Tree Play Stand

[Pippin's mom]

I made the fids a tree play stand...finally finished it last Sunday!:party3: However thay have not had a chane to explore it yet as they are still in confinement.:( Drated smoke!

Anyway its made with Manzanita branches that were scrubbed down good with Apple cider Vinegar and water and laid out in the sun for a week. The base is a planter filled with miner's rock which locks in real good making the stand very stable. Then a layer of river rock was added on top for easy cleaning.:)

I plan to add a couple of food kabobs to it, a coconut hut, and some other type of hut..I have all boys so no fear of nesting.;)

It was fun and I'm sure the gang will love it once they are free again!:p

Here's a few pics...


http://i262.photobucket.com/albums/ii97/amom4life58/Treestandfullview.jpg


http://i262.photobucket.com/albums/ii97/amom4life58/TreeStandBase.jpg


http://i262.photobucket.com/albums/ii97/amom4life58/Treeplaystand3.jpg


http://i262.photobucket.com/albums/ii97/amom4life58/TreePlaystand2.jpg


http://i262.photobucket.com/albums/ii97/amom4life58/TreePlayStand1.jpg

This is a little flock name ball I made them...it has all of their names on it and if you notice I left enough space to add on in the future..shhh..don't tell hubby.;)
http://i262.photobucket.com/albums/ii97/amom4life58/Flocknameball.jpg

[softie]

WOW! That is an awesome tree play stand! :D

You did an excellent job with that, I can't imagine anything else looking any more creative than this :)

Your budgies are going to have so much fun on it! You've actually inspired me to make something similar to that for Peanut and Daisy :D

Great job! ;)

[chompie_puppy]

Wow! That is a wonderful playstand! :D

It even makes me want to play on it! ;)

[Raindrop]

Wow! Good work! I'm inspired.. I would love to give my babies a tree play stand!

[fullmetalgirl]

that looks like allot of fun :D:D:D
you probably cant wait to see your birds in there playing :D
thats always so rewarding after putting somuch time into something :D:D
good job on the tree!!!!!

[Will]

Its so creative and fun looking! If i were a bird I'd have alot of fun on that! its one of the best play gyms i've ever seen

[CARRIE1981]

wow you did such a great job:) you have inspired me look forward to pics when they go on it:)

[stacey101]

WOW ! Awesome job! hehe i actually want to play on it myself , tooo bad im not a budgie :P:P

[Pippin's mom]

Thanks everyone for the nice comments!:D

[Morpheus]

It's beautiful!

[LORI]

:)Wow your babies are so lucky that is truly a work of art and lt looks like alot of fun.:budgie:

[ronsig]

Yes, I hope the smoke will clear soon so they can use their tree.
In my next life I want to be a budgie at your house:p

Sigrid

[Bethany]

wow its a really nice playgym!! i hope they can play on it soon!!

[Tiger]

My dad made a playgym for Lucky for me. Because we have Aussie trees all around us, we were able to use timber that had fallen or been cut off our trees. Dad used peppermint gum because it has smooth bark and looks nice. He used brass screws onto a timber base. It's not too big because it sits on the dining table where I do my schoolwork. Lucky either sits on the play gym or sits on my shoulder, while I work. We added a ladder and some toys, but Lucky seems to like to sit on just one place on the play gym.

Daisy is our other budgie but she's very wild. She won't use the play gym. Not yet, anyway, although Mum is having some success in getting her more tame. Lucky us helping.

[vic1viking]

Thats great they are going to have so much fun on thier new play stand when they break out of jail lol Hope that smoke clears soon:rolleyes:

[absolutangel]

Wow, what a great play tree for them! I must try and figure out where to get branches to make Blue one.

[VickyLouise]

Wow your tree stand is amazing, im sure your budgies will enjoy playing on it, i no i would haha :P

[Kip.The.Great]

That's awesome!! So creative and inspiring.
When i decide to make one, i'll check back up on this post to get ideas. :D

[Pippin's mom]

Thanks everyone!:D

[Budgietom]

WOW thats great! I love the last comment you made. "Ssshhhh, don't tell hubby" :D

[Tiger]

That's lovely, I like the smooth branches.

