Preparation

• Use a wire brush to remove any loose finishing
• Sand all the metal by hand

The paint you choose

• Should not contain lead, zinc or chromate
• Is "high adhesion", formulated to bond with the metal surface
• Is hard-wearing
• Is fast drying

Many brands will have a picture of a baby crib or a mother holding a child - look for indicators such as these

Before you paint

• Remove the bird(s) to a different room
• The room you paint in should be well-ventilated
• Thin coats are best
• Use a backdrop like a large sheet of cardboard behind the cage to catch excess paint

When your done

• Wait at least a week
• Don't cover a freshly painted cage with the bird in it

If your bird seems to be wearing out the paint on the bird cage

• Make sure there are lots of interesting perches to climb on
• Every parrot cage (for hookbill birds) should have at least 3 textures of  bird perches - soft wood, hardwood & rope (or fabric)

Birds love to climb, and paint damage often occurs from birds' gripping the cage with their beak and nails to assist them in climbing up the cage. Aviculturists have reported that, by wiring (We use cable ties) perches or appropriately-sized tree branches onto the inner sides of the bird cages, the birds will be encouraged to climb from place to place by gripping these with their beaks, so that they do not even touch the wire bars when climbing.

Mitch Rezman

WindyCityParrot.com