Painting bird toys

[pawfectly]

I’m making a bunch of DIY bird toys for my birds. Can I use watercolour paints for painting the toys?

Thank you.

 

[BlueDoraBarry]

I believe those are toxic. I'm not very sure, but I think people color them using dyes. I hope someone can give a more detailed explanation.

 

[Shezbug]

I use good food safe dye to color my bird toys.

I don’t know anything about using watercolour paints but I guess it would really depend on what they were made from.

I personally would not use it as I would not put watercolour paint in my own mouth, I am happy to eat food dye and it is totally safe as it is food grade.

Others may know more about using the watercolour paints so let’s keep our fingers crossed someone can tell you.

 

[taxidermynerd]

No. Watercolor paints are not bird-safe. Some are toxic. Do you want to risk poisoning your birds? You can use food coloring to dye toy parts. Many people do it, wood and many other toy parts are dyed with food coloring.

I've also seen places like zoos make paints for their animals using natural things like berry juice and that kind of thing. Although I wouldn't use that on toy parts, maybe it could be a fun enrichment activity?

 

[BlueDoraBarry]

I've also seen places like zoos make paints for their animals using natural things like berry juice and that kind of thing.

wouldn't that make them think that it is food?

 

[pawfectly]

No. Watercolor paints are not bird-safe. Some are toxic. Do you want to risk poisoning your birds? You can use food coloring to dye toy parts. Many people do it, wood and many other toy parts are dyed with food coloring.

Ofcourse not. I did not know which is why I asked. Not everyone is aware of all bird related things, which is why we all come to the forum. To learn and grow.

 

[Imogena]

Turmeric gives nice, rich yellow. And Edgar doesn't think it is food. Besides I use safe wood so even if he eats some, there is no harm.

 

[Farlie]

I’m making a bunch of DIY bird toys for my birds. Can I use watercolour paints for painting the toys?

Thank you.

I am a watercolorest and to answer that question, NO. Most all watercolor paints are toxic to both humans and birds. Water color paints are not safe.

 

[painesgrey]

Food colouring is what most people use. You can paint with them just like you would with watercolour, but most people just dilute them and soak toy parts in them.

Some of the vendors will have a better idea of what you can use and how to properly colour your toy parts.

 

[EkkieLu]

You can either dip toys in food coloring and let sit til desired color depth is achieved, or put a few drops in a clean air brush. Wilton Cake Decorating has supplies for air brushing cakes and deserts that work great on Bird toys!

 

[RachelM]

Use either Vitacritter dyes made specifically for birds, or food colouring diluted 1:10 with rubbing alcohol. Dyes made out of food items aren't recommended because their is a much heifer chance of them eating the said toy. Just stick to food colouring.

 

[taxidermynerd]

wouldn't that make them think that it is food?

Well like I said, zoos provide it as a "paint", not in toy parts. I said not to use it on toys. The idea is an animal could paint with their toes/fingers/whatever and if they ingest it, it's no big deal because it's natural and safe.

For toys you just want to use plain food coloring, nothing fancy. I've seen kool-aid be suggested on other sites, that's an awful idea because of the reason you stated, they may think it's food and eat the toy part.

I believe CABN carries VitaCritter dyes. They provide lovely vibrant colors. I think some toy makers also get these food coloring pens to do stuff? I've never seen them but they sound awesome.

 

[BlueDoraBarry]

@taxidermynerd I just re-read your post and must have missed that. My bad.

 

[Zara]

I’m making a bunch of DIY bird toys for my birds. Can I use watercolour paints for painting the toys?

I always start with asking, would I eat it?
Like @Shezbug , I don´t give things to my birds or dog that I wouldn´t eat myself.
And I don´t just say it, I have tried everything, right down to dog chocolate and chick formula -the only exceptions are the dogs dry food, and millet (too fiddly to try).
I would never eat paint, so I would never use it for my birds.

I would dilute food dye in water to paint any bird toys. Leave to dry comlpetely before giving to your birds.

 

[taxidermynerd]

In the past to dye things like dowel rods or ladders I've taken food coloring and rubbed it into the wood (you might want to wear gloves lol), and then I'd get my glove wet so I could spread the color more. Seemed to work pretty well, although it was fairly tedious. Chirp has suffered no ill effects, and nothing funky happened with the woods, so that's a success in my book.

 

[RedFoxBlackSox]

Hey there! I haven’t DIY’d bird toys before, but I am a painter (who has had to switch to water miscible oils due to allergies to turps). I’m not sure what kind of paints you have, but many contain heavy metals such as cadmium and cobalt to get their vibrant colors. This is toxic to anyone to ingest, let alone a small animal. I just wouldn’t risk it, even if it’s a child set (not sure what binders they use).

 

[Matto]

VitaCritter

 

[Fergus Mom]

Oh my gosh.. something else I now think I cannot live without!!! LOL

Wilton FoodWriter® Edible Color Fine Tip Markers, 5pc - Walmart.com

 

[Erikalynnha]

I used AmeriColor food coloring for toys and they came out nice and bright and it was easy to use =^^=

I dyed a like 5000 snappy beads for the Scream Team. They were in snappy bead heaven!

 

[Shezbug]

I used AmeriColor food coloring for toys and they came out nice and bright and it was easy to use =^^=

I dyed a like 5000 snappy beads for the Scream Team. They were in snappy bead heaven!

I have to ask.....what is a snappy bead?