Birds of all flavors tend to love splashing in water to get cooled off, and cleaned up. In fact, the preening that usually follows a good splashing is what distributes the bird's natural oils throughout his or her feathers, which keeps the plumage healthy. Without a good bath now and then, pet birds tend to accumulate loose flakes of dead skin within their feathers. Plus, the feathers get dusty and the oils don't always go where they are most needed. Some birds will preen for hours, bath or no bath, and when they do, watch out, because the bird dander will fly about, making the poor little thing look like it's stuck in the center of a dust storm. With regular bathing, the bird can oil himself more frequently and better manage his own dead skin situation, keeping the skin healthier as well as the feathers. In fact, some bird owners will simply get a squirt bottle and give the bird a shower. Usually the bird will respond to this by lowering his head, puffing out his chest and extending his wings to get more water into all the nooks and crannies. Once the shower is over, the preening will begin and a well-groomed bird is a happy one. In the wild, the bath ritual seems to be pretty much the same for all types of birds, no matter their size, shape, color or location. They lower one wing and splash water on themselves with it, and repeat with the other wing on the other side. They do that several times and then climb out on shore to preen, or fly to a tree branch to do so. So, yes, it is best to give your bird a dish of water to splash in, or a nice shower a few times a week. They will love us for it.
