Homemade toys???

[Cockatielsongs]

Can anyone tell me ideas on homemade toys for s? My loves the toys I make and I'm running out on new ideas.
Btw is it normal for a to not use their feet to hold toys, food etc?

[marie83]

Cockatiels don't use their feet as much as other species. In fact Harlie was the only one I've ever had who does so when I caught her holding food in her feet and eating like my conure I was quite shocked.
She must have copied Ollie as she definitely never did it before.

As for the toys I don't really know what to suggest as I don't know what you've already tried. Most of my cheaper ideas are more related to foraging.

You can make new toys out of old ones.

Egg cartons (unused of course) can be hung up, attached to side of the cage or put on the bottom. You can keep them intact or cut them into ''cups''- fill with a treat/shredded paper/small toys or whatever your bird enjoys.

Same can be done with those small dry fruit cartons (the snack sized ones) as with the egg cartons. Hang them up, fill them, attatch to other toys etc.

Bun cases or small pieces of plain paper can be used to wrap up pieces of dry food/small toys and placed around the cage.

Paper cups can be cut up to make 'tiel sized containers for foraging in. Again put them in the cage in a variety of different ways, hange them up, places them in food cups etc.

You can drill small holes in wooden toys to help encourage chewing behaviours. You can also stuff these holes with shredded paper or dry treats.

Coconut shells are good to make toys out of. So are pine cones but make sure you soak, dry them thouroughly then bake them to kill bacteria and remove any insects.

Kitchen roll tubes are good but some say the glues are not safe. You can create your own tubes by rolling plain cardboard up, putting small holes in the two ends and fastening them with leather strips.

The untreated willow balls you can buy for small rodents are brilliant for hanging in the cage, sliding over a perch etc. They are fairly cheap, fun to destroy and you can hide things inside them. Be warned that some pet shops sell them pre-filled with monkey nuts so double check before you buy.

Untreated sisal rope can be bought cheaply and used to make rope perches, cargo nets, ladders, swings, added to existing toys, hung up alone, used to hang other toys etc. (be cautious of small birds using any rope toys. Although sisal is deemed safe as it breaks easily, smaller birds may not have the strength to break it.)

Buy a couple of good quality bells, you can then use these on various different toys to liven them up or swap them for the poor quality ones that usually come on pre-made toys.

Unused popsicle sticks/drink stirrers/wooden clothes pegs can be bought cheaply and added to various toys or used to make a toy from scratch.

Vegetable dyes can safely be used to dye toys, ropes and cardboard. You can make them at home by boiling strong coloured vegetables. The colour is very subtle on toys but safe. Food dyes bought from shops make stronger colours on toys but they will contain additives.

[Cockatielsongs]

Thanks for the ideas! My will be very excited he loves the toys I make him and ignores the toys that I puchase

[Polarn]

My amazon likes me making toys too. But he seems to enjoy the process more than the actual toys. And for some reason he absolutely loves the battery driven drill. As soon as he sees me with it he's all over it. (not with a drill in it though since I usually drill in the workshop before going inside) so it usually has a p2 bit in or a torx. But he has to be ontop of new perches or the drill when I mount them.

[ljeanne]

all my birds love straws bundled in a zip tie . it seems to be an all around favorite.

[AlbertaAviary]

Here's some ideas..

1. Stuff some treats into whiffle balls. They can be hung from the cage or used as food toys.

2. Hide some treats or little toys in an egg carton and let your 'tiel shred it until it finds them.

3. Make a little ball out of tissues.

4. Make a chain of paper clips.

[marie83]

Here's some ideas..

1. Stuff some treats into whiffle balls. They can be hung from the cage or used as food toys.

2. Hide some treats or little toys in an egg carton and let your 'tiel shred it until it finds them.

3. Make a little ball out of tissues.

4. Make a chain of paper clips.

Good ideas but I really don't like number 4 with the paper clips could potentially trap a beak or a toe, plus I have no idea what they are made from, beware heavy metal poisoning if you havent checked it out.