The reason I ask this is, that everytime I clean the FIDS cages, the seed guards don't really seem to be doing there job. I removed my seed guards tonight after over 8 yrs and the cages were much easier to clean. As far as the floor goes, it doesn't really matter because I have to clean it anyways. What is your opinion?

No is my answer...Harley's cage came with the guards but I took them off, they are nothing but an extra something to clean...I've never seen where they are helpful at all....Like you said Sandi, you gotten clean up around the cage any way and a lot of the seed and poop goes over the guard....

I tried putting the guards on once to see if that would keep Harley from climbing down, but no it didn't; he found a way to get past them anyway....

So I'd say throw them away if you have any....

Messy birds are why the good Lord gave us newspaper! I never even bothered to put the seed guards up to start with. One of the things I remembered from having a parakeet when I was a kid is that no matter WHAT you do, you will have a mess to clean up so might as well resign yourself from the beginning. And Clyde certainly has proven my memory to be accurate on THAT point.

the seed guards on Cricket's cage don't catch any seeds but it does help collect his poop while he's climbing around on the outside of his cage so i guess i have a poop guard not a seed guard!

Oh man!! I wouldnt use a cage for long that didnt have them!!!! I have them on all of mine. Maybe it depends on how messy the bird is that is in them. Maybe mine dont fling to far.

I took them off awhile back. Willie doesn't scatter his food beyond the bowl but he sure could whitewash those seed guards. It's much easier to just pick up the plastic mat and wash it off.

I answered yes to this poll but I don't know if mine is called a seed card. I have what they call a birdy bloomer. It is made of cotton and goes all around the cage. I think it is helpful. I find less poop on the floor!

I wish all of my cages had the guards, I am hoping to upgrade all the cages to the ones that do have them in the next year or so! Now Mickey shoots his poop lol MOST of it is caught by the guard although he gets a good shoot once in a while and it goes over the edge and onto the floor

I had one of those for a while. It actually worked pretty good on keeping his food inside but he makes a point of aiming outside the cage to poop so there's no stopping that. Then he decided it was fun to shred and that was the end of that.

took mine off because we need the extra two inches of space all around lol

We did have them birefly and i agree.. more of a poop guard then a seed gaurd.. theres always a mess regardless... i think they are jsut an added selling feature for manufacters of cages to convince us their cage is better

our problem wasn't necessarily the poop although it got most of it. The problem was the food would go down between the seed guards and the cage. It was difficult to clean. So last night, after taking the guards off it was so very easy to clean. I would have to explain my cage set up in order for you to see how the guards fit.

I have food hurlers. Especially my cockatoo. Seed catchers for me personally just make cleaning more difficult so I got rid of them. I usually get that clear plastic carpet runner stuff and cut it to size around their cages and use a vaccum to suck it all up daily. Otherwise its dragged all over the house with ppl and pets walking on it.

Mine are more to catch poop from when they play on the tops of thier cages. Then they like to hang over the side of the cage.

well I don`t have them never have so can`t vote ..I have always wanted them but after reading this maybe I don`t need them ..my boys are messy though its usually just crumbs of toast that Joe clips to their cage at breakfast (I get to clean up when I let them out) ..I guess having guards woiuld just make more cleaning , the floor is tiles so easy enough to sweep and mop...

Here I was being all envious of those of you that had cages with the seed guards.

I can see how much of a pain it would be to clean them now. Thanks folks

I do like the idea of the clear plastic runner idea though. Think I might get some of that for under and around the cages. We have hardwood flooring, so it's easy to wipe that up, but the wool area rug is another story

I wouldn't have a cage with out them! Like mentioned above, they catch the poop (that would otherwise go all over the floor) when Petey is climbing on his play top. Petey doesn't throw food - but he does throw his toys. They get caught in the guard instead of winding on the floor and then in my dog's mouth!

I think they're something extra to clean and they take up too much room when the cage has to be next to the wall.
A little vacuuming every night does the trick for me.

I tried seed guards for my greenwings...ha ha they were quite a joke! Sebastion seemed to like the sound of the pellets clinking off them.. he would take a foot full and fling them at it then tilt his head sideways while they 'tinked' off the guards! He tends to throw his pellets at me to get my attention Its quite aggravating but can't seem to figure a way to stop him.He also poops out of the cage (GW poo is some serious stuff lol) And would just aim higher to get it over the guard so it wound up on the wall instead of the floor.Shelby figured out a way to get them off so I tossed the so called seed guards.

Oh my gosh! I would hate cleaning up without the seed guards... I mean poop guards.
Eli insists on hanging his butt over the edge and dumping. I have the metal guards that just fit together at the corners. To clean them all I have to do is wipe. If they get really bad I pull them apart and wash them in the sink. Voila, problem solved.

