Bother The Birds

No Drill Toy  and No Drill Wreath by J.K. Oldner at the Frugal Parrot.

Kim's Fishnet by Kim at    
If you would like to order
a Fishnet for one of your
birds email Kim.


When you click to see the Fishnet instructions you will see this site.

Here are some other great ideas you can find on this site.
Nancy's Better Coconut Tree                 

The sections are:

Thoughtfully Arranged Environment

About Foraging Stations

Treasure Bags

For Our Feather Picking Birds

Toy Combinations

Activities

 

 

Naomi’s Foraging and Enrichment Ideas for Your Bird

 

PLEASE take the time to determine which toys are safe for YOUR bird.

Some suggestions might be delightful for a moluccan, yet be a true danger to a conure-

These were simply 'suggestions', offered in the spirit of sharing ideas that have helped us.

Thoughtfully Arranged Environment for Your Parrot

Feeding stations: How much of his food will you be serving him in his actual 'bowl' vs. how much needs to be part of his foraging activities?

The more foraging he does, the happier he'll be.

There's something about rooting around and finding a favored 'prize' that just puts a smile on their beaks!

It's fascinating to me that the same stuff that receives a beak's-up when in a bowl, gets gobbled-up when 'discovered' tucked inside a wadded-up piece of paper.

Would a foraging station on the floor of his cage entice him to use his entire 'home'?

 Or would he be more likely to enjoy climbing all about, checking out  several puzzle toys (with useless junk mixed in with part of his breakfast) 

and small snack bowl bolted onto the side of his cage? 

A puzzle-wheel for his dry food? Placed where it drops into his dry-food bowl.

A metal hanging cage for carrots/nuts/Shredded Wheat chunks? 

The pyramid puzzle for grapes? Tubes to hide millet sprays? 

Clear deli containers or Gladware containers for soft foods?

There are so many fabulous products for your bird to 'work' for his food. 

Keep his natural preferences for activity in mind when you first set these things up. 

Any places you can make available to: Clip some leafy greens, a sorghum-spray, a rawhide chewy? 

From his known activity, would the ceiling of his cage be more 'fun'? Near the floor more accessible?

Does your bird accept a 'Lix-it'-style water bottle? Juices? More than one drinking 'station' might be possible, with differing

'drinks' offered. 

Stationary cage furniture: Is your bird a climber? A swinger? A rope-grabber? A sedentary perch-sitter? 

Where does he prefer to sit when contemplating Politics & the Universe? 

He needs varied things for his feet: 

A simple rope, wrapped in soft cloth perhaps, tied from one side of his cage to the other. like in front of his food bowls 

or across the back of his cage, so he can amble along picking at the cool wall-toys. A very wide perch, or platform, for resting his toes maybe for napping?

 A diagonal branch, 'growing' from a floor corner up to the top of the cage if he's a

climber-type. A swing or a Boing or rope ring for some in-cage exercise? 

Keeping variety in mind, determine your bird’s preferences for types of 'chairs', and as you place his furniture in the new cage.

How well your bird be able to get from one corner to the other? How well can your bird access foraging puzzles?

 Should you include a cubby for your bird to hide in? One of those triangular sleepy-teepee things? Or a small cardboard box wired to a side cage wall? 

And don't forget that perch attached to his door! A 'Come-on-Out' perch is a wonderful tool to 'tell' if your bird wants 

to come & play or just be left alone. It also will help your bird in his climb-arounds from one side of his 

cage to the other. 

If you change your bird’s furniture when you do your major cage-cleaning, you might want to consider buying many 

different types of perches, and swapping them out each time.  We have two 'sets' for our guys, which I personally think is plenty. They're all different 

Hanging Toys: Is he a chewer? A preener? A puzzle-type? Only a couple of toys hanging from his ceiling are really necessary, but make them ones he will enjoy! 

On the wall toys: You can attach a refillable abacus, a fancy busy box, a newspaper holder, or any fancy-store-bought things you think your bird will like.

  Or simply hang a rope across his back wall with silly items clipped to it. 

