making a safe hanging toy
This was a large toy ordered by a customer, I thought it would be a good idea to take pictures and show how it was made, in hope that it will inspire people to make their own toys.
Although this is a large toy, all parts can be sized down to make a smaller toy
Starting with the base for the toy.
This is a piece of pine, 33mm x 33mm square, with holes drilled in for hanging the toy parts from.
You can make the length to suit your own needs.
I used sisal rope (creosote free) for the hanger, leather is ideal for smaller toys, but because this toy is going to have a lot of weight on it, I have used sisal rope, because it is stronger than leather.
you can see the first blocks are on the base.
useing a short piece of sisal, I have put a knot in one end, threaded two blocks on to it, put this through the top hole in the base, then added 2 more blocks, and a knot on the end.
each end block has extra holes in, to allow for toys to be added them.
To make this toy as safe as possible, I want to keep leather, and sisal, SHORT!!
The safest method for hanging the toy parts, so you can keep leather/sisal short, is to knot pine blocks to the base (like in the picture above) each block having one or two extra holes in them for hanging the toy parts from.
I used sisal for this part, because of the size of the toy, a smaller version you can use leather.
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So now we have the base with all the blocks added, all sisal used is short.
This has given volume to the toy, and given loads more holes to hang toy items from.
This is now ready to add loads of parrot goodies!!
Some of the parts I put on the toy
Here I have used a birdie bite, a half size birdie bite, and a bigger bitty bagel.
Then I have rolled unbleached paper into a tight solid roll, and pushed it through the middle of each Item.
On one I have added a small piece of shredder.
I have then drilled a hole through the centre of each one to hang them on the toy
These are great for hanging on toys, but also a great item to hand to your bird as a foot toy.
You can give them to your bird without the holes in, or you can drill holes like above, and add leather pieces to them.
Here we have a medium sized Jungle Talk ball, with pieces of folded unbleached paper pushed through.
Then a pine block, a zoo-max wooden ring, and another block.
All threaded on leather ready to attach to the toy.
Here we have blocks of pine, with a hole for hanging, but with an extra 6mm hole
The 6mm hole is just the right size to put a food grade paper stick through.
I have pushed a paper stick through, bent it, and
Then I added, bigger bitty bagels, leather, and small pine blocks.
The small pine blocks have 6mm holes in, and stay tight on the paper sticks.
Again with this block of pine, I have put an extra 6mm hole in, and pushed a paper stick through.
Then, on each end of the paper stick, I have put half of a 3 inch bagel, followed by a small block.
the small blocks have 6mm holes in, so they stay tight on the paper stick.
Here we have the above block threaded on leather, then a Zoo-Max wooden ring, with unbleached paper folded and pushed through the ring.
Then another couple of blocks and a bigger bitty bagel on the top.
This is now ready to hang on the toy
Here we have a piece of leather that is wider at the bottom, and threaded on this is pine blocks and a Zoo-Max wooden ring, and a bigger bitty bagel
Here we have two 3 inch bagels cut in half, and a hole drilled in them.
I have put a block threaded on the leather first.
Then the half pieces of bagels, with a piece of shredder in between each bagel.
on top of this is a large block, which has an extra hole going through it, I have then put leather through the extra hole, and put a block with a bigger bitty bagel on each side.
This is ready to hang on the toy
Another way to use the bagels is to hang like this
I have put a hole on each end, added a bigger bitty bagel in the middle, put leather pieces on the bottom end, and blocks and bigger bitty bagels on the top.
I have pushed some unbleached paper through the bigger bitty bagel in the middle.
Hanging hoop's can be a hazard for your bird, if you hang a full bagel then please make sure your bird can get right through the bagel, or not get its head in at all.
A 3 inch bagel is ok to hang for a small parrot, because they can climb through it, but it would be very dangerous for a medium sized parrot.
By cutting them in half, I am playing safe
Here we have a large block at the bottom, with an extra 6mm hole, this has a paper stick pushed through and smaller blocks and bigger bitty bagels added to it.
Then there is a birdie bite with rolled up unbleached paper pushed through it, followed by 2 blocks, and 2 bitty bagels.
This is ready to put on the toy
this is a piece of pine with 3 holes drilled in it, the centre hole is for hanging on to the toy, each side hole I have added extra Items.
On one side I have put folded paper and a leather shape, knotted on tight with leather.
And on the other side, a half size birdie bite with paper pushed through and squashed it flat!! a piece of leather on top, then knotted tight to the block with leather
here is a large bagel cut at the bottom, then half size birdie bites, pushed on to the bagel.
You can put more half birdie bites on if you wish, and also there is enough room to push leather through the birdie bites, allowing you to add other items to the bagel.
And of course, I used lots of pine blocks
The finished toy
Putting notches and extra holes in the blocks adds more interest for your parrot, and you can hide seeds and nuts in them for your bird to find.
The notches cut into the wood provide a variety of ways to approach for the attack and give plenty of spots to grip with a talon during the concerted effort.
I also added a few large acrylic's, and Zoo-Max wooden discs and rings, and lots of bigger bitty bagels
All parts used are for sale on the toy making parts pages.
STORING WOOD
Keep in a cardboard box, or paper bag, that is closed but not air-tight or tightly sealed.
Wood has inherent moisture and needs some air circulation to prevent mould. Place container in a dry, cool place with absolutely no exposure to direct heat, dampness or moisture.
PAPER
Birds love to chew paper.
newspaper, magazines, and tissue/toilet paper, are not safe to give your bird.
tissue/toilet paper can choke your bird, and the chemicals in magazines and newspaper will not do your bird any good at all.
unbleached paper is the safest option.
news offcuts is Ideal for your bird to chew, and its a great option for the bottom of the cage.
Available in 10kg packs, from packaging companys, or if you have a freindly local chippy, you can ask them if they will sell you a pack.
Most chip shops use news offcuts, removal companys use it, and some butchers use it.
if you have a newspaper printers near you, it may well be worth asking them if they can sell you some.
Here is the toy with its 2 very lucky owners, Mojo and Shinda
A huge toy, a huge cage, this is birdie heaven
click here to watch the video
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