charlieandkiwi wrote:Great ideas! I've been getting stuff from the dollar store, like beads and shoe laces (Kiwi has a weird obsession with opening the ends of shoe laces and you can get 8 sets of them for $1) and making tied toys. My birds like untying things, so I tie beads into the shoelaces for kiwi.
I also stick tooth picks into knots that I've made in the toys and put treats on the toothpick so it's like a berry vine for the birds. Charlie likes taking out the whole toothpick and holding it while eating.
For some reason I have a gut feeling about not too sure about using shoe laces. One parrot toy parts seller told me they're not safe for birds. But then another parrot toy parts seller told me they've been using them for their birds for years and they haven't gotten sick. These are cotton white shoe laces. I would think also that the ends of these laces have some type of adhesive with the plastic which fastens them off. I'd just rather stick with the bird safe ropes like Paulie (polyethylene, NOT polypropylene, it will specifically say which kind of the package), supreme white cotton, sisal, leather laces, and jute, which are made bird safe - un-oiled, chemical free, un-bleached, biodegradable, no fillers, and all natural.
Also, at makeyourownbirdtoys.com, I've seen even better pricing than at birdyboredombusters.com ! See?! Check this out, for example. And alot of other good pricing there. They have 12 feet of Pauli Rope, 1/8" in diameter, for $1.99. birdyboredom has theirs 10 feet 3/32" diameter for $2.25. birdyboredom is in canada, and it costs them a bit more to ship to U.S. But birdyboredom does not charge their customers all of the shipping charges in which birdyboredom incurrs themselves either, and they do have a nice personal touch, and they throw in a free toy with your orders. They're very nice. makeyourownbirdtoys.com has alot of good different stuff, and they're pricing on some of it is good for some stuff so far, that I've been scanning some of the things on the site. I saw great boxes to make foragers for good pricing, like a 3 pack for $1.50, under their bagels & more link. And ear corns drilled - a 6 pack for $5.49 ! I'm sure there's lots LOTS more good buys there! They have lots of good shredder parts too, the vine (willow) balls and rings, and other pieces made of that same substance. Etc.
Do you think toothpicks are safe, with the sharp, pointy edge? Hobby lobby sells small wooden sticks, in their packaged wood pieces section I was telling you about was all safe. Some colored and some not. They resemble the shape of lolipop sticks, so they don't have a sharp point like a tooth pick. I would be afraid their toungue could get cut with toothpick. Some of the wooden stick packages of these at hobby lobby even come with little wooden blocks in the package, with holes drilled in them, so you can stick them on the sticks! Another interesting thing for birds to try to get off the stick lol. My bird would love these, as he's an Amazon, and amazons like to manipulate and study the objects they take apart. If you give birds something like this to figure out how to take apart, it's fun for them, and challenging too, giving them more to do, etc.
Another good thing I've found is plastic nuts and bolts at herman's store site for parrot toy parts, WHICH I BET they also have at ToysRUs ! These are for kids! I'm going to look for these at toysrus.
Here is the direct link for that at herman's, so you can see exactly what I'm talking about. Then when you get to it, print out that page, and take it to toyrus store with you and ask for them! That's what I'm going to do. I bet they're in their building sets and blocks section of their store.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/16-JUMBO-Plasti ... 4abc11c2f6
You can bolt it even to/through the cage bars, with parrot trying to figure out how to get it loose and apart. Just screw them together through cage bars, etc.