How To Select The RIGHT Toys For Your Bird

waoooo….amazing….:D

Just a nice tip: you can also buy baby’s toys for your parrot(-;
It’ made out of safe materials, and ther are many toys that are relatively cheep(-:

yep…definitely a shredder

I went looking for wooden toys for my small parrot a conure but found nothing suitable. So I had some wooden spring pegs and put them around his cage and he has a great time chewing away. He loves a bell and like to argue with it. He also rummages under his paper towel. I thought perhaps it was a she and she was nesting. I still don’t know its sex. But we call him harvey and he is very friendly. Loves to interact out of his cage.

my blue and gold likes stacking toys..i buy baby rings, my husband made a wooden base
with a upright stick, Corona stacks the rings,just like my children did with the fisher price stackers.i use the clicker and sunflower seeds as treats

Please provide examples of preening toys

Nice toys! Even I want to play with them xD!

My bird just likes the phone and goes mental when it rings. We have tried giving him his own phone to play with but he ignores this and only wants the real one.
He is very strong and has destroyed 2 and so now we have to cover it. He has uncovered it so many times it is now covered up with a cast iron saucepan. Which looks really ‘great’ when you walk in the door.

dear sir i am heaving 1 Gray Perrot 2 Green Nepali Green Perrots,i want to toys,so let me know in India Mumbai we will gate Perrot TOYS,gv me full detail(address),best rgds Anil Udeshi

Baby Mac – my conure – loves to ring bells – he goes from toy to toy ringing the bells. Since I introduced him to bell toys, he simply rings a bell when he wants my attention and no longer screams. I would much rather hear a bell than a scream, and I can always tell when he wants to play.

i was worried about the same…she never uses the toy we get…Thank you for these information…

My 29 tear ikd tekkiw bae tgat U gave gad subce ge wasUnder six month old, decided to pluck all of his featrhers off of his chest. Then started n the edges of his wings. It was time for him to be cliipped and when I took him in, his groomer suggested he should have a bowl of water, other
than his drinking water. He has one of those large standing cages, so I bought him a large ceramic flat bowl with straight sides that I now call his swimming pool. It’s even kind of kidney shaped. He has stopped pulling out feathers, but he refuses to get into the pool. Should I force him into it.> To transport him from place to place, I use a piece if dowling, I could use that to
put him into the pool. Is that a good or bad idea? I take him to the shower with me and he loves to stand on the enclosure when I wash my hair the water sprays on him, and he sings and loves
it. I would also like him to use his new swimming pool too. What’s your thought on this?Thanks,
diane.adler@verizon.net

i dont think so according to my exprence birds mostly like those toy which he/she could put in his mounth and run around so what do you think

my gray is affraid of the toy that i gave it to him.

I useful insight – and I’ll definitely be trying the toilet roll middle!

Over time, I have discovered lots of inexpensive toys that my Citron Crested Cockatoo, Quincey , really likes.Her favorites are baskets and other wicker or rattan objects. I wire these to her platform-type cage door, after first getting her used to them by placing them close to her cage for a few days. She shreds most of them until they are all gone. Each one will last her for days or even weeks, depending on their size. She’s busy and happy, and I’m happy because each one only costs 50 cents or a dollar, and every garage sale, flea market or dollar store has many available. Just don’t get ones that have any kind of glitter, wires etc. She also loves to shred chicken bones (which is a good indication of just how strong these birds’ beaks are)! I boil them first, and keep them in the freezer until I give her one, just to make sure there is no problem with bad bacteria. And she recently learned to string pony beads onto a cord, apparently by watching me string some for her! Holding the cord and bead with her claw, she will use her beak to push the cord in halfway, then pull it the rest of the way through. She will string one, pull the cord through it a little way, then pull the bead off and start again. These “toys” are really inexpensive and give her lots to do – I hope these ideas will be helpful for other bird owners and their birds. (But I still have to cover the furniture!)

My Galah loooves her treasure chest – she gets the blocks out & has a chew on them – I’ve replaced the blocks sooo many times – it’s like a tupperware kids shape thinging but a treasure chest shape

What is a preening toy?

I use 3 plastic straws tied tightly at one end to make them flair out,hang a few inches over perch,,loved in 9 out of 14 cages and cheap

My bird is scared of everything.. it takes her a few days to a week before she will go near them! we bought her from a pet store as a baby im not sure if she was ever abused or anything but sometimes she acts like it.. how can i help this?

