DIY toy making

diy-toyOf course you can buy nice toys for your cockatoo, but you can also make them yourself! Be creative and find out what your bird likes the most.

On this page you’ll find some examples of inexpensive toys that you can make for your cockatoo. Always use unprocessed wood of non-pine trees, don’t use nails or screws and always mind the safety for your bird first.

Fabric to climb in

Take an old t-shirt or towel and cut it into strips of fabric around 5 inches wide. Ty it up into knots and hang it into your cockatoos cage. It will be around a foot long. A too long strip of fabric can be very dangerous to your bird, as he can fold it back onto the cage and become entangled in it or choking himself with it.

Wood and rope

The variations to this theme are endless. Collect wood of decideous trees and drill a hole in the middle of every piece. Take a piece of thick cotton rope and put it through the holes of the wood. Tie a knot into the rope after each piece of wood to space them out evenly. You cockatoo can play with the wood and will work at removing each piece of wood from the rope.

Paper on a stick

You can buy metal sticks (skewer) with a hook on top and a thick ending. They are sold as items to hang a piece of fruit in the cage of your cockatoo. You can also hang other things on this stick, converting it to a toy. For example fresh wood, dried wood, paper, cardboard, leather and fabric. Your cockatoo will enjoy ripping the parts of the stick. The next day you can make a new creation for him to destroy.

Just a bunch of branches and leaves

A toy for a cockatoo does not have to be something you would consider a toy. A bunch of fresh branches with leaves on them is an excellent toy for a cockatoo. He will gladly remove every leaf and every piece of bark. Use branches of deciduous trees like willow, apple, pear, apricot and beech. Do not use randomly found fruit tree branches as they might have been treated with pesticides.

Let your creativity out

Many more kinds of toys can be made for your cockatoo. Just try it! You can use rope, chains, leather, wood, paper, cardboard and pebbles. Do not use nails, glue or anything with sharp edges. Safety first! And remember: to destroy the toys is the most fun for your cockatoo.