- Lights-out curtains
An attractive small tablecloth, pillowcase or scarf can become a night-time cover for your bird’s cage. Covering a cage is an effective way to help many birds relax.
- Natural decor for your bird
Clip a small tree branch to put in your bird’s cage. He’ll be able to climb it over and over again, and will also peck it to sharpen his beak.
- Clean a bird house with vinegar
A 50:50 mixture of white vinegar turns a birdcage into a beautifully clean home and does a good job of cleaning plastic bird toys. After wiping on the mixture, rinse with fresh rap water and then dry the cage with a clean cloth.
- Paper bag fun
Open a brown paper bag and put it on a table or other surface when your bird is out of his cage. He will enjoy peeking in and out.
- Let your bird play peck-the-spools
Make a hanging toy for your bird’s cage by stringing wooden spools on a leather cord and tying it diagonally near the top of the cage. Your bird will enjoy pecking at it and making the spools sway back and forth.
- Use your imagination
It’s easy to keep a bird occupied. While pet shops sell plenty of toys for caged birds, you can easily entertain your pet with items you have around the house. Milk jugs, mop heads and feather dusters are good toys for birds that like to pluck feathers. Try some of these:
- Plastic bottle caps
- Plastic milk cartons, with the top cut off and the edges frayed with scissors
- Wads of newspaper
- Shredded computer paper
- A natural-bristle flat broom
- Clothes pegs (without wires or springs)
- Small wooden balls.
- A fun (or frustrating?) toy
Add a new dimension to a clear plastic drink bottle by putting beads, plastic clothes pegs or other brightly coloured objects inside and recapping the bottle. Your bird will spend hours on end trying to figure out how he can get to the objects inside.