Tree Stand Toys - Photo Share Ideas

[Violet_Diva]

I wanted to share some pics of Bella enjoying her tree stand. It's wrapped in sisal in some areas to enhance grip. It has a boing, seagrass mat, coconut rope toy, swing perch, plastic ring chain and a little shopping basket with small foot toys inside.





I'm hoping to improve her current set-up!

I was wondering what toys you have on your stand?

Please share your ideas (and photos) with me
Any and all ideas welcome!

 

[Terry57]

Awww, lucky Bella!
I don't have any pictures, but we have wooden toys and foraging toys hanging off of our playstands.

 

[DRB]

Where do you get a hanging net? That's what I want for Perjo. She doesn't have a history of falling when sleeping but I would like to try it and see if she likes it.

 

[Violet_Diva]

The seagrass mat thingy is called 'Flying Trapeze' Large.
I got mine (new) from a store on ebay.

It had a few other parts on it that I removed. I felt that the open-link plastic ring parts were too dangerous as an in-cage element (as I sometimes have the hanging mat in her cage.) The rings I removed are on her tree stand as she's always supervised when on her stand. I also put some of the beads on them and used vegetable leather to affix the mat to the chains instead of the plastic open rings.

The ball with shredded paper in is hanging from a different plastic shape chain in her cage, and she loves it! I put some of the remaining beads on vegetable leather too, so when she's pulled all the paper out of the ball she's still got knots and beads to play with.

The small rubbery balls I kept as foot toys in her little shopping basket on her tree stand. So by the end of it, there were only a few super tiny plastic links that I felt were to small and dangerous to be used in any way (they were the ones originally affixing the little rubbery balls to the plastic chains.)

But the seagrass mats are available to buy on their own - so you could easily create a swing hammock type thingy!

 

[Violet_Diva]

Awww, lucky Bella!
I don't have any pictures, but we have wooden toys and foraging toys hanging off of our playstands.

What kinds of foraging toys do you have? I was thinking of putting some popcorn in paper bags and tieing them from thin sisal rope. I'd very much appreciate any details about foraging toys you have tried. Thanks

 

[Laura729]

What a cute and playful girl!!
Paper bags like you mentioned are a good foraging idea (I often stuff them with shredded paper and hide treats in them). My boys' LOVE foraging in their "junk boxes" which are just cardboard boxes filled with things like cleaned out plastic containers that you can also hide treats in (plastic spice bottles etc.), as well as foot toys, some baby toys, and other random toy parts/pieces. I have these boxes sitting on top of their cages, so it's a flatter surface then the playstand, but maybe you could hang or zip-tie boxes on/to the stand somehow?

 

[chris-md]

She looks so happy! Do you have any pics of the full stand? The Java tree, right?

 

[SirEdwin89]

I would love to see the full stand also, so I can steal your ideas! it looks really great.

 

[Flboy]

These are very easy to make! The mats are available in many hobby and craft stores. Also check out any outlets that sell cheap imports! (Old time Pottery)
You can buy a door mat that is made out of these squares.

 

[Violet_Diva]

I don't have any photos of the full stand, I'll try and snap one on Sunday to post for your viewing pleasure chris-md + SirEdwin89

Thanks for the junk boxes ideas Laura729 It sounds like potentially lots of foraging fun. Definitely going to give it a go!

Thanks for the tip Flboy, I hadn't thought to look in craft shops, I bet they have tons of bits 'n' bobs that can be modified to become parrot toys! I'd just been looking at child's toys in charity shops and things specifically being sold online as bird toys.

Looks like I've still got alot more work to do!

 

[Violet_Diva]

As you can see, all of the fun is on the right hand side of the tree (that includes Bella - unless there's food in the bowls, then she's on the left!)

At the back on the left is a green, hanging, multi chamber storage thingy which has various toys inside each section.
Behind that is a small wooden swing perch hanging too, but it can't really be seen in the photo.

There's a random liana perch just hanging on the left as I borrowed the clip from the other end to use on another toy! So I've got to get some more of those soon.
There's also a rope and wood block toy hanging from the same spot.

