Homemade toys??

[Breeze]

Hi all,
I've got a question, if any of yous out there make your own toys for your birds what materials do you use?
Im setting out to make a chew toy much like wooden toys and forging toys ( would be helpful if you had suggestions for that)


Thank you.

 

[Kentuckienne]

Plain unvarnished soft wood, “fair” (undyed, vegetable tanned) leather, stainless steel bells with strongly attached clappers (i prefer the long skinny ones so they can’t reach the clapper at all), plastic baby toys...our boy is rather weak in the beak so lots of paper.

 

[DiscoDuck]

the best toys are the ones that are free. Its amazing how much recycling my macaw will do before it goes to the container for pick up..

 

[ShatteredChaos]

I use plenty of paper, they just love shredding that stuff, cardboard rolls in particular. I use a hole punch then tie them together for little play swing type things and they love it.

 

[Squeekmouse]

When I got serious about making bird toys, I made a trip to my nearest Dollar store. They sell baby toys and cat toys, some of which make excellent bird toy parts. Some cooking tools are great (like measuring spoons, bamboo skewers if you cut off the points, chopsticks, wooden spoons, cupcake papers). They also sell some crafting supplies, make sure you get bird safe materials (most plastics, jute or hemp twine NON-treated, nothing the bird can choke on or hurt themselves on).

Also, paper and cardboard are easy to acquire. I recommend avoiding cardboard boxes that might have sat on a warehouse floor picking up chemicals or pesticides. Stick with cardboard that you're certain is clean and safe.

Paper grass wrapped in a roll of cardboard is fun. Leather cord. Chinese finger traps. Wicker balls. Plastic drinking straws. Dixie cups. Taking apart old toys that are mostly destroyed is another great way to get parts. Salvage what can be re-purposed!

Another thing you can do is head to the hardware store and buy some wooden dowels. They come in various sizes, round or square. Cut them up and drill holes, dye them with food coloring if desired, and there ya go. Be sure to get Poplar, not oak or pine. Downside: you need a drill and saw, and this can be a lot of work. I made my husband do it for me.

 

[Owlet]

Cupcake liner things have been a big hit with my boy.. minus the cupcake though