MooshieBird
New member
So I wanted to get Mushka a large play stand early on. She was SUPER cage territorial. She assaulted most everyone who tried to touch her cage. Seriously, when I picked her up from the pet shop they came out with leather gloves.... Thankfully I had been visiting her daily for weeks so she would step up for me, the move was gonna be stressful enough without being manhandled into a box by leather gloves. Sorry, back on track. Bird stand for less than $50 because I would have to sell organs to buy a tree stand of this size.
Supplies:
One fig tree from my back yard (check online to see what wood's are safe for your bird!)
1/4" Stainless Steel Screws (Lowes)
1/2" Stainless Steel Screws (Lowes)
5/8" Stainless Steel Screws (Lowes)
1/4" Stainless Steel Eyelets to hang toys (Had to order these, Lowes only had Zinc ones in stock)
5" Big A** Screws to attach the tree to the base (Lowes)
1" Castors with swivels so it rolls easy (Lowes)
2 1/2' by 2 1/2' Pine plywood base (Lowes)
2 Stainless Steel Pet Bowls w/ screw on type holders (Amazon)
Assorted toys (Pet Store)
Natural Rope (I used untreated coconut husk rope)
Tools
Chainsaw (any saw will do but chainsaw is so much easier)
Power Drill (PRE-DRILL your holes! You will thank me later for that advice)
Power Washer (a hose with a high pressure nozzle will work but will take more effort)
Bleach/Water solution (75/25 mix)
Sandpaper
Large File (makes it easy to file down sharp edges on the tree but sandpaper can do the same with some elbow grease)
Now that you have your stuff now comes the work. First find an appropriate tree or large branches. Cut aforementioned tree/branches down and into pieces. DON"T steal someone else's tree, get one from a friend or family member if you cant find something appropriate. Next dry fit the cut down tree limbs into an appropriate shape. Now you need to clean the branches.
My process went as such:
Power wash, dry, bleach, dry, power wash, dry, sand/file entire tree, power wash, dry, bleach(last time), dry, power wash, dry.
After all that (took me two days) you need to inspect the wood and make sure there are no bugs, fungus, rot, or sharp edges left. If you find any of these fix it. Next attach the base of your stand to the central tree using the Big A** 5" screws and attach the castors to the base using the 1/4" Stainless Steel Screws. Then attach the smaller assorted limbs to your liking with the 1/2" and 5/8" Stainless Steel Screws (remember how you dry fit everything together earlier). Go ahead and attach some of the 1/4" Stainless Steel Eyelets where you want to hang some toys. Make sure that the screws don't pop out the other end and pre-drill your holes. Now power wash the whole thing again and let it dry. Then attach any rope to any climb points you want to help your bird move around the stand. Mine looked like this at this point.
Finally attach the food/water bowls and the toys! If you have any questions or comments feel free to ask. Here is an overly long and badly made video of the stand, but you do get to see how much Mushka likes it in the video:
[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taioittAl1c&t=2s"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taioittAl1c&t=2s[/ame]
Supplies:
One fig tree from my back yard (check online to see what wood's are safe for your bird!)
1/4" Stainless Steel Screws (Lowes)
1/2" Stainless Steel Screws (Lowes)
5/8" Stainless Steel Screws (Lowes)
1/4" Stainless Steel Eyelets to hang toys (Had to order these, Lowes only had Zinc ones in stock)
5" Big A** Screws to attach the tree to the base (Lowes)
1" Castors with swivels so it rolls easy (Lowes)
2 1/2' by 2 1/2' Pine plywood base (Lowes)
2 Stainless Steel Pet Bowls w/ screw on type holders (Amazon)
Assorted toys (Pet Store)
Natural Rope (I used untreated coconut husk rope)
Tools
Chainsaw (any saw will do but chainsaw is so much easier)
Power Drill (PRE-DRILL your holes! You will thank me later for that advice)
Power Washer (a hose with a high pressure nozzle will work but will take more effort)
Bleach/Water solution (75/25 mix)
Sandpaper
Large File (makes it easy to file down sharp edges on the tree but sandpaper can do the same with some elbow grease)
Now that you have your stuff now comes the work. First find an appropriate tree or large branches. Cut aforementioned tree/branches down and into pieces. DON"T steal someone else's tree, get one from a friend or family member if you cant find something appropriate. Next dry fit the cut down tree limbs into an appropriate shape. Now you need to clean the branches.
My process went as such:
Power wash, dry, bleach, dry, power wash, dry, sand/file entire tree, power wash, dry, bleach(last time), dry, power wash, dry.
After all that (took me two days) you need to inspect the wood and make sure there are no bugs, fungus, rot, or sharp edges left. If you find any of these fix it. Next attach the base of your stand to the central tree using the Big A** 5" screws and attach the castors to the base using the 1/4" Stainless Steel Screws. Then attach the smaller assorted limbs to your liking with the 1/2" and 5/8" Stainless Steel Screws (remember how you dry fit everything together earlier). Go ahead and attach some of the 1/4" Stainless Steel Eyelets where you want to hang some toys. Make sure that the screws don't pop out the other end and pre-drill your holes. Now power wash the whole thing again and let it dry. Then attach any rope to any climb points you want to help your bird move around the stand. Mine looked like this at this point.
Finally attach the food/water bowls and the toys! If you have any questions or comments feel free to ask. Here is an overly long and badly made video of the stand, but you do get to see how much Mushka likes it in the video:
[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taioittAl1c&t=2s"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taioittAl1c&t=2s[/ame]
