# To be or not to be--Wire loft floors



## DEEJAY7950 (Dec 13, 2006)

So many people seem to go to great lengths to have wire floors and I for one don't see the benefit of wire floors, when i see wire floors all i see is plenty of trouble, a mess of droppings and food falling through the wire, resting on the ground in a hard to reach and keep clean area under the loft, creating a place for disease and vermin to grow, and the bird feed that falls through the wire just lends itself for mice and other critters to come along and cause harm! Because of this I will be using a deep litter system with solid wood floors, keeping the main water vessels outside of the loft so to eliminate any major water spills in the loft! Also it would seem that ventilation would be a problem since the floor is so open this would lend itself to possible drafts (from high winds) that are never good for the birds, so you give up the ability to control the air flow of the loft? so with all these possible problems where are the benefits of these type of floors?


----------



## Gladys (Dec 16, 2007)

*Wire flooring...*

I'm getting data and ideas to build a small loft for my birds and have been asking the same. So, you bring good points! 

Need to add:

​1- the risk of rats or other critters reaching up to get to a bird.

​2- is easier to walk on a hardwood floor than on wire floor even if partially covered.


----------



## k-will (Dec 15, 2007)

think about scraping instead of deep litter.the time it takes to rake a deep litter floor,you can scrape the whole loft.i use just a little cat litter under perches and scrape everything.only use the litter where the most droppings fall,scrape everything else,rake thru the litter once in awhile and you will have a healthy loft.not that a deep litter loft cant be healthy,but the time it takes to make it work,you can scrape.


----------



## roxtar (Aug 21, 2006)

Also, the inability to be able to monitor your birds' droppings is big downside to wire floors (I think you can tell a lot about your birds' health by looking at their poop). I guess you could keep a piece of plywood under the loft or some sort of container to catch the poop, but what's the difference between scraping off that piece of wood and scraping a wood floor?


----------



## Lovebirds (Sep 6, 2002)

I totally agree with the wood floor. My eyes drop to the floor, first thing every morning. Gets to be a habit. That's the reason, or one of the reasons I don't like wire floors. I also don't like the idea of deep litter. There's no way to monitor your birds droppings with either method. I've got (right now) 4 sections and 7 individual breeding pens to clean every single day. This morning, my husband got up really late. I cleaned everything by myself, fed and watered everyone in an hour and 10 minutes. Best thing to do is take the time to do things right and don't try to figure out how to cut corners. It's your birds health at risk and in the long run, you may save some time, but you'll wind up spending big bucks for medicines when things go south. That hurts your pocketbook and isn't fair to the birds. JMO


----------



## k-will (Dec 15, 2007)

renee is right on point.scrape or medicate.and if you do have to medicate you have to clean the entire loft anyway to rid the loft of germs/virus.if you scrape atleast every other day you will be fine.i would paint the whole loft with a semi-gloss latex enamel or acrylic and scrape.bleach perches and water containers atleast 2 times a week.you will be better off.


----------



## hillfamilyloft (Jun 22, 2005)

An alternative is a wood slatted floor. If I were to build a new loft I would have the majority of the floor wood and under the perches I would put a slatted wood floor. You can do this using 1x2s threaded on threaded rods with cut pieces of 1x2 for spacers. Use the spacers along joists and you would have a strong floor. For the colder months you could remove this slatted portion and replace it with plywood. I saw a floor done in this way (Glen Gleason's) futurity loft in Colorado. He scrapes twice a year. He runs a few bantum chickens underneath the loft to clean up the spilled food and droppings. Very nice loft. The birds like the floor much better than the wire bottomed aviary. 

Randy


----------



## applecheeks (Nov 1, 2013)

I have taken in an injured pigeon and am going to build him a little loft in the garage until I can figure out a better accommodation for him. This is going to be makeshift and nothing fancy. Just wondering if it's ok to just have plain wood on the bottom and use a little sand on top of that. But if I only have the one bird couldn't I just use newspaper on the bottom and change it every day just like you would do for any bird? Also, with the extreme cold weather here (-30 or -40 Celsius) what kind of heat will it need?


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

applecheeks said:


> I have taken in an injured pigeon and am going to build him a little loft in the garage until I can figure out a better accommodation for him. This is going to be makeshift and nothing fancy. Just wondering if it's ok to just have plain wood on the bottom and use a little sand on top of that. But if I only have the one bird couldn't I just use newspaper on the bottom and change it every day just like you would do for any bird? Also, with the extreme cold weather here (-30 or -40 Celsius) what kind of heat will it need?


You really need to start a new thread. This post is like 5 years old. More would see a new thread. I'll PM you on how. But as far as the cage floor. Most with a caged pigeon do use newspaper. If you like it cleaner looking, you can put Paper towels over the news paper and change them daily. I hope you don't park a car in the garage, as the fumes are really bad for a pigeon.


----------



## klondike goldie (Apr 20, 2009)

I've had both kinds, wood floors and wire floors. I like wire floors best. My loft is 32 inches off the ground with wire and lattice around the bottom to keep critters out and a couple of chickens in. the chickens keep it clean under the loft. I still have to scrape just not as much. Loft gets a lot of ventilation. No dust on the floor, no standing water.


