Caring for Blind Female parakeet that I just got her original owner is moving and did not want to take them .?

Question

I just went and picked up a female parakeet Helen that is blind ,her owner is moving to TN and did not want to take her with them,Helen has a friend in her cage with her to help her with finding the food & water. My question is how do I go about helping her? Right now the food & water are on the bottom of the cage in small open lids and they are in a very small cage ,can they be moved into a bigger cage or should I leave her where she is?

Answer 1

Aren't you a sweetie for taking this little bird in!

You want to set up Helen's cage so she always has some point of reference - so she can always feel something so she knows where in the cage she is.  

Try to look at her cage as a square and set up each side a bit differently.  Perhaps put a natural branch perch along one side, another branch of different wood and thickness on another side, maybe a dowel along a third side and a cement or sandy perch (imbedded sand, not a sand paper cover) along the fourth side.  Make certain you don't change the location of her food and water dishes.  Be sure toys are placed where she can feel them and play with them but so they aren't in her way as she makes her way around the cage.  Be sure to scatter seed on the cage bottom as well to make eating easy for her if she's confused and can't find the dish temporarily.  Be sure to clean her papers at least twice a day so she's not trying to pick out seed between her own droppings.

I hope that gives you some ideas.  Just make life as easy for Helen to figure out as you can.  And be very careful that Helen's friend doesn't fuss with her.  Sometimes birds in small cages start at one another.  Setting her up in a cage that's a bit bigger and really watching her for a few days to be sure she's figuring things out might be the best idea.

Good luck to you and Helen!  And thanks for taking her in :-)

Hope this helps,

Colette

ParrotletsPlus

http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/Parro...

Answer 2

I think you should leave her in the smaller cage, if you get a bigger cage, she would probably be a little confused. The small cage is good so that she can easily find the food and water. It would be easier on her friend as well, because she would have to help her even more, because the cage is so big. But it is nice of you to consider getting a bigger cage for maximum space. I hope this helps! ^_^