| I came across your pet carriers on line and am very interested in one for my bird. I have an eclectus parrot that is about 14 inches long. Do you have one that is a back pack, with mesh on the 3 sides and on the top that he would fit in? He is not a chewer but how strong is the mesh screen? We are an active family and are hoping to take our bird with us this summer. I also chat on line with 300 or more parrot people that would be interested in your products. I actually have a bird pack ordered from another company, and while it is a very well made pack, I have had it ordered since January and still have not even had a confirmation as to when it will be done.
Thank you, Lynnette | Thank you for your inquiry. I understand that our current line need to be modified for the use of birds including one with a Macaw 2.5' long (challenging project). I have been exchanged emails with a couple other bird owners on the improved design specifically for bird. If you like, I will email you the design scratch next week for your comments. The design will have the few things you mentions plus an perch adjustable for height with ring for hanging bird toy. As I am not a bird owner and my interaction with birds are limited. Could you tell me if you would like the bird to be seen or not in general and what occassion do you take your bird to? Do you mind letting me know which bird pack that you have ordered? |
| I am planning on taking my bird with me on weekend car trips, a month long vacation, and just outside in general. Of course he would not be in it for too long a period of time, but often throughout the day. If I were to design one myself it would be taller than it is wide, have back pack straps, a replaceable perch with 2 small cup holders. The toy hook is a great idea too. Personally I would like the screen to be on three sides and on the top too. Roll-up shades that Velcro closed on the outside would be great too. The screen would be a safe non-toxic metal mesh. I think the entrance on one of the sides with a ring on the end to be able to put on a small lock would be a great idea too, some birds are great escape artists. Well sorry if I got carried away here. |
Have you seen the one show below from another company whom have seen the adaptation of our carrier for birds and make one from the current design. This is not the one I plan to make as I see many areas of improvement - from design to functional details. Yet, perhaps it is sufficient you. The areas of improvement includes my preference to have an adjustable height and back carrying feature where the bird can stand at up to shoulder level with roof open, privacy to allow the carrier substantially covered at time (not to be see-through), more comfortable design to the human, flexibility to allow the bird moves in a wider range... All of these sound great but to a bird owner, are these options necessary? Would this design be sufficient to your transportation usage? |
| I saw the one from the other company, they looks awkward. Thank you for all the attention you are giving to this. I really like the other carriers you make and am sure you will come up with a great product for our feathered friends. |
I finally read up about them and have finished the design as attached. I have little understanding of birds and your further input is very valuable to make this an useful item. I hope the attached design will address your need. I would really appreciate if you can give me your feedback on the size and the position of the middle perch position. The structure has taken into consideration of different usage such as having the bird stand on shoulder level - the top perch with the mesh open; allow the bird to be seen and appreciated without touching - the medium perch (the perch to be used most of the time); for unstable environment (the lower perch) such as if the carrier is strapped on a car seat while driving. Bird toys and rope can be strapped from the top rings (four of them, one at each corner) to keep the bird happy. I am envisioning three sizes: 1. Large size (18"L x 15"W x 30"H) for big bird like James' Macaw. No doubt I wouldn't want the beautiful tail to be bent but I don't want to make it unnecessary big. The lower portion tilted inward to allow more comfortable movement as the long carrier may be reaching the lower back. We can extend the length to 36" if necessary. The middle perch position is about 16" from the roof, does it need to be lower or higher. 2. Medium size (15"L x 12"W x 18"H) for medium size bird like Lynnette's Eclectus of 14". Same questions as above and how far the middle perch need to be from the roof. 3. Small size (13"L x 10" W x 14" H) for small size bird. If you know any friend who can help, pls forward this message to him/her. This could be a size for airline travel. Are there any features I should add to the current design? I have an compartment in the other pet carrier that allows the insertion of a heating pad. Is this necessary for the bird? I am however concerned that the bird may bit thru the heating pad of which the inside chemical may be harmful. If allowing warmer interior climate is important to the bird, are there battery operated heating padded that we may use? Thank you very much and I am anxious to hear what you think about my design. We would love to give credit to you in the feature/design page when we are ready market the products. |
