# Any suggestions for dust?



## ClaireinTX (Sep 1, 2009)

Hi All,

I need help from all you owners of indoor pigeons.

Our two indoor birds became three at the beginning of November. As it is getting colder here in Austin and the secure, outdoor loft we are building is _still_ not ready I am wondering if you can help us with ideas to deal with the added mess and dust.

Our birds are in a 4-level ferret cage in our spare bedroom. We vacuum and clean regularly, but the dust seems to have increased exponentially since the baby came along. We have a small 3-bedroom house and I am worried that the dust is in our central air system because my asthma has been dramatically worse for the last several weeks. Perhaps it is just a coincidence, but I think I should do something more that the puny air purifier we currently use in the bird room.

Do you have any suggestions for a particular brand or kind of purifier? 

I know baths are helpful because things have gotten so much worse since they haven't been able to take them. A couple of days ago, my two adult birds just took their first bath since the baby was born over three weeks ago (I posted video of it on different thread). 

Anything else I could do?

Thanks,
Claire


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

not sure what kind of purifier would work that is not so expensive. This is why I don't have pigeons in the house.. all I can think of is... get that loft done!...lol..


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## Pigeonfriend (Aug 14, 2009)

I know that you are supposed to get a true HEPA purifier, the one that eliminated 99.8 (or something like that) percent of particles. Something like this http://www.amazon.com/Honeywell-50200-True-Hepa-Purifier/dp/B0000E6EE3 You have to be very careful, because some say HEPA, but they are HEPA-like and not the real thing that you would expect.

I can really relate to your problem. I have one indoor pigeon in a studio apartment (so, essentially, she is in my bedroom), and it's not likely she would be able to be in a separate room any time soon. I definitely worry about bird fancier's lung and other lung problems...

So, if anyone has suggestions, I would love to hear them too!


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## Charis (Feb 11, 2007)

Allowing them to bathe frequently helps a lot. My pigeons bathe nearly every day.


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## Pigeonfriend (Aug 14, 2009)

Is spraying them with water as good as bathing or no?

Also, my apartment is pretty chilly and drafty (it's an old building), and even though I did try to insulate the windows, there are still areas I can't fix. I am nervous about bathing her in colder weather. How do I make sure she doesn't get sick?


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## TylerBro (Mar 14, 2011)

If u would get wet then she will be okay .. if ur worried you cam give her a heat lamp 

She prob will take a bath then sun under it


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## Michy (Jul 29, 2011)

I have 2 indoor pigeons who, last year, were removed from our daughter's room and into their own room due to the dust problem. I have the air purifier(with hepa filter) and I vacuum/dust every day. This seems to work decent during the winter months. When they want a bath, I'll find them sitting in the bathroom waiting to be sprayed down. Usually it's a bi-weekly thing. During the summer, They bathe daily on their own and I do notice that during those months, we have no dust issues....so maybe that will solve your problem. Be warned though...When I mentioned that my birds bathe daily(not forced), I was told by others on here that it isn't healthy for their feathers. Personally, I see nothing wrong with letting them have fun in the water daily and I never had a problem with their feathers. Always shiney and bright


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## Siobhan (Dec 21, 2010)

Maggie does not care for misting. She wants to take a nice leisurely bath in a dish where she can sit and soak, and she likes the water to be cold. If I give her lukewarm water, she won't bathe until it cools off. So I wouldn't worry too much about the air temp being coolish when the pigeons bathe. Offer them a bath dish and I'll bet they'll take you up on it. It does help with the dust. I don't have breathing problems with dust but I can see that there's less of it when the birds take regular baths.


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