All baking soda is not the same, and not for the reason you may think.

As many of you know who follow “The Mutilation Syndrome Program” I recommend using a very small amount of baking soda ONCE a week in your bird’s drinking water to help clear out the salicylates from your bird’s system and also to help relieve the “itchies.” I don’t think I have ever specified any particular brand of baking soda, but may have casually mentioned that Arm & Hammer is “aluminum-free” so I think it is safe to use for this purpose.

As it turns out all baking soda is virtually deemed “aluminum free” because the amount of aluminum is so low that it is practically not quantifiable by testing. So there’s that. This is not what this post is about.

What this post is about is this; it is how the sodium bicarbonate is processed that matters to me.

Arm & Hammer, as I only recently learned uses a chemical process that turns the sodium bicarbonate to soda ash. Bob’s Red Mill on the other hand simply extracts it from the ground, sifts it to remove impurities and packages it; no chemical process involved. Voila, you have baking soda pure and simple! Those of you who know me know that I always opt for the most pure form of anything our birds ingest.

From this point forward I will be recommending that you use Bob’s Red Mill baking soda for the purpose of clearing the salicylates from your bird’s system. Using Arm & Hammer to clean your bird’s cage, bowls, and your house is fine as long as you rinse well in my opinion.

Yes, this old dog can be taught new tricks…and this was brought to my attention by one of our customers. I am thankful I am surrounded by people who educate themselves and are not afraid to educate me too!

*Regular Arm & Hammer baking soda can be used for cleaning purposes as it will not normally be ingested, but if you want to be extra cautious you can use Bob’s Red Mill backing soda. When I use baking soda to clean I use a dilution of 3% food grade hydrogen peroxide mixed in with the baking soda. Food grade hydrogen peroxide normally comes as 35% and MUST be diluted down to 3% or it will be too caustic and burn through gloves and corrode most anything it comes in contact with. It is diluted by mixing 1/8th cup of 35% to one gallon of filtered water. You can buy food grade H2O2 here:http://www.purehealthdiscounts.com/pool.htm

The reason I use FOOD GRADE hydrogen peroxide is due to the fact that industrial grade (the common variety we find in grocery stores and drug stores) contains heavy metals that have not been filtered out. You can sprouts to ensure there is no bacteria or fungus including aflatoxins after sprouting.