For Example:

a roll of adding machine tape, pure unbleached roll of toilet paper, knots of sisal rope, shoestring w/beads, unvarnished grapevine with nuts and other goodies tucked into it.

 The most important thing to keep in mind are your bird’s play preferences and how to safely meet those needs. 

Toy box: Just about anything can be a toy box! 

An open Fisher Price Farm with cheapie little goodies tucked on all the shelves 

A leftover baby wipe container (they look like giant Lego blocks) with hunks of cotton washcloths & wooden blocks and, of course- some edible things to.

A simple shoebox crammed with- well- STUFF. 

Keep in mind your bird’s dexterity & interests. 

Legos to pull apart? Enticing rattles? a baby mirror? Balls?

Check out the Goodwill or Value Village on half-price day. You'll be shocked what twenty bucks will buy.

Please wash ALL items thoroughly before using.

Dollar Store junk fills toy boxes really well, too. 

Swap the box out every day, and he'll never be blasé about it. 

Outside cage: Will your bird be allowed out to play ON his cage? A shepherd's hook placed on the outside of his cage will extend his play area even further.

If playing outside- on his cage- is legal in your family, a friend of mine recently told me of her discovery:

 Using the cage-'tray' as a fort! She puts her birds' cage papers on TOP of the grate, leaving the tray section clean and 'protected'. 

Her guys love poking around under there.

Your bird will spend at least 25% of its time looking for food and 

another 10-20% of its time rooting around in his toy box making an absolute mess. 

Then there's all that STUFF on the back wall. 

When will there be time to nap? 

 Thoughtfully Arranged Environment

Copyright 2003 by:  Naomi Zemont

About Foraging Stations

They're simply areas in which to snoop around, in hopes of finding something worth the snooping.

A metal cage-puzzle, hanging from the cage ceiling

One of those pyramid puzzles, with the different sized 

and shaped holes in them Treat dishes, bolted in different places in her cage 

Toy basket (one of those raw-willow craft-store baskets... the 'ugly' ones are usually 70% off!) with junk in it.

Anything from Fisher Price Little People to chunks of leather with beads tied on to plastic straws w/Q-Tips stuffed inside

 to nuts/pieces of dried fruits wrapped individually in newspaper tossed in.

Junk woven through the cage-bars: Carrots w/ their tops, fennel fronds, maple tree branches The ones with those little 'helicopters'... they have very delicious seeds!, 

celery, a whole head of Romaine lettuce- that type of thing. A grapevine wreath (from a craft store- with tiny twigs and dried leaves and stuff) with just about 

anything you can imagine stuffed into the crevices.

An actual foraging 'tray' can be made from anything with a 'lip' 

to it...

A shoebox lid? Yep.

A corning ware casserole dish? Sure.

A thrift store breakfast tray? My favorite!

(If you get one w/handles, use some mailing tape to seal the outside of the hole... and by taping the inside of the hole, 

you won't have a sticky residue to catch the litter)

We use the walnut-shell 'litter' that some bird stores sell to be used under the grates to catch droppings. Well, we all know 

that this method is dirty, breeds bugs (ewww!) and in general, causes more trouble and mess than it's worth... right?

Well, it's great as playsand for birds!

About an inch or two in one of these breakfast trays is all you need-And little pieces of enticing 'stuff' peeking out:

Millet sprays, pistachios, inedible (but very fun) pieces of cotton rope with beads, wadded up pieces of newspaper, a sprig of celery greens, legos...

What else?

Hmmm…

How about broken plastic straws w/ some sprouts stuffed inside? A hunk of birdie bread? Some pumpkin seeds? Barley? 

A few sunflower seeds in their beautiful striped shells.  Just think about it, and your bird's favorite things will come 

To mind, I promise.

The walnut-shell litter is an inert product, and is quite safe. At the end of the day, scoop out the leftover stuff/droppings (if any)...

And bake the litter at 350 for about 30 minutes to kill any bacteria that may have arisen from the droppings 

(again, if any... we've been shocked at the LACK of droppings in the foraging trays!)

