186 GARDEN AND AVIARY BIRDS. 



pyramidal, and always of wood, not of netting, so that the 

 birds may not be terrified by enemies above them. If 

 vermin are very troublesome, the wire-netting should be 

 double, the two layers being kept an inch apart by corks 

 fixed between at intervals. Upright wires should never 

 be employed, as birds are never really safe behind these, 

 but may be torn through. 



CAGES FOR SINGLE BIRDS. 



These should always be oblong, so as to allow of two 

 perches being put in a good distance apart and on the 

 same level ; in this way the bird can get good exercise 

 by hopping to and fro. Bird-cages are usually cruelly 

 small ; a bird the size of a Canary requires a square foot of 

 space, and others in proportion. The floor of all cages 

 should have a moveable tray to facilitate cleaning, 

 and the perches should be removeable for the same 

 reason. 



PERCHES. 



These are often put in in a very haphazard way, but 

 care in their selection is well repaid. For large aviaries 

 natural branches of trees or bamboos, with plenty of 

 twigs, are the best. For moveable aviary-cages branches 

 also do well, if the door of the cage be large enough to 

 put them in ; the door of any cage should always be 

 big, and closed by sliding, not with hinges. 



A row of wooden hat-pegs fixed up against the side 

 makes an excellent set of perches for an aviary or large 

 cage. In either of these some perches should always 