I always try to find what toys my fids like.
This article certainly telling me am heading to the correct direction and give me new idea to make toys from my serounding

thanks! A great article that I would love to share with my fellow bird lover friends!!

What is a preening toy? Examples please!

Thanx for the advice on toys for parrots, it really helped me to pick out toys that my african grey is not scared of and now he really enjoys them instead.

I have seven frats of different sizes (U2 to lovebird) each in their own large 4m x 2m flight. They like nothing better than big old olive branches with stuff hung on – to reduce the timber to splinters asap and to unhook and chuck on the floor all the hanging bits. They never even look at the toys….

I need help with my birds I have two lovebirds and all they do is just hit each other:$ could that mean their bored. Someone help me plZ thanks u

thanks for the info, im wondering though for a baby conure if he would be smart enough for puzzle toys and complicated foraging toys? he likes his toys when i play with him but doesnt seem to want to play alone. I hope he grows into them still:) hes only 4 months old.
I cant stop buying for the little guy and spoiling him!

Where can I find these toys?

Can I plait some palm leaves for my cockatiels to break up and shread?

Great article. We have two White Belly Caiques. Every time we go to a pet shop we purchase new toys for them. Leather strap toys and bells are the favorite hanging toys for them. Hard plastic cat toys with bells and wood balls are favorite floor toys. The rope pull toys for dogs are also great hanging toys. I made a barbell with a short piece of dowel rod and two wood end caps. “Sunshine” loves to lay on her back and “lift” weights. The rope perches in wrapped in loops are great fun for playing “bat”. One caution about bells…. The round “jingle” bells are not advised for birds that use feet while playing. The open slots can trap a toe and even cut one off. So beware.

YOU ARE WONDERFUL PERSON WITH BIRDS OF ALL KINDS. ” TOYS ARE THE BEST YOU EVER INVENTED”,THEY LOVE IT! THANK YOU FOR ALL THE INFO. AND YOUR DEDICaTION TO TEACH THE NEW AV. OWNERS.
BABY BIRD CHICO

Fred’s, (my African Grey that I’ve had since 1969) favorite toys are carboard egg cartons & also, solid metal jar lids.
Next in line are untreated fruit branches ie apple, plum.
…and of course the ever present mirrors & bells.

When we got our first bird, we thought he didn’t like toys. He didn’t play with anything we first bought. After going to several bird shops, I found some different colors, shapes and styles. I just kept buying different things and like you mention, I hit the right type of toy. For our conure, it was foraging toys. If you can hide something inside of another toy, he will spend hours trying to remove it. This is a great tip. Keep up the informative articles.

Just a note: be careful giving your bird fabric! Make sure there are no frayed ends. My lovebird wrapped a thread around one of her toes and nearly lost that toe.

My cockatiel still does not play with toys and I’ve had him for over 6 years. He is terrified and hisses at them. The only thing he really loves is a basket I gave him that is big enough for him to walk into and sleep. He chews the inside and eventually I’ll have to get him a new basket, but it was only a couple of dollars and he gets so much from it. I believe that his previous home (I got him from a shelter so not much info on his previous home) had multiple birds in his cage and he was not allowed to play with the toys because the other birds wouldn’t let him. He also has issues with food.

i totaly agre ewith youontoys would love to seewhat toys you have for sale throughyour toy club i live in the uk and we seem to have few choices when it comes to parrot toys plenty of wood ropy cloth things quite expensive to need more foraging chew up an educational fair priced toy i dont mind buying these things but do grudgingly object to to pay 20 pounds or more for something that will be chewed up with in afew hours so would be most gratefullif you know where to get resonable priced toys i have tried to join your toy club and would most certianly do so if possible notsure if this is theright place to write this mail and apologise now thanks for the info

i have my hand raised quaker on a pellet diet, he has never had seed of any sort, i am afraid if i try these forging activities he will loose interest in his pellets, i did try the v-8 fusion and he loved it, however, i will only do this occassionaly so he will not think it replaces his food.

