Non-toxic Branches For Parrots
- Apple tree wood. Apple wood can be made into many different shapes and has the strong texture Parrots love.
- Bamboo wood. It’s water resistant, strong (great for keeping your Parrot’s beak trim) and it’s a renewable resource too.
- Cork wood.
- Elm wood.
- Fir wood.
- Grape tree wood.
- Manzanita.
- Pine wood.
What branches are good for birds?
Common bird-safe wood for perches and toys:
- Balsa.
- Poplar.
- Ash.
- Elm.
- Maple.
- Birch.
- Dragonwood.
- Manzanita.
Can I use branches as perches?
The two most favoured woods for perching are willow and apple. However, you can also use branches from ash, beech, hazel and sycamore.
What wood is safe for African Greys?
Harder woods such as manzanita and apple are great for birds who are more advanced with their chewing. African greys, macaws and similar sized birds love chewing on harder woods as it is great for beak maintenance.
Can you put tree branches in a parrot cage?
Picking the right branches:
As birds love to chew, the foliage of a bird safe tree can keep them stripping bark and leaves for hours and it provides lots of nifty hiding places to create a foraging adventure. Foliage also gives your bird an area to retreat to for privacy.
What kind of wood is toxic to birds?
Poisonous Wood
Avoid wood coming from azalea, rhododendron, apricot, avocado, boxwood, cacao, cedar, elderberry, flame tree, hemlock, holly, horse chestnut, hydrangea, juniper, mango, mock orange, mountain laurel, oak, oleander, peach, plum, redwood, walnut, weeping fig, wisteria and yew.
Can I put any tree branches in my bird cage?
Safe hardwoods include apple, almond, beech, bottle brush, butterfly tree, crabapple, dogwood, elm, eucalyptus, fir, gingko, lilac, magnolia, mimosa and spruce. Maple wood is safe if you remove the bark; some maple bark contains a fungus that’s bad for your budgie to breathe.
How do you disinfect an outside branch?
Chemically Sanitizing Branches
Fill the bathtub with enough hot water to fully submerge the branches. Use half a cup of bleach for each gallon of water. After the branches are submerged with your bleach water solution, leave them to sit for 24 hours. Make sure to keep children and pets away from the bleach water.
What is the best thing to put on the bottom of a bird cage?
The bottom of the cage should be lined with disposable paper such as newspaper or paper towels that can be thrown away every day. Newsprint is now free of lead, so it is non-toxic to birds, even if they chew on it.
Is pine safe for birds?
Untreated pine is commonly used for bird toys, as well as balsa. Hard wood that’s hard to chew (and commonly used for perches) includes manzanita, dragonwood, and bottlebrush. All of this wood is very well-suited for birds and parrots in particular because of their chewing capacity.
Is cedar wood safe for parrots?
Cedar bedding and cedar oil are known to irritate birds’ delicate respiratory systems, and at high doses, can actually kill them. Birds are especially vulnerable to strong scents—like those found in essential oils, candles, and manufactured fragrances.
Is Bamboo safe for parrots?
Bamboo is safe for birds
If you’re getting a bamboo perch for your budgies’ cage, opt for a natural branch that has grooves and use more than one of different thickness and place them at different heights as this mimics nature closely.
Is Eucalyptus wood safe for birds?
When in raw form, Eucalyptus is not harmful to parrots and holds anti-bacterial properties that can be beneficial to their health and well being. Many parrots enjoy chewing on Eucalyptus branches.
What wood can parrots chew?
Birch Wood. Birchwood is a moderately soft type of wood that is fit for making small to medium bird toys. The bark and leaves of this wood contain salicylates and other substances that come with hemolytic properties. The low concentration of these salicylates makes it unlikely to cause toxicity among birds.
Are maple branches safe for parrots?
Maple wood – most in general – should be safe to use for natural wood perches once the bark is removed.
How do you disinfect wood perches?
For perches that “appear” to be clean, wipe them down with a damp cloth twice a week and try to make it a habit to scrub them down using hot water and dish soap once a month. Easier still is using a handheld steamer to clean the perches.
Is oak wood safe for parrots?
Oak appears on a number of toxic lists, primarily because of the tannin in the leaves and acorns. In the writer’s opinion this is totally unjustified, the wood should be perfectly fine as it is not generally eaten and contains little tannin in most species.
Can parrots eat wood?
Wild parrots often chew on branches, leaves, husks, etc., shredding them into small pieces that they drop to the ground. I believe chewing on wood helps a parrot keep its beak in good shape. I often give my parrots things to chew on for enrichment, exercise, and to help keep their beaks clean and well-coped.
How do you treat wood for bird perches?
Cleaning Wood One philosophy says clean bird perch wood before it’s used by soaking for an hour or two in tub of water with a cap of household bleach. Then rinse the wood in clean water.
What wood is toxic to budgies?
Safe and Toxic Wood Branches and Trees
| Wood / Tree | Safe / Toxic |
|---|---|
| BOX ELDER | Toxic |
| BOXWOOD – Buxus | Toxic |
| BUCKTHORN – Cascara / Alder Buckthorn | Toxic |
| BRACKEN FERN | Toxic |
How do you bake wood for birds?
Branches from non-toxic trees (see list below) outside can also be used as perches. These, however, should be washed and disinfected by heating them in an oven at 200°F for 30 minutes as the wood might contain microscopic fungus and insects that can be harmful to birds.