Parrot Playstand

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Bird_lover574
Posts: 28
Joined: Wed Nov 05, 2014 12:46 pm

Parrot Playstand

Post by Bird_lover574 »

Hi Everyone
recently I was looking into buying a java tree playstand but as many of you know they are rather pricey. I decided to build my own playstand out of willow. I have a part of a tree which I have stripped of bark but I need to clean it. I was wondering if anyone could tell me what I could use to clean it which would be safe for my indian ringneck?
Melika
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Joined: Thu Aug 04, 2005 9:11 am
Location: Florida
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Re: Parrot Playstand

Post by Melika »

Here is a good conversation: http://www.upatsix.com/chats/cockatoo/topic41856.html

I knew where my branches where coming from. I usually just scrubbed gently with a wire brush to get any moss/mold and baked them in the sun for a few days. But I live in FL where it actually is possible to bake in the sun!
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I've been called 'birdbrained' before, but somehow I don't think this is what they meant. say:hah-nay
Bird_lover574
Posts: 28
Joined: Wed Nov 05, 2014 12:46 pm

Re: Parrot Playstand

Post by Bird_lover574 »

Thanks for your help!
I haven't been on here in a while, i didnt realise someone had replied haha

After i stripped the bark off the willow my dad found a veterinary cleaner online which is non toxic and can be left on the wood so i bought that and my playstand is finished :)

My IRN, Elmo, wasnt too sure about it to begin with but he loves it now :)

Yeah even if i could find the sun here it wouldnt be warm enough to bake it haha. Too cloudy :(
MissK
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Joined: Sun Jul 22, 2012 3:46 pm
Location: Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.A.

Re: Parrot Playstand

Post by MissK »

Sometimes I'm very cautious and by-the-book and other times just a rebel. Who knows why? Confident that my neighbor and I don't use yard chemicals, when it was playstand building time I just pruned a huge branch off my fig and lugged it into the house. I hoisted it up on top the big cages, secured it from tipping, and surrounded it with plants. I tied on a few toys and that was the start of it. It took, I guess, two years to get the plants to look somewhat like a jungle, and I expect another two before it looks like my vision. MUCH cheaper and easier than moving to a real jungle and absolutely less bugs.

The birds don't play much with the toys but they absolutely love negotiating the various levels of branches. Thanks to some great plant sales, it took more time and effort than money. It was totally worth it. Just yesterday my friends came over and were thrilled to experience what I now take for granted -- a pair of Ringnecks audibly flying around the room and landing on branches or swaying plants. At one point Sinbad was literally crawling through a forest of orchids on a table by the window. So funny! It's very satisfying, to say the least.

This might not work so well for birds that are dedicated to chewing plants, but mine don't so much. Maybe it's because they get their fill of plants every day in their feed. You can see the bare beginnings of this project in my Photos thread (use SEARCH function if you care to see). I have changed my technology since then and it's pretty hard or impossible for me to get photos to the forum now. Maybe one day someone will solve my camera/laptop/photo hosting site issues, but for now it's an occasional inconvenience and I don't spend any effort on it at all.

The reason I post this lengthy account of my "playstand" jungle situation is to open up your ideas of what's doable in the house. I absolutely commend your initiative and thrift in making your playstand yourself. I think custom is frequently possible and frequently a better product, with regard to utility. Those Java playstands are beautiful, to me, mainly as sculpture! But they're so expensive and, really, are they that useable? Does their function really justify that cost? I'd urge you to get a few plants with some of the cash you saved (many safe-plant lists are here and on the net) as well as a drill (and safety goggles) and some Jungle brand skewers and bird safe twine for making toys.

On the Forum I suggest you see some photos from Geve-ze. She has at least one that looks to me to be the meeting of toy/environment/art. For a really big eye opener, look for some photos of the situation at the house of Clawnz - a domestic aviary, seems to me. Donovan built an aviary structure for his birds to get fresh air outside - and his thread notes the issues he has faced and solved using that. Not everyone has the domestic freedom to express their creativity large-scale for the birds, and not everybody is personally suited to creating their own stuff. I think you would shortchange yourself, however, not to at least mull over and invent fresh options for yourself. It's very rewarding. I tell people my hobbies are sewing, craft, gardening, and keeping my animals, but if you look at my actual activities, you can tell my real hobby is creating and tweaking the environment for my birds.
-MissK
Bird_lover574
Posts: 28
Joined: Wed Nov 05, 2014 12:46 pm

Re: Parrot Playstand

Post by Bird_lover574 »

I built my playstand with the help of my dad just recently it didnt take too long once we figured out what we were going to do. My dad had the idea to try and source a wooden pole which we could then screw different shaped branches into but i couldnt find the materials we needed and my dad then chopped down an elm tree that had no bark but the tree had previously had dutch elm disease and was full of termites. Then i found a willow tree which we cut a big branch off of and trimmed up a bit and i stripped off the bark just to be safe that there was nothing harmful on it.

I bought a specific type of f10 veterinary disinfectant which is non toxic and can be left on and continues to work even after application.

I left it to dry before my dad built a base out of wood and screwed hooks on for attaching toys

Elmo wasnt too sure of it to begin with but now he loves it and i am hoping to add to it as time goes on to keep it interesting for him :)
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