PLEASE ANSWER QUESTION: "NATURAL" JUTE & SISAL HOBBY LOBBY

[Maria]

Please answer question: Regarding "Natural" Jute and Sisal ropes/cord at Hobby Lobby:

When I was at hobby lobby the other day, I actually saw these ropes down one isle, and on ALL of the labels, they ALL say "Natural".

Here are the hobby lobby links as well, with the actual photos of the products on them, so you can see the labels. This is them:

Jute:
http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/-20 ... te-597088/

Sisal:
http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/1/4 ... pe-254680/

I was surprised to see this when I was in the store.

My question is, If it says "Natural" on it, is it oil free and chemical free therefore? The safe type which we can use for our birds?

Thank you so much for your help.

[friend2parrots]

Hi Maria, I think that the prefix of "natural" thats being used to describe these materials is a descriptor of the materials themselves, as in, jute and sisal are both plant-derived, as opposed to laboratory derived materials such as polymer fibers, polyethylene, plastic, etc. That is all I think they mean by the use of the word "natural".

i dont think the use of the word natural in this instance pertains to the processing. These natural rope fibers were likely processed with various artificial cleaning or binding agents.

They do sell "organic" jute and sisal - these might be a better option, but even the "organic" label only tells you that the plant from which the fibers were derived was grown without pesticides. it does not tell you the procedure by which the fibers were subsequently processed. that would require further investigation.

I think personally if I found "organic" jute and sisal, I would use it to make toys. I would boil it in hot soapy water, to disinfect and get any of the binding and cleaning agents out, and then reboil it in plain water, and let it dry. Im pretty sure it would be fine after that. but thats just my guess.

all the best

[Maria]

thank you for your response friend2parrots. It is very resourceful.

hmmmm cleaning and binding agents. Good criteria question when inquiring about products like from hobby lobby, etc: "These are more criteria to add to our list. What artificial cleaning and binding agents are used if any?"

more good criteria to look for regarding rope - (stringing materials as such).

Now here's another question for you. You had said to always look for rope materials that specifically say "untreated" or "organic". So, if it does say untreated, would that mean that artificial cleaning and binding agents were not used?

It is also interesting to note that these cords of rope in hobby lobby look the same as the ones I'd ordered from that herman's bird toy parts store on ebay, only without any labels. He also has a parrot, and says his ropes are 100% natural, UNoiled, and safe. That 1/4 inch thick sisal rope I'd ordered from him came with a little type of tear in the plastic packaging, where it looks like the label could've been taken out. It could appear, then, that these were purchased from hobby lobby or an arts and crafts store/place, then sold also on ebay.

Another good thing I found out from hobby lobby was that their customer service department said that if an item is in "children's crafts" section, it is going to be "non-toxic". I am also going to double check which section these ropes are in at the store and inquire, because they are very close to where the beads are in children's crafts, and they are also used for stringing materials for making keychains, jewelry for children, earrings, bracelets, necklaces, bookmarks, scrapbooks, memory albums, handmade cards, photo frames, etc. So this may very well be part of the children's crafts section which these ropes are also in. I just need to double check. And there's even hemp rope/cord in the same isle as the sisal and jute, just right across from it, on the other side of the isle.

And my next step will be to also email hobby lobby, to inquire specifically about the criteria of these ropes. They may turn out to be safe, and if so, we can buy them like this at arts and craft stores rather than pay shipping ordering online.

here is hobby lobby's link for the hemp:
http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/380 ... ll-756189/

the hemp label in the store said 100% hemp, made in hungary.

[friend2parrots]

Now here's another question for you. You had said to always look for rope materials that specifically say "untreated" or "organic". So, if it does say untreated, would that mean that artificial cleaning and binding agents were not used?

i dont think we can ever know with certainty what cleaning and binding agents are used on any product. the fact that something says "untreated" or "organic" means to me that its PROBABLY better than something that doesnt have those labels. i think i would just assume the worst, and still boil it with the soapy water, then in plain water, then rinse and dry. (remember i mentioned in that other thread that i had learned about boiling the rope material in saltwater? i think that would be fine too, as long as you reboil it in plain water to get the salt out, and then rinse and dry.

[friend2parrots]

do you think the method of cleaning/disinfecting i mentioned above (boiling in soap water or salt water, then reboiling in plain water, and then allowing to dry) would be ok to clean porous toys?