foraging and chop mix?

[birdnerd]

hey guys...
Have been tryign to find some knew foragging ideas for my lorikeet. what have u guys used? Ive foud alot of the toys u can buy dont work all that well becasue their food is sticky, they work better for seeds and nuts whic he of course doesnt have. I just want to challenge him a litle more.

I was also just reading about chop....has anyone made this lorikeets and what did you put in it???

Have a good weekend.

 

[Peppo]

Put it in a bell pepper.

 

[cassycass]

I'm also looking for foraging options for my lorikeets. All my other birds are always so stimulated with either training or foraging toys, I feel like my lorikeets are missing out... Any ideas??

 

[Miasimia]

Yeah there is not a lot out there about lorikeet specific enrichment!!

You can use paintbrushes, toothbrushes etc dipped in wet mix or fruit juice and hung in the cage. Another similar thing is to get a bottle like is used to provide water to rats and mice, fill it with pulp-free fruit juice (or in my case water so that I know he has acess to water that he can't bathe in or tip out) and hang it where your birds have to work to get to it. These options simulates feeding from flowers in the wild.
On that note, real flowers are awesome too! If you can find australian natives that lorikeets feed on in the wild then awesome. In NZ we also have some native alternatives. Icky loves Kowhai and pohutukawa in addition to the aussie species, which is great because I have a kowhai that flowers through winter.

I also accidentally discovered that Ickly LOVES rolled oats. To the point where they are what I use for training treats now and they have made a huge difference because they are cheap, and a lot easier and less sticky than things like fruit juice and honey. You can get a little plastic container, poke some holes in it and put some rolled oats in for the bird to try get to.

And of course fresh fruit and veg is also great! Those steel kabob stick things are good for hanging fruit where it is tricky to get to so that the bird has to work for its treat.

one more note on non-food related enrichment. I found some little plastic rattles at a dollar store and Icky absolutely loves them. They are the one toy he will play with over and over and over and never get bored of. If I drop one into his cage he dives down to get it, every time. plus the sound is a lot nicer than a bell!

 

[cassycass]

OMG I don't know how I missed this!

I'm on the paintbrush/toothbrush Idea!! Unfortunately, I live in Toronto, Ontario and I don't have access to flowers like that. I thought about going to a flower shop but I'm afraid of them using pesticides. I'm wondering if I can find the flowers and plant and grow them myself....

Rolled oats not cooked??

One thing I do is use a plastic water bottle and I put about 15 marbles in it so they can shake it and it makes lots of noise, anytime I shake it they go crazy for it.

Another idea that was recommended to me was when I feed them the wet nectar I fill it up with marbles so they have work around the marbles to get to the nectar.

When I'm training I use a syringe to provide them with the nectar so there is less mess... Hopefully that helps you too! Thanks for the suggestions, I'm on it!!