----------



## LisaNewTumbler (Jun 24, 2013)

I intend using wire floors in my new loft. Main reason is the damp. Where I live it is VERY humid and it is really difficult to keep it out. Also summers are very hot and its a very good way to cool down the loft.

At the moment I have a 2 bird dove cot that is plywood on top, bottom and 3 sides. Newspaper lining that I have to change at least daily. And I don't like how it keeps. The air inside gets damp really quickly with just the presence of the birds and the humidity in the air. If one happens to spill a bit of water the newspaper keeps the water on the wood and traps it as there is little air circulation since it is solid all round except for the front.

Worst of all is when my pigeon is sick. When he had watery droppings they had no-where to go and took ages to dry, which didn't help him recover any faster.

I am going to have wire floor over a draw with cat litter. In my opinion you should still be able to tell the state of their droppings on cat litter - colour is still obvious, and there will be a difference if the the droppings were tight and dry as opposed to really watery and 'splashed'.

Cold and vermin are not an issue for me so in my case I do not need the added protection of a solid floor.


----------



## applecheeks (Nov 1, 2013)

Jay3 said:


> You really need to start a new thread. This post is like 5 years old. More would see a new thread. I'll PM you on how. But as far as the cage floor. Most with a caged pigeon do use newspaper. If you like it cleaner looking, you can put Paper towels over the news paper and change them daily. I hope you don't park a car in the garage, as the fumes are really bad for a pigeon.


Oh, I see now what you mean about old threads. Thanks a lot. I will post a new one next time if there is no current one to post on. Also, thanks very much for reminding me about the car fumes. I didn't even think about that. I don't drive but my Mother does. She doesn't leave the car on without opening the garage door and the garage isn't insulated. Would that be ok or would the fumes from just starting the car be too much? Time to re-think this pigeon coop I think.


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

The fumes could kill your bird. They have a delicate respiratory system. A garage in which a car is parked is not a healthy environment for a bird.


----------



## applecheeks (Nov 1, 2013)

Ok, thanks a lot. I'll have to make one outside then. I just thought he'd be warmer in the garage as we get such brutal winters but I don't want to take a chance with the fumes either.


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Lots of people keep them inside in cages. The metal dog crates work out great for that. And they let them out for a couple of hours a day to exercise. Is that not do-able?


----------



## applecheeks (Nov 1, 2013)

It may be an option but I live in my elderly Mom's house to care for her. I'm not sure she'd agree but I will put the question to her. Perhaps I could have both options available for him so that he can go outside and come inside when the weather is too bitter. Good idea. Thanks again!


----------



## LisaNewTumbler (Jun 24, 2013)

Hey, I don;t know if such a thing would be possible for you to do but you can make a coop that is half in half out of the garage.

Again, depends on your materials and positioning of the garage.

But you could select an area of the garage and close it off from the rest. Doesn't need to be big, just big enough for your bird/birds. It doesn't have to be all the way to the floor either.

The only important thing is that from inside the garage it is completely sealed - no access or ventilation what so ever. This will protect him from the fumes of your car.

The access and ventilation will be from the outside wall. If you can open this up and then build the coop within this chamber you've made the birds will have a very well protected coop since the walls of the coop will physically be inside the garage.

From the outside you can add a flight pen so that they can enjoy the weather when it is fine.

I'm not sure if you understood all that. I'll try find a picture of what I mean.


----------



## LisaNewTumbler (Jun 24, 2013)

well I found a pic of an outdoor flight from google


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

That's an idea, assuming you can go through the wall, and can make the loft part fume proof. Not sure the poster wants to go that far for one rescued bird. All depends. We started with 6 baby ferals, and ended up with an insulated loft with heat, and an aviary. So it all depends. Good idea though.


----------



## LisaNewTumbler (Jun 24, 2013)

Weeeeeeellll pigeons are pretty addictive 

I myself am getting another rescue tomorrow (completely unplanned and new coop still a long way from done)!


----------



## LisaNewTumbler (Jun 24, 2013)

If there is an extra window in the garage he can use that instead of cutting a new hole in the wall.

As long as there still is proper ventilation in the garage for the humans!


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

LisaNewTumbler said:


> If there is an extra window in the garage he can use that instead of cutting a new hole in the wall.
> 
> *As long as there still is proper ventilation in the garage for the humans!*


*
*


Good Point!


----------



## applecheeks (Nov 1, 2013)

LisaNewTumbler said:


> If there is an extra window in the garage he can use that instead of cutting a new hole in the wall.
> 
> As long as there still is proper ventilation in the garage for the humans!


Great idea's Lisa and Jay. Thanks a lot! There are two windows in the garage already so that just might work. I'll have to run it past the neighbour who is building it for me and see what he thinks. We got some supplies today so should be starting on it this week if he has time. I'll pop back in and let you know what we decided and maybe post a picture when it's complete. Ducky is still doing well except for the wing but even that seems to be a bit better now. You've both been great help.


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

I'd love to see pictures when you're done. Let us know how it goes.


----------



## LisaNewTumbler (Jun 24, 2013)

I'm glad we could help  I'd love to see pictures!


----------