It will turn dark in color, but won't 'burn' (not enough heat).

The whole idea of foraging is to occupy your bird's time as they search out their food- It's fun for them, 

and if given the opportunity to do so, they will often prefer 'working' for their food than being given a ‘free' bowl of breakfast. 

Please share with your friend that the origin of this idea comes Susan Loebl, very proud parront of Sir Rhett, A Very Handsome 

Grey. I've only embellished on her 'invention'. She uses a tray, and braids fabric for texture (washing it when needed!). 

Then she stuffs junk into the braids, under them.

I really think it's important to give credit for others' creativity, don't you agree?

Other Foraging Activities:

 Make a foraging tray: (Susan Loebl)

 Braid large hanks of pre-washed cotton fabric & lay the braids in a framed box (like a breakfast serving-tray)

 Tuck special little things into the braided folds

 Wash braids when soiled

 Variation: 

 Use container to 'fit' your bird (Corning Ware lasagna pan is my favorite, but any flattish pan will do)

 Fill with 1-2 inches crushed walnut-shell litter

 (That junk that's sold as 'cage litter'- lousy litter, but great play sand) 

Poke all kinds of junk into it: Small pebbles, big buttons & beads, shelled nuts, some of the 'stuff' listed above. 

Hide some things completely and let a few items poke enticingly through the surface.

 Place on floor of cage, away from main perching area (to minimize droppings from above).

 Use a kitty-litter scoop to lift out droppings that DO end up in the foraging tray.

 Sift out leftover & rejected junk every few days.

 Place litter in oven and bake at about 250 for about an hour to minimize hospitality for bugs and bacteria. 

The crushed walnut-shells will darken in the oven but it won't burn or catch fire. It's just not hot enough.

 About Foraging Stations

Copyright 2003 by:  Naomi Zemont  

Treasure Bags: 

 First get something to hold valuable junk-

 Child's paper lunch sacks

 Start begging extra tiny paper bags from the Hallmark stores.

 Small Gladware-type 'disposable' containers

 Small Deli containers

 Small condiment containers (from the delis and fast-food places)(Beg extras!)

 Film Canisters

 Old handkerchief tied Hobo-style

 Plastic cigar tubes

 Soft or hard clear plastic Bic pens (remove the ink cartridge)

 Valuable junk:

 Millet spray

 Q-Tips

 Popsicle sticks/wooden ice cream spoons

 Licorice Root stick

 Cinnamon stick

 Nuts 

 Seeds- special ones not given at dinnertime (pumpkin seeds, hemp seeds are nice examples)

 Dried unsulphured fruit or veggies

 Big Buttons

 Plastic soda tops

Plastic sunglasses (pack of 10 for $2 at Wal-Mart)

 Shoelace w/ knots and/or beads

Tip: Thrift Stores on half-price day-- Dollar Stores

 A hank of white terrycloth

 Strip of fabric ribbon w/ beads

Don't throw old tennis shoes away before cutting off the valuable part (the part w/ the eyes & laces!)

Don't throw away old shirts before cutting off the valuable parts(Cuff w/buttons, placket front with buttons- all

 buttoned up!)

 Stainless steel bolt w/nice, fat wing nut on it

 Rawhide Dog chewy

A cut-up wicker basket piece

 Plastic Little People

 Hank of cotton rope w/ a nice knot in the middle

 Hunk of dry corn husk (either dry your own or purchase in Mexican Section of your grocery)

 Nut wrapped in cloth w/ a knot

 A wad of newspaper

 Please add to the list from things your bird is intrigued with!

 Tie treasure 'bags' w/raffia, jute, or sisal string to add to the fun if you'd like.

 It also may help if your guy watches you as you make some of these up- and gets to see where they're stored too.

