Switching to water bottles?
I've been thinking about switching my birds to using water bottles. A friend of mine had great success switching her hookbills over, though I wonder what the pros/cons are.
Obviously, the best pro is that I'll no longer have to change Russell's Quaker-soup water bowl every 2 hours. (I swear, I've never seen a bird so intent on making messes. :P) So the clean water all the time is a plus. I'm just wondering if there's a downside I haven't thought of. (Bath wise, some of my birds prefer spray bottles, some prefer these huge ceramic dishes I put in the cages usually.)
Is there a size guideline for birds? I suppose all mine have fairly similar beak sizes ('Tiels, lovebirds, quaker) so I'm assuming they'd use a smallish bottle, similar to those designed for hamsters. I guess I'm just worried a bird would get it's beak stuck in one, but maybe that's not anatomically possible with a hookbill.
Experiences? Bottle suggestions? Warnings?
Obviously, the best pro is that I'll no longer have to change Russell's Quaker-soup water bowl every 2 hours. (I swear, I've never seen a bird so intent on making messes. :P) So the clean water all the time is a plus. I'm just wondering if there's a downside I haven't thought of. (Bath wise, some of my birds prefer spray bottles, some prefer these huge ceramic dishes I put in the cages usually.)
Is there a size guideline for birds? I suppose all mine have fairly similar beak sizes ('Tiels, lovebirds, quaker) so I'm assuming they'd use a smallish bottle, similar to those designed for hamsters. I guess I'm just worried a bird would get it's beak stuck in one, but maybe that's not anatomically possible with a hookbill.
Experiences? Bottle suggestions? Warnings?