Making toys

katie_fleming

katie_fleming

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Location
Montreal, Canada
Parrots
Jasper (6yr old Solomon Island Eclectus Parrot)
Hi all,

Just a couple questions about making your own toys...


  1. When picking out rope, can I go to Wal-Mart, Home Depot, etc and pick any non-coloured type? I want to get different thicknesses depending on the beads/etc I use
  2. Where is the cheapest place to buy pear links? I see some online but they're about $2 each...I'm interested in buying in bulk
  3. If I find any wooden blocks/beads/etc as long as they're non-treated are they ok?
  4. To colour wooden blocks, do you paint on food dye? Is this safe?


And one question about pellets...I assume any that are NOT coloured are ok? I looked at the ingredients of one at the store the other day (I should have written down the name) and noticed one of the ingredients was sunflower shells. I assume this is ok?


Many thanks! Still saving up for my birdie and collecting as much info as possible in the meantime :)
 
I normally just get natural sissal rope.
It's only about $3.00-$5.00 for a whole roll of it.

You can also use cotton rope but it is more expensive.

Don't get the plastic kind (ingestion hazard), and absolutely don't get anything that has been coated for outdoor/maritime use. (They use OIL to keep the rope from rotting and it's TOXIC!)

I don't use the pair links. I use the quick link kind. Pear links are more likely to snag toes. I get these in bulk on ebay, but they also sell them at lowes and home depot.

Non pressure treated wood.

Food dye is fine.
 
katie_fleming said:
Hi all,

Just a couple questions about making your own toys...


  1. When picking out rope, can I go to Wal-Mart, Home Depot, etc and pick any non-coloured type? I want to get different thicknesses depending on the beads/etc I use
  2. Where is the cheapest place to buy pear links? I see some online but they're about $2 each...I'm interested in buying in bulk
  3. If I find any wooden blocks/beads/etc as long as they're non-treated are they ok?
  4. To colour wooden blocks, do you paint on food dye? Is this safe?


And one question about pellets...I assume any that are NOT coloured are ok? I looked at the ingredients of one at the store the other day (I should have written down the name) and noticed one of the ingredients was sunflower shells. I assume this is ok?


Many thanks! Still saving up for my birdie and collecting as much info as possible in the meantime :)
Click to expand...


1) Rope: Any Natural material rope. Cotton, Leather, Sisal
2) I have no idea about pear links. I would just go to home depot.
3) Food dye is fine. You can also buy non dye wood beads and dye them yourself.
 
If you do a bit of research, you can find rope suppliers who will sell you bulk quantities for *much* cheaper than you can get it on ebay or in pet supply places. Same goes for stainless steel chain, plastic chain and untreated pine. For cotton rope, I go to the haberdashery section of my fabric shop and buy big fat piping cord. It costs a fraction of what cotton rope does and is, IMHO, better quality (less likely to split and fray). I've also found that natural (NOT treated or painted) pallets (the kind they use to hold goods in storage) make great chew toys. My husband cuts 'cookies' out of the timber with a hole saw. The Beaks eat the resulting rounds and then make short work of the remaining 'holey' timber. Or, you can cut it in slices, drill holes, soak in food dye and then string onto hanging toys. Other good chewies are bamboo kitchen tools, chopsticks and sushi rolling mats (all obtained cheaply and in bulk from ebay). Oh, and old wicker baskets. If you get them from thrift shops, soak them in hot suds to remove any gakk that might not be obvious, then dry in the sun or the oven (carefully).
 
I use all kinds of rope make sure its not treated when in doubt smell it and inspect if if it smells like chemicals or looks off don't get it, safe materials are cotton,sisal,hemp. As for pellets some are much better than others I think the best ones are Roudybush and Harrisons some have too much sugar or fat and of course dyed ones aren't as healthy for them but birds also need fresh fruits and veggies in addition to pellets and some kinds of birds really benefit from nuts in their diet as well. As for dying you can use food dye but I prefer not to I use vegetable dye from blueberries and beets, you don't get as many color variations but its completely safe and more natural.
 
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If anyone could check out those links and get back to me that'd be greatly appreciated :)
 
The cotton cords look dangerous to me: they're too closely plaited/braided and could get feet or toes stuck in them. The ones you want are a standard three-ply cotton rope that looks exactly like the equivalent sisal kind. That is, it has three fat plies twisted together. The link for sisal didn't work for me, even when I cutted and pasted. Sisal is great so long as you don't get the varnished or oiled one they use for boating. If its just the natural fibre rope, it's fine! (NB. Working with sisal isn't as nice as working with cotton rope. Sisal has sticky-outy bits that are pretty hard on your hands.) Another way to get cotton rope is to purchase long leads for dogs or horses made out of cotton (the leads, not the animals...) I wish I could find a source of the 1" cotton stuff that comes in mixed colours!
 