I don’t even have one of those toys! I need to buy them…

Thank you so very much for taking your time to share this! I really obtained great insight.

sorry me again ii would love to know where you got the toys inthis link my african grey would love them

wow!
thanx

I have four sun conures that all live together. they have their smaller ‘on the back porch’ cage
for eary morning of pellets and fruit. They can be very noisy as they call out to all the wild birds.
If I have a guest and want to keep them quiet, I insert those cheap small dog bones into the cage wires, usually about 8 of them.They have so much fun tearing them up then they go for the bigger pieces that have fallen into the bottom.
After morning they go to their uncaged tree in the family room where they tear into raw peanuts in the shell. I will sometimes hang a wicker basket from the tree (my friends save them for me) they
will spend long happy hours tearing it up. Of course it’s a huge mess but I get used to the daily clean up. In their larger (quiet,away from the family) cage where they eat their dinner and calm down for the evening.I have a couple thick nylon (boat) ropes strung across in the cage. They like to wipe their beaks off on it after eating and will enjoy down time just tearing at it but it never breaks. It just gets fluffy in chew areas. Yes, these birds control my life but luckely I work from my home.

Good article! I seem to have no problem with toys though. My Nanday loves any toy, so much in fact, that she gets quite aggressive when we move them or take them out. I wonder if she is overly attached to them. She rubs her head on the toys, shows some “feeding” behavior and whispers sweet nothings!
We have only had her for a couple of months and have no clue to his/her past. She was found in a yard, rescued, quarantined and examined by a vet and placed with us after trying to find the owners.
I worry sometimes that she/he will be unable to bond very well with us but I also know how important these toys are.
Any ideas fellow bird lovers?

LOL…I figured out early in my African Grey, Bogie’s, life the kind of toys he preferred… wood/chewables most defititely…How?…Well, he would climb onto the back of the kitchen chairs where my girls did their homework each evening. He would then proceed to reach around and “help” them with their homework by first snipping off the erasers of their pencils. Then, if he couldn’t pull the pencil out of their hands, he would sneak under their arm and pull the piece of paper out from right under them! When they went to school and told the teacher “My mom’s parrot tried to eat my homework,” they had proof! So, in addition to buying/making him toys, I’d bring home dozen-packs of pencils all his own.

Some toys require showing the bird how it works. I got a small ball for my parolette. He just looked at it. Then I starting playing a game with him, rolling it around in his play pen. back and forth we would do it. Now the bird loves to play with the ball solo. He looks like a soccer player pushing that ball all around the cage.

Thank you for the toy info. I have a yr. old, Eclectus female. She isn’t very interested in her toys. But loves her play gym, and crawling all over her cage. But I worry about her getting bored, when I am at work. So these, are all great ideas. I like the idea of incorporating natural instinct, such as foraging, and shredding. Thanks!!

Thank you for the information. I am a first time owner and I found this interesting and helpful.

I wrote something very similar a couple of years ago myself.
http://webspace.webring.com/people/tr/riversandreefs/bird.htm

my harlequin destroys everything in minutes… what to do?

My conure has a foot/shoe fetish…and she LOVES purses!!! I have an old leather bag that she LOVES….I just lay it on top of her cage when I know I’ll have to work overtime to keep her occupied. She likes hiding her other toys, food, etc. In it. I also made her a toy/perch out of an old hiking boot…and tied bells and beads on the laces…I also hide food under the laces. She plays with these home made toys MUCH more than her store bought ones.

I found that my African Gray George loves to shred phone books. I remove the color pages and cover and he goes to work on it.
Barbara

Hey were did that foraging toy come from? i never saw one like that before. I think my B&G would like it. Were can I find it? The last picture.

i have two cockatiels, male. they love to play in the 12 pack soft drink boxes although they get a bit aggressive around the boxes.

i bought a “tunnel” made of wicker/willow from the hamster section of the local pet store. my boys are destroying this item. they can’t rip it apart fast enough

i also bought a woven grass tent/mat from the hamster section. the boys perch on the apex of it and tear it apart from top to bottom.

they have their incage toys. they expecially like toys with bells. lots of aggression gets worked on ringing these bells.

jim

Hi,
Bells are a favorite of my African Grey “Fionna”, but it is so confusing to know which ones are safe, both the bell and clapper made from safe metals? Can’t really trust pet stores, or from China?
Please if you could speak to this and list what metals are safe to buy? I know stainless steel is but they dont; make bells from it.
Janet Robbins
Cape Cod Ma.

these tips are WONDERFUL!!! my conure loves to put anything in her mouth and i’m not always sure of the safety … this definitely gives me some parameters. as always, the information you share is terrific!!!

