have never taken him in the trailer but carried many miles in two different motorhomes. We just used a regular stand up cage. In the first MH I took out a chair and put it there and in the second a 36 foot diesel there was room for the cage without removing anything. He liked to travel. We kept a fold up cage not sure if it was a bird cage or dog cage that we would put outside on picnic tables when stopped so he could be outside a while each day. The best way I found for the mess was just throw rugs to catch it and pick up the rug and shake it outside.

We were stopped somewhere in NM onetime and went to dinner. Came back to find several people standing outside the MH They were ready to call the police because they had heard screaming and thought someone was being murdered. Ahhh the life with a screecher.

We fulltimed for three years (and now about half the time) with our 32 year old Blue Fronted Amazon, "Goodgirl". She loves RVing and riding in the truck and looking out the window while we are driving.

I priced many travel sized bird cages but could not find anything suitable. At home she has a giant six foot cage and her own room. We leave the cage door open at home so she is free to roam the room.
I finally settled on a medium sized dog crate for the trailer which I modified slightly for her. I think it is 18'Hx18'Dx24"L. It fits perfectly on the kitchen side counter next to the bath wall in our BH 3670

When we are in the trailer for a period of time, I will open the crate door and let her out. We also have two dogs, a Yorkie and a Silky, so I have to be careful because they like to "play". A dog bite, playful or otherwise can be fatal for a bird, so we have to make sure it doesn't get out of hand.
We crate all of them (dogs in one and bird in another of course) when we are driving.

Bottom line, I say go for it. All our pets love the RV. When I say we are "going camping" or "going in the truck", all three of them always get excited. Trace

We travel with two Labradors and two parrots....a one-legged African Grey named Spike and a Black Headed Caique named Maverick. Most African Greys really don't take to change too well, so if you haven't already, I'd start exposing them to travel in small baby steps. We have a 3100 Cyclone that we purchased specifically to haul all the animals....they get the garage and party deck, and we get the living area (free of dog hair, splattered fruit, seed hulls, pellet crumbles, and Grey dust!). Spike has an Amazon sized Cal Cage in the "garage" of the toy hauler, and we keep Maverick in an Animal Environments custom "clinic cage" that we keep on a table or in the bedroom if he's getting too vocal. I vacuum the garage area a LOT. A cage with a seed skirt will catch a lot of the mess, but the seed skirt takes up a fair amount of room so you have to figure out which is more important to you. When we're on the road, the birds are in the cab with us. Maverick is in a small carrier, and Spike travels in Maverick's clinic cage. Since she only has one leg I have a padded 2x4 in the cage for her so she doesn't have to cling onto a perch for dear life when we're moving. When we get to the campground I put Spike in her big cage, rearrange Maverick's clinic cage for him, plunk him in his cage, and we're set for our stay! I do adjust their diet a bit when we travel....I remove all dried fruit because it just sticks to the floor and your shoes if you accidentally step on it! They eat a mostly fresh diet anyway, so it works out well.

That is funny....we travel with 2 Shih Tzu's..and they don't scream....I can just picture that in my mind...funny..funny...funny...thanks for sharing