A quick warning about food dye - it is safe to use but don't go overboard, a thin coating is sufficient. The first time I dyed wood (popsicle sticks is all mine will chew at the moment) I SOAKED it in the dye and my parrot pooped BLUE! And he doesn't even eat the wood, just breaks off pieces and tosses them down. He must have gotten some dye in anyway.
It was very scary for me until I figured out what I did! LOL!
Although this story ended fine it does highlight how easily parrots can ingest stuff. Be very carefull what you use for toys. Also - don't assume that the stuff you can buy in petshops are safe. Always double check.
 
Thanks for the info about the food dye. Definitely noted :)

That's too bad that isn't the right type of rope. This is getting a bit frustrating trying to find bird-safe toy making supplies without buying online and spending a fortune. Maybe the next time I'm near a Michael's I will take a look.

Can you normally string pony beads/smaller on cotton rope?? It looks thick to me on bird websites.

What about fishing line?
 
Yikes! Definately NOT fishing line. Even the smallest parrot will bite through that in an instant and may ingest it.
 
I found this site that looks OK for prices: Cotton, Leather, Natural Cords - Toy Making Supplies - Products

Which ropes here would be suitable for stringing beads? (Pony beads, other small beads)

And, which rope would be suitable for wrapping around PVC pipe to create a perch stand?

Thank you.

Edit: I called every store I could think of and I see Lowe's has some cotton rope. They said it's natural but he's not 100% sure if it's been treated or not. This is the link: http://www.lowes.ca/packaged-rope/l...m=cotton-rope&linkloc=searchProductItemsImage

Thanks for your help
 
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I am not in the US so I can't help with product suggestions, sorry. I don't even know what a 'pony bead' or 'paulie rope' is...LOL!

I often use 100% cotton rope, untreated and uncoloured.
 
Not sure if it has been said but leather makes a good "rope" too. Get a piece of vegetable tanned leather and cut it into thin strips. Do NOT use normal leather which is cured with toxic chemicals that WILL kill your bird.
 
Ok great, thank you. I will try and find some. Not sure why it's so difficult to find everything around here. It's frustrating because buying online is very expensive with shipping to Canada :(

Do you think this is ok? I found this near my house: Lehigh 420' Medium Weight Cotton Twine
 
Without actually seeing and feeling the twine mentioned in the link, I can't say for sure but it does look very much like the stuff I use.
I understand your frustration about getting supplies :) The stuff I want from US suppliers will cost me double the item price in shipping :(
 
If it's not sealed and I can feel it for myself, what is it that I look for? This is the only cotton rope that looks about right that I can buy here.

You're right about shipping - just for 10' of hemp rope the shipping was going to be $12, on a $1.25 item! :(

Also, I found this sisal rope at a store in Ottawa...does the far right one look good? http://www.leevalley.com/en/garden/page.aspx?p=51232&cat=2,51553,51232
 
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See if you can find some piping cord at a fabric shop, or on ebay. It comes in many thicknesses from 1/8" right up to an inch. It's what I use to make rope perches, boings and circular swings. You can also get the metal rings for swings from craft/fabric shops. I go to Spotlight here in Australia, but I bet you've got more choices than that in Canada.

Other stuff useful for stringing includes: butcher's or baker's twine (100% cotton and good for pony beads); jute twine (a bit hairy and easily severed unless you use multiple thicknesses); hemp twine and the plastic 'string' stuff that kids use to make scoobies from. It's like thin plastic spaghetti and comes in lots of colours.

I use coathanger wire to make small swings and toys for our lovebirds. I assume it's not safe for birds, so I always make sure I've covered it completely with beads so that no part of the wire is accessible to them. I've also used coathanger wire covered with plastic tubing, which you can get at most craft shops.

Have a good look on ebay. I found an excellent supplier of ropes and stainless steel chains on ebay Australia and he even offers free postage. I was amazed how much cheaper it is to purchase from the supplier instead of from the petshop!!! This bloke also does plastic chain in various sizes, so I'm a permanent customer now. Look around in your local area and see what you can find.

Best of luck with it! Let us know how you get on! :)
 
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