Lol AWESOME!! My Eclectus gets HOURS of fun from her new favorite toy, which is a roll of paper from the newsagent (non-toxic, but kinda like eftpos machine rolls in width,) on a wire with plastic beads and rope hanging from either side. She rips up the paper, and even drags it into her nesting box, shreds the long strand, kicks it all out and starts again. Easy to make, cheap to replace the paper, and i plan to alternate this with other toys like swings that i have taken out for the time being. Just made a mini version for our green cheek and after 3 hesitant days, he has only just decided its safe… He’s more of a preener so definately will try the straws on him next!! Cheers for the awesome post.

One note of caution: My bird was into chewing holes in my shirts so I hung an old washcloth in her cage in an attempt to distract her from my clothing. She loved it! She was having a blast chewing one corner to shreds. One day I heard repeated fluttering coming from her cage….not a sound I usually hear. She had gotten a string of fabric wrapped around her neck & couldn’t get loose. A string of fabric wrapped tightly around a leg can cut off circulation & permanently lame a bird also.
One question: Is the pitch in pine wood safe for a bird to chew? I would think it might be toxic.

Wine Boxes, My Sun Conyour loves em and it keeps her busy all day long just shredding out the inside

My bird “Brody” loves Dixie Cups.I have attached some to a keyring and hung them outside the cage for him and also just tossed them in the bottom…Is fun to watch him lay on his back playing with the cups and sometimes he will even run around with one over his head. He also likes “chopsticks”. But, his all-time favorite is a ball made of tight, this rope that he chews to shreds eventually and it looks like a ball of hair; then he walks under the chain it hangs from and lets the ball roll over his back like a massage (smile). I never yell at him, but shake my finger at him when I mean business. He will run to hide next to his ball, so I know thinks it loves him as much as he loves it.

Thanks Chet. Your article was informative and funny.
Bill

I am owned by an African Grey who loves to shred ANYTHING she can get her beak on, but I read that because of chemicals used in the processing, it is not safe to give paper and toilet rolls to birds or animals. THEY COULD BECOME VERY SICK OR EVEN DIE FROM THE POISENOUS CHEMICAL. I find little ratten balls for dogs are great shreddable toys. I use a lot of dog toys for Tessa. I figure if they are safe for dogs, they wont hurt her. Also toys for gerbals,homsters, &guinea pigs are good., but don’t last very long. What is a preening tool? A suggestion for the person who was tring to get the bird to get into its “pool” Put just enough water in the pool to barely cover the bottom, put a few of her favorite treats in the bottom , then go away, She will check it out faster if no one is watching.. You can gradually , over several days, very slowly increase the amount of water. Do it very slowly or you could scare her and she will never go in again. Thanks to Chet for all the wonderful things he does for birds and the people they own.

Yours truly, kathleen .

I buy individually wrapped infant teething cookies and cereal bars and put them in the cage unwrapped. Half the fun for my bird is in opening them. Also, I buy the plastic balls for cats with the openings and I put 10 oyster crackers in one ball and it keeps her very busy taking each cracker out!

I’d also like some examples of preening toys.

My two love old running shoes. It’s a bit gross I guess, but my senegal had his eye on my favourite old Nikes for months–he nearly keeled over with excitement when I finally let him have one (I did clean it up first) and he’s spent about eight weeks cheerfully pulling it apart, sleeping in it, swinging on it, and defending it from the budgie next door. Actually I think he’s spent more time playing in it than I did running in it!

Just another reminder that new toys should be introduced one at a time into the cage so that if there is a reaction (allergy) you know which toy did it!

Very helpful! The article & the comments…… My suggestions – wooden tongue depressors, raw nuts in the shell depending on the bird, I give my bird almonds which most of the time he can open himself. I will also give him pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts, small Brazil nuts when I can find them. After a few days I’ll crack it open so he can get to the nut but in the mean time he enjoys playing with them, In the ferret section of 1 store I found willow twigs which my parrot loves to chew up. He used to love the “fruit flavored” pieces of wood you can buy for parrots. Since I changed him to an organic pellet diet that doesn’t have any dyes in it he won’t play with any of the wood that has the dye in it. I never thought about going & getting a piece of untreated pine lumber & cutting it up for him. That’s solved a problem for me because those were his favorite toys. Thanks for all the good suggestions.

