I'm posting this mostly for the new bird owner and those of us who are frustrated with the less than desirable behaviors of their birds.
In the wild, birds spend 80% of their time looking for food. Sometimes they get lucky... sometimes they come up with empty talons. And they're no different from any other animal, including humans. We're happy when we've experienced some level of success.
However, foraging toys are EXPENSIVE and while necessary for the mental health and well being of your bird, they're necessary.
So here are some of my ideas and things I've implemented to keep my Mac busy when I can't lavish affection on her.
1.) Keep that empty Hamburger Helper box! (And every other box for that matter!) These make awesome, easy foraging toys and typically you'll end up with several a week. These are great to fill with shredded paper and a few pieces of dried fruit, seeds or even a whole walnut for our big birds. Poke a few holes in them and tie to the sides of the cage. I tie mine low since my mac has some insane opposition to the cage floor.
2.) Brown paper lunch bags are awesome for smaller or medium sized birds to foraging in. Same as with the box, fill it mostly with shredded paper and place a few pieces of dried fruit in it, twist the top of the bag closed and tie it to the cage with a piece of string. It won't last long, but a pack of 100 is pretty cheap.
3.) Birdie Bon Bons. Get a roll of plain brown packaging paper from Fed Ex or Mailboxes Etc and some jute twine. Cut a rectangle, roll some loose nuts inside, twist and tie the ends and toss it into the bottom of the cage. Easy, simple, CHEAP!
4.) Grapevine balls. These can be found cheap at Walmart, Hobby Lobby and Michaels Crafts. I think a pack of 15 is about $7. While not long lasting for the big beaks, the amazons and greys LOVE them. Stuff some pieces of nuts and dried fruit inside and toss into the cage.
5.) Parrot candy. Coffee filters or colored paper make great 'parrot candies'. Wrap a few nuts and twist the ends closed. I take these and stick them in the cage bars for an easy find or toss them into a metal bucket that's hanging on the side of the cage.
6.) Wiffle ball treat. For those who have more time and are more creative, a wiffle ball, some leather lacing and drill holes in some whole, uncracked nuts. Wrap the nuts in paper and thread your lacing through. Feed the lacing through the holes in the wiffle ball and through another paper wrapped nut. Tie off tightly, They'll have to peel back the paper to get to the nut and then crack it off the leather. This will keep busy for days. I mix mine up between nuts and just plain old 1"x1" wood blocks or beads. You can even stuff some larger pieces of dried fruit inside the ball for added foraging after the 'candies' are gone.
7.) Sock sack. Occasionally you can find some irregular tube socks on ebay or at the dollar store. These are usually pretty cheap and plentiful. Fill these with a combination of nuts, seeds and wood blocks, tie off with a piece of jute twine or cotton rope and tie to the top of the cage. They'll have to rip a hole in them to get to the goodies. Replace when it starts looking tattered.
8.) Pine block. Take a piece of 2x4 and drill some larger holes in it. Stuff the holes with dried pieces of fruit and nuts, add a chain and quick link to the top of the cage. For your avid chewers (macaws and toos) instead of holes, make slits with a table saw and stuff the slits with seeds and fruit.
9.) PVC pipe dreams. You'll need a piece of PVC pipe, PVC cap for the bottom, some doweling, a drill, chain and a quicklink. Drill large holes in the pipe just big enough to fit your doweling in it. The size of the pipe depends on the size of the parrot. Obviously big birds need big pipes and larger pieces of doweling. Make an arch at the bottom large enough to get their beaks in just above the cap. You can use a dremel for this if you have one. Just sand the edges so they're not sharp. Place the doweling all the way through the holes and layer by layer, add nuts and pieces of fruit. You'll want enough holes to 'stack' the dowels to hold the treats up. Drill a hole in the top and hang from the top of the cage. When they remove the dowel rods, the treat falls into the bottom and they can retrieve them. Wash and refill.
10.) Chinese food box. These can be gotten cheap! Take a chinese food box, fill with paper and treats and tie to the side of the cage. For added security, I remove the metal handle.
