Fairfield-Echo.com

Cleaning isn't just about neatness -- it's also about health. Clean, fresh food and water are essential to pet birds, and so is keeping their environment as free as possible of bacteria, fungus and molds, all of which can lead to disease.

You can keep things relatively neat with a few supplies kept close to the cage and used on a constant basis. Among them:

Newspapers. Bird lovers go through a lot of newspapers. Put all the glossy inserts in the recycling bin, and stack the rest for use in the cage tray and under play areas.

Cloth towels. Worn bath towels are great for protecting clothing from bird poop -- just drape a towel over your shoulders.

Spray bottle with cleaning solution. Keep this near the cage, along with towels. Since birds are sensitive to fumes, skip the ammonia, bleach, pine solutions or any other strong cleaners. Simple soap and water are fine for everyday touchups, or you can try Poop-Off, a product developed just for bird cleanup.

Handheld vacuum. Great for snarfing up food pellets and feathers.

Mats for underneath the cage. The heavy, clear plastic mats intended for underneath desk chairs and sold at office-supply stores keep most of the gunk off the floor. Newspapers catch the rest.

Trash bin. Again, right by the cage. Every time you change the cage liner, put the old newspapers in the trash.

A few minutes spent cleaning a couple of times a day keeps things in good order and makes the weekly cage scrubbing easier to accomplish. Clean cage papers daily, at a minimum, and clean everything else as soon as the mess hits.