In the summer, on the weekends I roll them all outside and give them a major hose job.
I love it. I dread the winter when I won't be able to do that.

I voted yes but ................................
Our seed guards are poop catchers.
And boy do they do a great job !!!!

Like many others have said, the seed guards act like poop guards for Amigo. The seed guards catch 99% of the poop before it hits the floor. His room has a lineoleum floor, so cleaning that is pretty easy anyways. He managed to get the wall in back of the cage just once, or I would have said 100%. His food generally goes through the grate on the bottom onto the newpapers below. He usually stands on the door that folds down to poop, and often will go back there if he has to go.

I have a second cage, a very cheap one, that I use when I bring him downstairs. It meets the minimum size requirements, and does let us spend more time together when I'm home. That one doesn't have seed guards, is much harder to clean, and really lets me appreciate how great his cage is.

His cage was on clearance at the pet store where I found him. I don't think the model I purchased is available any more, but this one is the same style, and it is the same manufacturer. I know his cage has 1/2" bar spacing, and provisions for 4 dishes, but only two came with it.

https://www.kingscages.com/cages/cages-econ...17/prod_38.html

He absolutely loves climbing around on the outside of the cage, and I love how easy it is to clean

Both my little ones have seed guards and they are (like everyone said) poop guards. They both play on top of their cages and poop over the sides. I lay paper towels on the guards so cleaning them is not a pain...just throw away the towels. There is never poop on the floor (which is good because they are 80 year old hard wood floors that my hubby refinished and I think he would cry if I had to scrape poop off everyday)
So I voted yes

I wouldnt have a cage for long that didnt have them. All of mine have them and I think they help immensily.

I would like to order a new cage for Popeye with seed guards but there is nothing wrong with the cage he has. It is perfectly fine, except the extra work I have. LOL

I voted yes because as many of you have said, mine catches the poop....I don't care about the seed since Simon really isn't messy with his food. Poop...that's another story. He has a playtop, and he climbs all over the cage, and he has squeaky toys that he tosses down only to go retrieve them. He likes to sit on his cage door alot, and unfortunately his poop doesn't end up in the guard when he's there....so I already have a poopy mess to clean up every day. I've tried putting newspapers down there, but my dogs tear it up...so that doesn't work. Luckily we have hardwood floors so carpet isn't a problem. For Pogo's cage, it really doesn't matter if he has the guards or not. He has a playtop, but won't stay on it for a single second...so he spends most of his days in the office on his playstand or his giant boingy thing....or his hanging stand....hehehe..yes, he's a spoiled birdy (they both are!) Since we just moved into a house, cage cleaning has become much easier, as I can just roll them out to the patio and hose them down.

Ours is actually an escape guard. Our cage is missing the bottom grate so it just has the poop catcher drawer. We wrapped the cheap plastic poop guard around the bottom so Mojito dont escape. That is about the only use it has. Because its a tall cage it dont stop nothing from flying.

Years ago cages didn't have seed guards. So, when I got more birds I thought ohhhh,,,,I want those!!

I hate them. With my CAG all they did was catch those big nasty poops and were a nightmare to clean. I have no clue where I put them but, I'm so, glad they are gone.

I have plastic runners under my cages and vacuum and wipe them everyday so, the mess doesn't get tracked through the house.

In my opinion if it's between a cage with or one without...Take the one without you won't be sorry.

I've personally not experienced a seed guard, but I don't think it would help that much. The baby doesn't make much of a mess, usually pellets on the ground are from me refilling bowls and spilling a little. But even when there is a bit of a mess I just vacuum it up. Easy peasy. In fact, I think our living room is cleaner than before we got a bird! Because once I get the vacuum out to clean up around the cage I usually give the living room a once over where any other spots might be a bit dirty.

One of my cages has seed guards and I think they are put there to whack our chins all to pieces as we walk by. That's all I could ever figure out that they did for me or for my bird, so I took them off long ago. I find it much easier to sweep and mop the floor and clean the cage.
Just MHO.

Yep , I love them I had cages without for years , theses do stop a heap of mess on the floor ..I am glad I have them..

Lol.. they are more like poop guards then seed guards!

LOVE THEM!
I have a King Cage and it is the greatest thing ever to have the guard,, my carpet under the cage is perfectly clean.
T-Bird likes to sit on top and poop off the edge, it is sure easier to wipe off the guard, (which is powder coated and easily cleaned) than the floor.

I have another cage and I want to get a seed guard or a new cage,, does anyone know where I can buy a seed guard? While we are on the subject, that is!
Thanks so much, I am desperate to get one for my new birds cage.
Lori