So there's 10 ideas. Let's hear your ideas and I want to see some pictures!
Enjoy
In the wild, birds spend 80% of their time looking for food. Sometimes they get lucky... sometimes they come up with empty talons. And they're no different from any other animal, including humans. We're happy when we've experienced some level of success.
However, foraging toys are EXPENSIVE and while necessary for the mental health and well being of your bird, they're necessary.
So here are some of my ideas and things I've implemented to keep my Mac busy when I can't lavish affection on her.
1.) Keep that empty Hamburger Helper box! (And every other box for that matter!) These make awesome, easy foraging toys and typically you'll end up with several a week. These are great to fill with shredded paper and a few pieces of dried fruit, seeds or even a whole walnut for our big birds. Poke a few holes in them and tie to the sides of the cage. I tie mine low since my mac has some insane opposition to the cage floor.
2.) Brown paper lunch bags are awesome for smaller or medium sized birds to foraging in. Same as with the box, fill it mostly with shredded paper and place a few pieces of dried fruit in it, twist the top of the bag closed and tie it to the cage with a piece of string. It won't last long, but a pack of 100 is pretty cheap.
3.) Birdie Bon Bons. Get a roll of plain brown packaging paper from Fed Ex or Mailboxes Etc and some jute twine. Cut a rectangle, roll some loose nuts inside, twist and tie the ends and toss it into the bottom of the cage. Easy, simple, CHEAP!
4.) Grapevine balls. These can be found cheap at Walmart, Hobby Lobby and Michaels Crafts. I think a pack of 15 is about $7. While not long lasting for the big beaks, the amazons and greys LOVE them. Stuff some pieces of nuts and dried fruit inside and toss into the cage.
5.) Parrot candy. Coffee filters or colored paper make great 'parrot candies'. Wrap a few nuts and twist the ends closed. I take these and stick them in the cage bars for an easy find or toss them into a metal bucket that's hanging on the side of the cage.
6.) Wiffle ball treat. For those who have more time and are more creative, a wiffle ball, some leather lacing and drill holes in some whole, uncracked nuts. Wrap the nuts in paper and thread your lacing through. Feed the lacing through the holes in the wiffle ball and through another paper wrapped nut. Tie off tightly, They'll have to peel back the paper to get to the nut and then crack it off the leather. This will keep busy for days. I mix mine up between nuts and just plain old 1"x1" wood blocks or beads. You can even stuff some larger pieces of dried fruit inside the ball for added foraging after the 'candies' are gone.
7.) Sock sack. Occasionally you can find some irregular tube socks on ebay or at the dollar store. These are usually pretty cheap and plentiful. Fill these with a combination of nuts, seeds and wood blocks, tie off with a piece of jute twine or cotton rope and tie to the top of the cage. They'll have to rip a hole in them to get to the goodies. Replace when it starts looking tattered.
8.) Pine block. Take a piece of 2x4 and drill some larger holes in it. Stuff the holes with dried pieces of fruit and nuts, add a chain and quick link to the top of the cage. For your avid chewers (macaws and toos) instead of holes, make slits with a table saw and stuff the slits with seeds and fruit.
9.) PVC pipe dreams. You'll need a piece of PVC pipe, PVC cap for the bottom, some doweling, a drill, chain and a quicklink. Drill large holes in the pipe just big enough to fit your doweling in it. The size of the pipe depends on the size of the parrot. Obviously big birds need big pipes and larger pieces of doweling. Make an arch at the bottom large enough to get their beaks in just above the cap. You can use a dremel for this if you have one. Just sand the edges so they're not sharp. Place the doweling all the way through the holes and layer by layer, add nuts and pieces of fruit. You'll want enough holes to 'stack' the dowels to hold the treats up. Drill a hole in the top and hang from the top of the cage. When they remove the dowel rods, the treat falls into the bottom and they can retrieve them. Wash and refill.
10.) Chinese food box. These can be gotten cheap! Take a chinese food box, fill with paper and treats and tie to the side of the cage. For added security, I remove the metal handle.
So there's 10 ideas. Let's hear your ideas and I want to see some pictures!
Enjoy
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