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girl comes six days a week to attend to my feathered children ; and one of

her duties is to clean the floor every day. This plan has many advantages

and many disadvantages; but with large birds I doubt if it is not as good as

any other.


My ideas of cages are perhaps peculiar. The ordinary cage is some¬

times useful, sometimes, perhaps, almost necessary; but Ido not favour it.

All the cages in my bird-room have been specially made according to my

own directions ; some of them I now know are not quite as they should be ;

but the)' still answer the purpose very well, better than would any I could

obtain ready made. Two are slightly over 4ft. by 2ft. by 5f ft. high. The more

modern ones are from 4ft. to 6ft. long, about 2ft. deep, and from 2ft. to ^ft.

high. One is placed at the top of another, the upper ones having gable

roofs. Most of them can be divided into two or into three seditions, 2ft. long

each, by running in divisions, should it be necessary. All the doors of these

cages last mentioned are about 2ft. by 2ft., with an extra door of the same

size for the longer cages, so that one side can be thrown open ; and wide

open these doors usually are, for they are closed only when a bird is encaged

for some special reason. The bottoms of all the cages are kept well supplied

with sand, grit, cuttle-bone, rock salt, egg-shells (baked and ground), and finely

ground oyster shell. Some of the cages have been fitted up with little

shelves, on which are placed most of the food saucers and drinking water,

so that both are kept free from droppings. The cages are mostly set on

stands, which raise them at least one foot above the floor; and there is a

space of several inches between the cages and the wall. I consider these

last-named arrangements to be of special value. Mice cannot climb into

the cages and disturb the inmates, nor soil the food ; and cockroaches have

to content themselves with such scraps of food as may happen to have been

scattered on to the floor. Moreover, if a bird should fall down behind the

cages, instead of getting fixed and dying miserably, it lands on the floor,

hops quietly forth from under the cages, and is itself again ; and the open

space beneath and behind the cages tends to cleanliness and pure air. Each

cage should have at least two sides of wood, the remainder being built

round with straight wire, not wire-netting. About the room, but not com¬

ing too near the window, nor over that part of the floor which is uncovered

—and which is usually clean, and forms my customary path—there are

several natural boughs of various sizes, and portions of trees, fixed about,

artificial perches being mostly excluded. There are usually, also, a few

nesting boxes about; but I trust more to the aviary for all nesting purposes,

the bird-room being used more as a shelter from cold and wet. But, of

course, with many kinds of birds totally different arrangements would have

to be made ; and in my bird-room and aviary there is a quiet work of

change perpetually going on, according to the natures and requirements

of my various pets.


I have never been able to detect a bird-insect of any kind in the bird-

room itself, notwithstanding that some of the cages, or houses, are old, with

ample accommodation for millions of mites. I smear the parts where cages

rest on one another and on the stands thickly with soft soap as bought;

it is the duty of the nurse to constantly well rub over every part of every

cage with a damp cloth ; and occasionally I personally doctor any cage that

I think may be likely to require it with a liberal supply of fir-tree oil. At

night I sometimes make a tour of inspection with a candle, to see if any

traces of the prowling foe can be discovered. In short, I go in for cleanli¬

ness and prevention ; and the results are certainly satisfactory so far as the

absence of mite and disease is concerned. The floor and floor-cloth are

washed every week-day with carbolic soap ; and every drop of water used

for cleansing purposes is fortified with permanganate of potash. The room

is over the kitchen, and the kitchen flues run up the wall by the side of the

fireplace, and make the room very dry, so that the moisture is rather

beneficial than otherwise. In another room, this daily floor - washing

might not be wise. Certainly my birds never seem to suffer from

this cause : I have invariably been able to trace every case of cold, and the

like, to over exposure out of doors. The food and water vessels are scattered

far and wide, so that every bird may have a chance ; none of the vessels



