Whether you’ve raised ten parrots before or haven’t begun your journey into being a parrot parent yet, just about everyone knows parrots aren’t meant for the cold.
Obviously, the phrase cold can be comprehensive and be subjective depending on the person.
Still, it’s relatively easy to assume you shouldn’t have your parrot hang out in the cold.
With this in mind, how long can a parrot survive in the cold?
To answer this question…indoor parrots will only live in cold weather for a few days before shutting down and dying. There have been reports of some indoor parrots residing for a few weeks in the cold, but that’s not the norm. Of course, some parrots have adapted to a colder climate, but that’s not very common.
What you also need to be mindful of is a parrot’s definition of cold, and our definition might be totally apart.
For example, if you live in Colorado, you might think any temperature above 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit) is perfectly warm.
What you need to realize is a parrot shouldn’t be in any temperature below 18 degrees Celsius (65 degrees Fahrenheit).
Again, some parrots can handle the cold compared to others, but don’t risk it.
As you can imagine, with the varying factors in a subject like this, there’s a lot to make a note of with parrots and their ability to handle the cold.
People become interested in the ordeal because they wonder what temperature they should keep their house at.
Basically, you’re going to want to make sure you keep your house at a suitable temperature for your parrot at all times.
Nevertheless, let’s take a look at what else you should know!
Can parrots survive in the cold?
Most parrots can technically survive in temperatures that dip just below 18 degrees Celsius (65 degrees Fahrenheit).
Still, if it’s a lot lower than that, they will shut down.
That’s part of the reason why parrots are found in clumps in warmer climate areas.
You’re not going to find parrots in Alaska, regardless of how brave of a parrot you might have.
Some parrots understand they can’t survive in cold weather and will do what they can to live as long as they can.
Parrots might use tree brushes and indoor caves to help keep themselves warm.
If the temperature is too cold, parrots almost always shut down early on, but you’d be surprised how resilient they can be.
Basically, if your parrot gets outside somehow and it’s cold, don’t think all is lost.
Do what you can to find your parrot, as they tend to hold on a few days without any severe issues.
We all know the stressful feeling of your parrot potentially roaming free without you there to protect them, so try to stay calm.
What temperature is too cold for parrots?
It’s obvious to assume anything below freezing (32 degrees Fahrenheit or 0 degrees Celsius) is too cold for parrots as it’s straightforward for them to freeze to death.
But again, you need to understand most parrots should live at a temperature that’s a minimum above 18 degrees Celsius (65 degrees Fahrenheit).
If you keep your house around 15 degrees Celsius (60 degrees Fahrenheit), your parrot shouldn’t live in it.
Although they’ll more likely be okay with it, they’ll get extremely uncomfortable and can develop various health issues as a result.
Thus, you need to be mindful of your parrot and what they’re doing as they can give you signs to when the temperature isn’t how it should be.
Now, you need to be careful and not overthink that your house has to be 26 degrees Celsius (80 degrees Fahrenheit), but keeping it around 21 degrees Celsius (70 degrees Fahrenheit) should be perfect for the two of you.
If you can’t handle it, consider throwing a small heater into their room to ensure they’re doing okay temperature-wise.
What temperature can parrots tolerate?
As you might’ve picked up on already, most parrots can tolerate any temperature around 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit).
Some might be big enough where anything above freezing would temporarily suffice, but again, this shouldn’t be their central temperature.
No matter how well you think they’re handling a temperature, it’s usually not a good idea.
Parrots are intelligent creatures and do what they can to survive when weather extremities aren’t in their favor.
Parrots act like humans in that sense as they do what they can to get by.
Still, as their guardians, we need to make sure everything is copacetic no matter how normal they might appear.
Temperature is an odd subject to look at since we can handle just about anything.
Whether it’s below freezing or extremely hot, we can remove and add layers allowing us to live with whatever temperature is going.
Parrots can’t, and we need to be aware of what that means.
Can parrots be kept outside in the cold?
Taking our parrots outside is one of the best activities for us to do with them.
They enjoy going outside and seeing the outdoors while we have a leash on them, so they don’t fly away and potentially injure themselves.
What when it’s cold out?
Can we still bring our parrot outside for a bit?
If you haven’t guessed it by now, it’s never a good idea to keep your parrot outside in the cold or bring them out when it’s cold out.
Even if it’s 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit), definitely don’t bring them out and about.
However, you have a big heater outdoors, you can potentially have them hang out near that.
Again, you need to be careful either way, because parrots really act up when they’re cold.
You need to be aware of the risks involved with bringing your parrot outside for fun and having them potentially be injured from the cold.
Be smart and don’t risk something that could’ve been completely avoided.
How do I know if my parrot is cold?
Rather than ask how you know if your parrot is cold, you should get a good idea if they’re cold based on the temperature.
Again, if it’s not warm and above 18 degrees Celsius (65 degrees Fahrenheit), expect your parrot to be cold.
It can’t get any simpler than that, so try to stick to that saying to know if it’s too cold for your parrot.
As for physical signs, we’ll go more in-depth about that in a bit, but you should notice them acting strange.
Usually when parrots feel too cold, their body begins to shut down, and they act oddly because of the ordeal.
If this happens to be the case with your parrot, check what the temperature is.
If the temperature is wonderful and your parrot is still acting odd, bring them to their vet immediately.
Whatever the issue is, their vet should be able to diagnose what the issue is and give you an idea of what you can do to help them.
Vets are there for a reason, so use them when you need to.
What are parrot cold symptoms?
If your parrot ends up being too cold and develops several symptoms from it, it’s no fun to address the matter and try to have them feel better.
Sometimes it’s too late to help them as the cold can significantly affect them much quicker than you might realize.
It’s a sad reality for parrots to experience.
Still, there are several signs to be aware of when it comes to parrot cold symptoms.
These symptoms not only apply to when they’ve been exposed to the cold weather for too long but also when they have a cold virus.
Although the two examples vary slightly, it’s worth highlighting all of the main symptoms.
Let’s take a look!
Your Parrot is Coughing
Similar to humans, parrots cough quite a bit when they’re not feeling well.
As they get cold, their body begins to shut down, forcing them to not breathe as well as they usually would.
There can be many reasons why a parrot is coughing, but being in the cold is one of them.
Your Parrot Has a Loss of Appetite
What also happens when parrots get too cold is they cannot eat.
The same thing happens to humans if we’ve been in the cold too long as our bodies can’t process food when we’re freezing.
Again, there are a lot of explanations regarding this, but it can happen because of the cold too.
Your Parrot is Peeing A Lot
As a parrot’s body begins to shut down from the cold, they tend to urinate and go to the bathroom a lot.
Yet again, a similar occurrence happens to humans.
If your parrot was recently in cold weather and they’re urinating a lot, that’s not a good sign.
Your Parrot Has Nasal Discharge
If your parrot is sneezing a lot and has nasal discharge, that’s also not a good sign that they got a sickness from being in the cold.
Although humans can tolerate long periods in colder weather and be fine, parrots can’t, as it’s evident with them sneezing and everything else we discussed.