I have a female e Blue and Gold she doesnot like the plastic toys. She does love all the shredders,cardboard boxes,paper [not paper with ink]. I do go the Home Depot and get pine wood scraps fro her to chew on. Her favorite toy was the one sent with a tape I had ordered from you with colored tubes and lotsof shredding stuff. Not sure what it is really made of. Lots of baby toys from the baby section. Little rubber rinds and etc. Thanks for yoyr articles they are very helpful. Remember all no chocolate or avacados for your birds.

Is very important one toy for my parrot,But today my new hobby is reptails,Thanks

Linda: preeming toy is a toy that has like cotton srings hanging out. They love to chew on these. It replaces their desire to preen as birds in the wild do to each other. It works sort of like a pacifer. I also shower with my Blue and Gold. I do not let her in the bottom of her cage. I keep newspapers in the bottom and change them everyday. It really cuts down on the poop. I also do put in old rags and etc. in for her to chew on. Sometimes her cage looks like she is a bag lady, but so what she loves to chew on clothing. Always be careful it is not something they can get tangled in. I play with her alot. She spends alot of time on my shoulder. I do housework with her hanging to me. It works great. There are alot of things you can do to make your bird part of your family. I have seen so many birds that spend their lives just sitting in the cage and how would you like to sit on a stick all day. Oh well I really enjoy my bird.

My Congolese Gray will be 25 in November. Loves to chew in the cord perch and also to play and chew on a dog rope I got for a dollar at Wal-Mart. I boiled it before giving it to him, and every time I clean the cage.
The thing is he was given a golf ball by a friend and I placed it in the cage over a little towel, he loves to sit next to it at night. Do you think I may have a female? He, or she, is very protective of the little golf ball and very aggressive when I take it out (weekly) to clean the cage. Anything he shreds I trim weekly to avoid accidents.
In general he loves to cuddle as a dog or cat would but, gets nasty when I go on trips, biting throwing food in the floor and destroying everything he can, even for a week after I return…is this normal?

thanks birdtricks you are the best parrot caring information 4 my 2 cockatiels!!!!!!!! keep it up

I always thought the best toys were the ones they destroyed the fastest. I then started making my own and would test which ones worked best. Grape vine is a good one and solid white calculator paper was another favourite (on the roll). Simple lunch brown paper bags filled with good stuff and paper. Their are lots of good ideas out their if you would like to share.

For the many people who asked about preening toys, these include: Shredded ropes, straw (the type that grows outside and also the plastic sip-your-drink type), leather strands (untreated and undyed), shreaded burlap (not dyed), coconut ‘grass’ (the ‘fuzz’ that grows on the outside of a coconut), natural yarn (i.e. 100% cotton and not dyed), etc. Preening toys allow your bird to practice preening. This article had some great suggestions!

I don’t like preening toys. I gave my old eclectus Mac one thatt was a rope swing with short fibres that hung down below it. Any new toy should be supervised and he’d played with it for a good 20 hours under supervision so I thought the toy was safe.
Last summer, we had a terrible heat wave and I was called out to emergency animal rescue work for Australian Wildlife. I was getting 12 rescue jobs every hour so I was literally stuck in my car going from job to job. I knew my birds were inside out of the heat but I was seeing so many distressed animals that it got me thinking so I dropped in to home for a few minutes just to double check.
The heat wasn’t a problem but I found Mac hanging from his neck caught in one of the fibres of his swing. He had tangled one leg trying to get free. The other was frantically clawing at his neck.
If I had been even 1 minute later – I would have been too late to save him.
Beware the preening toys – even the shortest fibres can catch a claw.

I have a blue and gold macaw who is very particular about his toys. I have to take him to the store with me, and let him pick them out. His favorite toys are bells. He really enjoys ringing the bells. He doesn’t like chewing much though.

I have a two year old peach faced Conjure and she is definitely a shredder. What she enjoys most is when I take a small ball with holes in it, her favorite toy, and tie it to her perch, or cage with knots. The more knots the better. She will sit there for as long as it takes to untie the knots till its free. Then she will throw it on the floor and let me know she wants me to tie it back up.

One of the best shredding toys my Congo Greys love are the small-sized phonebooks. I just open them, then slip them through a couple of bars. The shredding activity is good for about a week. My Quakers seem to enjoy a small-sized newspaper tucked through the bars the same way. Messy, messy fun!
Michele

I totally disagree with giving your bird anything made of cloth. When my Cockatoo was three she had to have a very expensive operation to save her life. She had cloth from a rope toy lodged in her gullet and she almost died. The Vet who operated on her said it was a common occurance and they shouldn’t have cloth toys and their covers shouldn’t be within reach because they can swallow it.

