Covering my parrots cages

Question
Hi Jenn, I have two parrots.  One male Eclectus who is 2 1/2 years old and a female African Grey that is 11 months.  I have always felt that trying to keep them in as natural a setting as possible is good for them so I've never covered their cages.  After all, they don't get to sleep under blankets in the wild.  However, then there's the issue of unnatural lighting.  I turn most if not all the lights off in the house when it's bedtime.  (Usually around 8PM)  But there may still be one light on and then there's the TV.  I go to bed at 10 and everything goes off then.  I live in a very open floor plan and they are kept in the heart of the house so they can most always see me or get to me if they want to.  The only time they are locked in their cages is when I'm not home or it's bedtime. I've had friends tell me that I should cover them but these same friends don't have pet birds so I'm reluctant to accept their advice.  I'm not an expert on bird behavior but I don't have any real issues with them so I can't say that not covering them has had any negative affect.  What do you think?

Answer
Hi Erin,

I understand your concern to have them in a natural setting.  Unfortunately, because our homes are not the rainforest - we have to make accommodations for them in our homes.  

Personally, I cover all my birds every night.  As you may know, parrots need a minimum of 10 - 12 dark, uninterrupted sleep every night or they can suffer from sleep deprivation.  I too have most of my birds in the living room and know full well that just because I cover them at 8pm, as long as me or my daughter is up watching TV, does not mean they are getting sleep under there.  But it does quiet them down and then we are only out there for another 45 - 60 minutes watching TV.  We're usually watching it in the dark and at a very low volume.  They will sleep with the TV on, however any other noises of talking, shuffling, etc. will wake them.  

I also let my birds sleep in a little later than many.  I can do this because they are covered with dark blankets.  Another reason I do this is to control the amount of daylight they are exposed to during the spring/summer months... I do have a couple of hormonal babies - so this helps.  I usually get them up between 8 - 9am.  I will sometimes put them to bed around 7:30pm but I always try to assure they are covered at least 12 hours.  

I also have two cats - and my Grey is not fond of the black one for some reason, so I cover for that reason as well.  I think most of them feel more secure at night, with their little eyes closed.  

Covering is a personal choice but if I were you, with your situation, I would probably go ahead and cover.  If you decide to though, do it gradually over a few nights.  Covering them completely right off the bat may freak them out.  Get a chip clip or binder clip and clip the dark blanket/sheet to the back corner of the cage letting it hang down all day (one corner is covered, no full sides).  Then that night, get another clip and cover the back side of the cage.  Keep covering sides every couple of nights... but when you get to the front of the cage, cover it little by little.  You can do it faster if your birds are ok with it.  You can leave a little nightlight on for them near their cages so that they get a little bit of light inside.

I completely understand re: your friends... generally, people who don't own birds don't know what they are talking about and just don't understand how much they mean to us!  :-)

There is a great parrot forum that I belong to; nothing BUT fellow bird owners.  I've made many friends and have learned so much from those people.  Check it out if you have some time.  My username there is WonderMomma, so say hi if you decide to join.  www.theperch.net

Good luck and I hope this helped!