Raptors spend a lot of time on their feet. If they’re not flying or incubating eggs, they’re standing on a perch. It makes sense, then, that we need to make sure our birds in captivity have comfortable perches. Perches need to be the right size to fit the bird’s feet and have a variety of textures, but maintenance is an ongoing project as they wear down. Rope wrapped around a 2×4 needs to be re-wrapped when it becomes smooth or loose. The rougher Astroturf gets replaced when many of the plastic tines break off. And sometimes the whole perch needs to be replaced. We recently had help from a chainsaw to cut new natural stumps for each mew. The birds certainly appreciate having a new perch, especially one where they usually find their food!
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