Thx 4 the info. It seems my parrotlet is like a cat, whatever is around the house is fine. An empty tissue his, toilet paper roll, power towels n puzzle pieces. The fabric idea is great. He likes to suck on my shirts when I am petting him. Again thx.

Thx 4 the info. It seems my parrotlet is like a cat, whatever is around the house is fine. An empty tissue box, toilet paper roll, paper towels n puzzle pieces. The fabric idea is great. He likes to suck on my shirts when I am petting him. Again thx.

I line all of my bird cages with pieces of cardboard that has no glue of writing on it. They all love to shred it, play peed a boo, and use it for nesting materials. I give them other toys as well, but the cardboard works for my sun conures, budgies, McCaw, Goffins, Eclectus, and cockaties.

Re-use is a great idea which I found out when my bird emptied the insides of one treat/toy (which I could actually afford) so I kept it, stuffed the bottom with shredded paper bags (a new use for the office shredder) and then filled with pelleted food. Once I put fruit in it and another time a dab of peanut butter and parrot mixed seeds. When the original wore out I replaced it with a new duplicate and repeat the filling process. This girl doesn’t scream for attention anymore and I’ve found she only shrieks when something is threatening to her. (Then I always come running!) A happy parrot is such a joy. She even talks more and instead of shrieking she now talks to me when I enter the room when she wants attention.

Hi we always use untreated wood pieces for chewing, brown paper bags for foraging & treats wrapped in brown paper, its amazing how even very old parrots pick it up really quikly, it improves their behaviour I think by encouraging natural behaviours & releasing pent up frustration, giving excercise to perch potatoes & allowing your bird to act like a parrot should act, toys are an essentail to them living comfortably in captivity they are not a luxury, toys need to be changed often to keep up interest & observe how they act with their toys, its great to see a parrot really going for it o a new toy or a new destructable.
Tracy Bolton Founder Companion Parrots Care & Rescue

I really like this article. I have a Jenday Conure that is about ten years old. Last year his “girlfriend”, a cockatiel, died and he had a hard time. His cage is in the kitchen area by a window looking out the backyard/pool area. Everyone calls him the “watch bird” because anything
or anyone that comes near the back of my house he lets me know. He even let me know when my four pound Yorkie fell in the pool!!!
The othe day I heard him screaming in a tone I was not familiar . I went to his cage and found that a toy that had been destroyed but still was in the cage. He had gotten his foot caught and he was just hanging because he could not get his foot out. He let me lift him up to get his foot out-he was now one happy bird!! I do realize how much these birds like the toys in their cages and just how much weas owners need to make sure they are safe for them as long as the toys are in the cage.
I really enjoy your bird information.

Is it safe to give a cockatiel white paper to shred? I’m just afraid he might ingest the small bits od paper. What is a good example of a sfae shredding toy for a cockatiel?

these are really good toys

Does anyone talk about budgies?I have 3 and they’re a joy! They like ladders,swings with rope, they crawl thru them to transport themselves at times from one to another Any other suggestions wouls be appreciated.

My Double Yellow Headed Amazon (Marley) loves his toys. He has several in his cage. I don’t give him bells as he is able to chew the inside piece off. I’m afraid of him swallowing any metal. When I put a new toy in his cage he comes over (getting in the way) and says “that’s good, That’s good.” We save all the toilet paper tubes for him. They last about 10 minutes. He entertains us for hours swinging on his plastic chains and bopping his hanging toys.

DOES ANY1 HAVE A COCKATOO WITH PBFD – BEAK AND FEATHER DISEASE? HAS ANY1 EVER HAD A COCKATOO THAT HAS RECOVERED FROM PBFD, BEAK AND FEATHER DISEASE?
IF SO CAN U PLEASE CONTACT ME AT; samantha_kobiela@hotmail.com
ID REALLY APPRECIATE IT!

THANKS GUYS.

I gave my kockatoos a corn on the cob ment to be for gerbils. They had a blast taking it apart

I have two cockatoos and two sun conures love running up and down their cage different parts of the day. All four love their wooden bird boxes that they stay in from time to time. Most of all they all love chewing on wood. I recomend using only fruit tree or oak wood for them to chew on. You could try cutting some pieces up, drilling center holes in the middle of them and using tie wire to string them together and hanging them on the side or in the middle of the cage with a small bell attache on the bottom. They love ringing the bell especially when they want to get you attention.