For our Feather Picking Birds

To mimic the 'feel' of cracking feathers:

 Plastic straws: Gather a bundle of 20 together & tie them in the center with a zip-tie. They'll pop out like a star, and the

 crunch mimics the crack of a feather sheath (200 for $1 at the good ol Dollar Store)

 A bundle of cornhusks (either home-dried or purchased from the Mexican Food Aisle of your local grocery)

 Raw spaghetti

 Q-Tips

 Celery Ribs

 Shoelaces (the tips!)

 Pony Beads strung onto shoelaces

 (Please observe your guy to assure s/he doesn't ingest these while breaking them off the lace)

Cuttlebone

 A Mega-Millet spray zip-tied to a wall of the cage(Warning: The 'cracking' of the millet eerily sounds JUST like a cracking feather)

Bundles of twigs

 Cinnamon sticks

 Grapevine wreath affixed to wall of cage or as a swing(Michael's Crafts sells the ones that are not treated or shellacked)

 Bic pens with the ink-barrel removed (soft or hard plastic)

 To mimic & help replace shredding/chevroning/pulling

 down/twizzling:

 Adding machine tape

 Toilet paper roll (from Health Food Store)

 Paper towel roll (from Health Food Store)

 Telephone books draped through the ceiling bars

 White terry washcloths, cut into strips

 Fennel fronds

 Dill Weed

 Celery leaves

 Carrots w/the frilly greens

 Fresh (untreated) tree branches with leaves left on

 Spiral-wound shoelace

 Wound-paper sticks www.rosespet.com

 Leather strings, tied in knots

 TUTT toy from www.rosespet.com

 Fuzzy-puff craft pom-poms (some have plastic tubes, for threading, in the center)

 Wine corks (wash in dishwasher before using as a birdie-toy)

 Our local restaurant saves them for us- free.

 Toy combination ideas:

 A whiffle ball stuffed with cornhusks, plastic straws that have a couple of Q-Tips pushed inside, a shoelace with beads,

 cinnamon sticks, and a few puffy pom-poms.

 Use a white thick cotton sock & stuff it like a pinata with some of the above items.

 Fill a hanging cage-puzzle treat-holder with some of the above items.

 Fill a Bic Pen with a Q-Tip and/or some millet.

 Stuff a grapevine wreath with some of the above items and maybe some nuts too.

 Cut telephone book into 1/3 chunks; drill hole in the corner; hang in cage. Idea from Shauna Roberts.

 Activity ideas:

 Consider feeding by 'foraging' only:

Hide all dry food in various areas of cage (letting the bird watch you 'hide' the items at first will help)

 Give small un-opened boxes of dry cereal (from Health Food Store) Attach greens to side or top of cage w/zip-ties

 Serve pellets or nut/seed mixes in puzzle wheel

 http://www.busybeaks.com/85006_maze.htm

Serve soft foods in a newspaper-wrapped food dish(Shauna Roberts)

 Serve hunks of fruit/vegetables threaded on a skewer; hang in cage

 Place well-loved tidbits in closed Gladware-style containers.

 Wrap nuts in wadded-up newspaper (Shauna Roberts).

 'Serve' an entire half-head of purple cabbage on the floor of the cage

 'Serve' a whole piece of fruit on the floor of the cage or hide it in their toy box.

 Float' grapes in a 'pool'(a flattish CorningWare quiche-style baking dish).

 Place additional clamp-on feeding bowls in unusual places within cage.

 Consider a Lix-It bottle attached to cage; filled with juice.

I know these ideas are just the Tip-of-the-Iceberg;

Please pass other ideas you may have stumbled upon and had success

with.

I hope these ideas inspire you,

 Naomi

    Copyright 2003 by:  Naomi Zemont 

 

Always be extremely careful when introducing your birds to new toys.

Please check out http://www.birdsafe.com/toys.htm for more in depth information.

 

Bird surprise packages                                                                    
Small Wreath Toy               
                                         
This toy is made with a 50 cent wreath. I also bought some raffia and a grab bag of buttons.
 Using a tapestry needle I threaded the raffia like sewing thread and wrapped it around
the wreath. I also sewedon buttons. My cockatiels and budgie love this toy.
The grey uses it for a foot toy.