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1. Temperature is not really that big of an issue . I think the only thing would be that the option to use a little heat is nice. If you were out walking and it started to get a little chilly, you could slip a heat pad in and close the flaps. But under normal use I would not have my bird out if it were too chilly. 2. So do I understand that the perches will be held in place by screwing them from the outside? That sounds like a great idea, and in that case any wood dowel could be used. Here is a site that sells dowels cut to your specifications. http://www.birdsafestore.com/detail.aspx?ID=59. I also like the bird safe groovy perch at the same site. http://www.birdsafestore.com/detail.aspx?ID=60 3. Any pine wood dowel would be fine. But it is important to offer different diameters. 4. A metal mesh is probably not a good idea. The tray with the edge and the soft surface sounds great. |
Good comments. The mesh are tight mesh like fabric used in some new style transparent handbag and should be fine to keep the mosquitoes away. It will still take us at least 10 weeks from the time the design is finalized to make the carrier. Let me answer your questions here: 1. Heating pad - the market ready heating pad only last for 30 mins or so for the 10"x4" one we have used. If temperature is an issue for birds, we can test a larger size one that may 'release' heat more effectively even under a thin cover. 2. Perch - I have seen the perch in the market that can be screwed to the cage - one end or both. I am assuming we can find a good wood (non toxic) with the length we want. Right now, this design has five 'holes' on each side of the carrier to hold the perch - one on top, three in the middle and one at the bottom - yet one is use to hold the food/water cup. I would assume that we will provide two perch so that the user have some flexibility to use them. To ensure the structure integrity, we cannot put in holes anywhere we want. We need webbing and perhaps aluminum sheet inserted inside to hold up the cage and the weight of the perch, bird, food/water cup, etc. I have seen some perch with multiple branches that is attached in one end. It may give more flexibility to the bird too. I think it is a must to include the rope to allow the bird to get up and down. We will have to test if a perch with multiple branches may be too heavy to be held on a soft carrier at one end. 3. Wood - I will avoid any use of plastic in this design and once we start trying to make a prototype out of this design, we will contact some suppliers to see if we can source from them wholesale and include them. (yes, we will still have some challenges in getting the design into real products as a live animal will use it and the structure must be secure). PLEASE let me know if there are good quality perch brand you can recommend. 4. Floor - I have first thought of a removeable, waterproof and washable tray/dish with 1" edge like design but with soft flat surface where users can put newspaper on it. I read that the bird's toe may get caught on mesh. If a metal mesh is going to be used, we will custom make them to fit for the carrier. PLEASE do comment if there is any good reason for not using mesh as the bird carrier will be in motion. |
| This is very exciting! One of my chat groups have been discussing carriers and the frustrations in finding a good one. I was just surfing the net and was about to settle for something/ anything to get my bird traveling outside with me.. One big concern of mine is the West Nile Virus, I want to be able to take my buddy out without any worries about mosquitoes Will you be marketing them soon! I will wait for it if you think it will be soon. I think it is wonderful that you are asking bird people their opinions. Now for your design: it looks great! The heat pad idea is good, would a disposable hand warmer work? If it is contained in a flap under the bottom it should not be reachable. I am a little confused as to the perches. Are the perches easily removable and you can place them at any position as needed? Also be sure to either make a choice of materials for the perches, or make them very graspable. Some birds, Eclectus included, do not grip strongly and need a good surface to hang onto. Other birds are chewers and will destruct a wood one quickly. You did not mention cups, but it looks like you have them sketched in the pics. One last thing that I can think of, what is the inside bottom of the carrier made of? It would be good to have a mesh material that will let the droppings fall through. | We are considering all the comments and suggestions and proceeding with the design. |