Thanks for the good ideas with basic things we have at home. We have a Goffin’s cockatoo and he is very mechanical. He always unscrews the screws from his food and water bowls on his perch and is always figuring out how to open latches and hooks. What type of toys would you suggest for him?

I have a love bird and he likes to take the bell off his swing. I don’t know how he does it cause I have a time getting it back on.

I feel so great now about all the destroyed toys. Thanks!

Hi Maria,
There are toys made with nuts and bolts for them to screw and unscrew to their hearts delight. Also check out foraging toys that require unscrewing bolts to get to the food.
Patty

My African Grey Parrot Shango absolutely loves new toys, especially puzzle toys which he works out within a day so I am constantly on the look out for new things to keep him entertained. He is not even one yet and is extremely intelligent.

Thanks, Patty. I will look for those types of toys. I’m sure he will enjoy them. Any good links for these toys?

My conure Barry just loves to shred things..loo roll …great fun. Hiding peanuts in the plastic type balls with holes in ..cheap and cheerful but great fun. Cat balls with the bells in go down well. Barry picks them up and drops them into a pot a hold up. All this thanks to your training DVD. He was a nightmare before we started trick training.. He also travels too and from my caravan and adapts well now. It keeps his mind busy changing environment. THANKS YOU GUYS…YOUR GREAT. Jo England

Great ideas! Thanks for sharing. I did notice a peanut in the last one, and just want to remind you all of the dangers of peanuts…the fungus that can have in them is a killer…I lost 2 birds to it.
Paulette

I have a breeder that is really old fashioned…she has me scared to death about glues, metal parts, putting them outside for their shower ..the list goes on…she is great in the purchasing process of our companions,,,can take several months and many visits while the bird is still weening…how do I know what is really safe? I have a blue throated macaw, (forager and mechanical —very proud that he can remove the doors from his cage Grrrr) – black headed caique (shredder and 10 other things) and a pionus (likes almonds but is a perch potato even when out of cage) they are my kids so they are spoiled…but I know I am not meeting all their needs.

My umbrella was wanting the new Gallardo spyder and an inside/outside pool.

Mine I already knows likes to chew holes in my shirts!

Hi there
My African Grey is petrified of any new toys I introduce to him. I have used it in the way prescribed by hanging outside the cage,etc then when I eventually put it inside he is not interested! Any tips

My bird is a small lovebird and if I buy him a new toy he will love the toy more then me.I will try 2 take him out of his cage 2 play with him but he will just bite me and just want 2 play with the toy.So i dont know what to do?

Hi Kathy,
It sounds like your breeder errs on the side of caution. I like that she takes the time to educate her bird’s new owners and ween her birds slowly- it sounds like you have a great, responsible breeder. Safety is much more the use of common sense than it is old fashioned, nothing has changed in terms of what is safe for parrots. It’s hard, though, to be sure. The best advice I can give you in selecting things that are safe for parrots is to use that common sense. If you suspect your birds can remove unsafe parts from a toy, like a bell clapper, it probably can. Like children, they can get into anything, it’s just that some choose not to, until the one day that they do. Take a look around from a bird’s perspective, and from their eye level from the cage and on the ground. You’ll be surprised at what they see.
Patty

HI, I have one bird who loves preening toys.
One is a big bunch of strings with a little bell in the middle with a wire holding it all together, another is sort of a straw like material that pokes out of a bunch of woven rattan woven stuff, another is a bunch of little straw like rings dangling with a type of very simple cotton soft rope which he can unwind and plull individule strands apart. They fuss and preen these for hours at a time some days.

HI, I have one bird who loves preening toys.
One is a big bunch of strings with a little bell in the middle with a wire holding it all together, another is sort of a straw like material that pokes out of a bunch of woven rattan woven stuff, another is a bunch of little straw like rings dangling with a type of very simple cotton soft rope which he can unwind and plull individule strands apart. They fuss and preen these for hours at a time some days.

i used some cardboard and shoe string, some old keys, and a baby bell and made a hanging toy and thats all my bird plays with. its a inexpensive toy to make, and u can say you made it!(-:

I have a 3 year old Green Cheek Conure named Reyna (Tagalog word, meaning Queen). She loves to forage. We noticed that she loves a small keychain stuffed animal. She’ll be doing something else, then casually reach up and yank on that toy to get it swinging, then she’ll go back to what she was doing. She loves taking apart plastic bead jewelry too.
And, I learned yesterday, she loves crawling through my pockets on my hoodie (the kind with the pocket that is connected).