I need some more inspiration for filling up the left of the tree, (hence the original post). I'm yet to get myself down to the craft shops to try and scout out some more bits...


The toy storage thingy at the back looks similar to this one:

I welcome any ideas, photos of your fids play stands and/or recommend toys etc!​

 

[chris-md]

Thanks for sharing! Here my thing with hanging all these toys from Java trees like everyone around here does: don't you get bird droppings EVERYWHERE?! They all dangle below the birds bottom!

 

[Violet_Diva]

It's funny you should say that - I was worried about the exact same thing!

For reasons unknown to me, Bella has decided that her cage is the poop station! She just flies over to the top of her cage, squats, poops, and then flies back over to the tree! It's quite adorable to witness. I'll have to try and catch her doing it so I can show you.

Shes only pooped on me once during her first couple of weeks with me, and she has occasionally pooped whilest sitting on the perch that's affixed to the inside of her cage door, so if the door is open I have to have paper on the floor to catch the door poops. Other than that there's been no pooping elsewhere... yet

 

[Violet_Diva]

Please ignore the unsightly bookshelf backdrop!

A few more bits have been added, including a ladder from the trapeze down to the tree base (It's not very visible in the pic.) Dexter LOVES the ladder. He climbs down, picks up a ball and then tries to climb up with the ball in his beak - he usually drops it and has to start all over again, but he seems to enjoy himself!

Both Bella and Dexter enjoy picking up wooden blocks from inside the hanging basket and tossing them out onto the floor!

I'm sure this tree will develop further and evolve a little more...

 

[Violet_Diva]

The lighting is terrible this evening, but here's a glimpse of the tree play area beneath. There's a few toys out, but others are housed in the hanging green storage thingy mentioned earlier.





It's mostly kids toys!

Dexter adores climbing the ladder up to the swinging trapeze! (Usually with a ball or block in his beak)

Bella is less interested in playing and tricks but does enjoy attacking and growling at toys. She seems to be angry at plastic for some reason...

Here she is investigating one of the trick training boxes

[ame="https://youtu.be/ItghPqyhAwM"]Female Vosmaeri Eclectus Parrot (Bella) investigating trick training boxes - YouTube[/ame]

And killing the rattle

[ame="https://youtu.be/aBq4RyHiC3Q"]Female Vosmaeri Eclectus Parrot (Bella) attacking a rattle - YouTube[/ame]

And here's Dexter showing off his basketball skills

[ame="https://youtu.be/HZ6543mR-cg"]Male Red Sided Eclectus Parrot (Dexter) playing basketball - YouTube[/ame]

Here's Dexter playing on his back with the shape sorter frame

[ame="https://youtu.be/WAgJle_knM0"]Male Red Sided Eclectus Parrot (Dexter) playing on his back with shape sorter - YouTube[/ame]

That's not how you're meant to use it Dexter!

 

[Anansi]

Their tree stand is amazing! Most impressive! I definitely need to up my game! And I'm more than a little jealous that they don't poop on the stand at all! If I ever put toys down at the base like that they would be monuments to fecal bombardment within an hour! Lol!

 

[Violet_Diva]

Their tree stand is amazing! Most impressive! I definitely need to up my game! And I'm more than a little jealous that they don't poop on the stand at all! If I ever put toys down at the base like that they would be monuments to fecal bombardment within an hour! Lol!

Thanks Stephen, I'm sure the tree will keep changing as time goes on, plus I have a second tree in the living room to fix up yet, so that'll keep me busy!

You've got me wondering what kind of set up you have?! *hint hint*

Since my original posting about their kindly ways of not pooping on the stand, they have now taken to occasional pooping from the boing rope at the edge of the stand. At least it's just the one spot, but to be fair it is understandable, as they both have boing ropes in their cages which they poop from. So the poopy clean ups are now slightly beyond their cage...

 

[Anansi]

...You've got me wondering what kind of set up you have?! *hint hint*

Nowhere near a match for yours, but here's an older pic of the general setup.


I'm in the process of changing up the design a bit. I'll take new pics once it's done.