Any pet bird be it a budgie, cockatiel, canary, parrot, whatever will spend a lot of time in a bird cage unless of course your bird lives outside in an aviary but that's not what this article is about.
In this article I am going to give you a couple of tips to show you how you can make your bird cage more than just a plain 'ole birdcage, you can turn it into a home.

1. Put the bird cage where your pet can see and hear everything that is going on in your family.
   Birds are "flock"creatures and very sociable.
   They need the stimulus and excitement of being where the rest of their flock, you and your family, are otherwise they will become very bored and may even resort to plucking their own feathers.
   
2. Don't use pet shop bought perches or ordinary pieces of dowelling.
   These have a fixed and constant diameter which is not good for your birds feet.
   Instead go into your garden, or the local park,and find your own perches from tree branches or thick twigs.
   Fruit trees are a good source of perches.
   Birds like to strip the bark from the branches and the irregular shape and nature of the branch is better for their feet.
   
3. You don't have to buy expensive pet shop toys for your bird.
   Birds are playful creatures and will enjoy playing with a lot of things you would call junk.
   Cotton reels, toilet rolls, zips, hair curlers, bells and balls to name just a few items.
   Just make sure nothing you put in the cage is capable of hurting your bird.
   
4. Cage cleaning needs to be done regularly and done properly.
   Clean toys and perches at the same time and instead of lining the floor of the cage with paper rather use a fine sand.
   

So there you are, just a couple of tips that will make life more pleasant for you and your bird.