She has an assortment of toys, that we try to rotate evry now and then.
The ideas you presented here will go a long way towards keeping her happy and occupied.
Thanks.

Robert
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan

Hi. My African Grey just loves his bell and the wooden pegs and the toilet roll inner. I’m a bit scared of giving him anything plastic like a plastic cotton reel or plastic straws. How can I be sure that he does not swollow the plastic? My “grey” is 20 months old.

Thanks !

Helen (South Africa)

I HAVE FOUND A VERY NEAT AND INEXPENSIVE TOY!
One you make yourself from brightly colored biased tape, sewing section, large brightly colored buttons, at Wal Mart, wood pieces, from the pet store or your own wood working left overs, plain no stains or paints, and plastic beads & hand quilting thread, Wal Mart, this thread type is very strong and needed against our birds strong beaks.
You design it yourself, ie.; wood, buttons, beads, buttons, wood and so forth. Starting and ending with wood pieces will lengthen the toys’ life, they are short life toys, but just make two each time you’re making and you’ll be one ahead of your bird. When sewing the buttons and beads, sew them back to back, this makes them harder to destroy. Have fun creating and watching your bird have fun with his/her new toy!

Hey Cynthia!
Sounds like a great toy! Thanks for sharing your tip!
Patty

is it safe for a red bellied parrot to chew up a hard plastic cat toy ball with a bell in it. mine will destroy one and loves it. hoping he doesn’t ingest any of the pieces. i dont think he eats any of it, but it does worry me.it keeps him busy for hours destroying it.

Hi Robin,
The problem with the bells they put in the cat toys is that they have those slots in them where toes, beaks and tongues get caught. If your bird doesn’t break open the toy to get to the bell, then fine. Just be aware that he could be injured if he does get the bell out.
Patty

i have two quaker parrots and the male loves to build things like a nest or shelf with coffee stirring sticks from Starbucks. I have 2000 of them and have incredible pictures of what he has done. My 5 year old female finally, this year, has started building also, in the past she would walk around the entire cage with a stick in her mouth bobbing her head up and down……as he, in his cage, was building away. This year, she finally did it herself, but in a totally different way. He uses the bars to get started and uses both ends of the stick. She uses only one end, and has created a beautiful ‘landslide’ that twists and turns around some baby toy rings and 100% cotton rope. It’s beautiful. He will at times, go into her cage and rearrange the sticks. And she will go on top of his cage as he is inside and they work together, with her on the top and he on the inside. there are a riot to watch. STICKS from Starbucks, cotton rope from a fabric store, and baby teething rings from Walmart or wherever. cheap toys and let them go at it.

My bird Rio likes bells. He likes the sounds that they make. He wears them as hats. He bangs them into the side of his cage. I have several different sizes.

U inputs are very helpful and have helped me make my inr parrot a happy guy.

Parrot toys r available in mumba India. There is a pet store in bandra on waterfield road. Do update r anil udeshi.

I am afraid to give my Conure Green Cheek paper towels, tissues, toilet paper and kind of soft paper like that because I don’t know if he would choke on it? He also likes to chew at my hair, is this ok, will it hurt him? He likes to “suckle” on fabric and me, is it ok to give him fabric? I am alittle of nervous of giving him things because I don’t want to harm him. Any help is appreciated!

Hi Geraldine,
The paper products you mentioned are a fun toy for all birds and I wouldn’t worry about it being a choking hazard. Just make sure to scrape off any glue from the rolls. Fabric is a material birds seem to really enjoy, but there are dangers involved if the fabric becomes too frayed.
Patty

my grey african parrot took her stomch feathers off shes got a bold big pach. can some one pleasr tell me what to do please.

Hi Nazia,
Plucking is a difficult problem. Please read this article: http://www.birdtricks.com/blog/feather-destructive-behaviors/. There is a lot of info to help you understand plucking and how to go about finding a solution. However, it is not always possible to stop it once it has begun. I hope this is helpful for you.
Patty

thank you for the great info on bird toys. I know that my grey loves his rubber ball with a bell inside.
I would like to get some more. michelle