I just posted a couple of thumbnail pics of our construction on someone else's thread about play gyms. My dad made it form peppermint gum branches. The advantage of living in Australia, is we grow our own raw materials. Our garden is mostly Australian native plants and we have a lot of wild parrots that visit every day. All day. Very noisy! So we just go outside and grab what we want, then give it to the budgies. The vet told us this was OK.

How do you post those lovely big pictures?

[aka.pody]

I love it, love it, love it! It looks like they could get lost for hours in there. Good job.

[Deuce81]

Thats very creative. I wish I could do something like that but my wifes cat Lily would probably have something to say about 4 tiny birds flying around.

[enicol6]

Wow that is the first time I caught this thread. You did a really great job. And when the smoke clears (no pun intended...okay maybe a little bit :) ) they are going to have a ball. It will be worth the wait for them. Hope everything is almost back to normal there :)

[Pippin's mom]

That's lovely, I like the smooth branches.
How do you post those lovely big pictures?

I use a photo hosting site called Photobucket.:) It is very easy to use.

Thanks everyone!:D

Deuce~ When its not smokey our birds are out flying around for 10-12 hours a day.:)

[Leel]

Whoa! I should make one for my birds and leaf insect although my leaf insect is sorta... disabled poor girl:( but first dad and I need to finish our play gym! looks really good!

[LauraBeth]

I'm in love with it! When I get my house next year I'm going to try to do a whole tree! Mines small haha apartment size.

I love it! Looks wicked fun.

[Pippin's mom]

Thank you so much!:D

Leel~What is a leaf insect? Can you post a pic?

[Deuce81]

Deuce~ When its not smokey our birds are out flying around for 10-12 hours a day.:)

Do you have a cat? And if so how does the cat react to Budgies flying around?

I can't let mine out untill they have all the flights grown back in, they had a pet shop trim. Plus I have a 2 year old son who likes to smash things and a 5 year old daughter you constantly wants them to perch on her finger. I would venture a guess that the little birds wouldn't last very long in a situation like that.

[Pippin's mom]

We have two cats..they are outdoor cats.:) If they were indoor cats I would never allow them in the same room with my birds when they are having out of cage time. It's just too risky.

[Deuce81]

My cat gets locked down in the hall anytime I am doing anything with the birds. But like I said it doesn't look like any fun for them as they hop and flutter around on the floor. They can't fly at all atm.

[louara]

fabulous:D
great job!

[Pippin's mom]

My cat gets locked down in the hall anytime I am doing anything with the birds. But like I said it doesn't look like any fun for them as they hop and flutter around on the floor. They can't fly at all atm.


That' s good that you keep your cat and birds apart.:) They are still most likely enjoying the time exploring. My Pippin couldn't fly when we first got him because the shop clipped his wings way too short. He would also flutter around and flop to the ground. It made me so sad. Mikko came from the same shop , but the person who clipped his wings did a much better job and he could still fly which I imagine was frustrating for Pippin. Then one day Pippin just took off and it was one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen and I was so happy for him!:D They have a little route they fly together.

Don't worry yours will get there too and it is a joy for them and it will be for you too.:)

[Pippin's mom]

fabulous:D
great job!

Thank you!:D

[Deuce81]

Well the one that is the most scared is Edward and of course his wings are coming in first (a bit lopsided his right wing has one primary growing in).....I don't know if I want him flying around if it would just be traumatic for me to get him back to the cage for sleepy time. O well hopefully before all their wings come in they will be a bit more tame.

[Flappy]

You did a great job! I wanted to add a happy hut to my playgym, but now i've got 2 boys and 2 girls, i don't think it's such a good idea. And i now know what you meant by the ball with your birdies names on :)

[Pippin's mom]

Well the one that is the most scared is Edward and of course his wings are coming in first (a bit lopsided his right wing has one primary growing in).....I don't know if I want him flying around if it would just be traumatic for me to get him back to the cage for sleepy time. O well hopefully before all their wings come in they will be a bit more tame.


Try to get Edward used to stepping up on a perch.If you can get him used to doing that then you will have a much better chance of getting him back in his cage without a lot of stress for either of you.:)

Thanks Flappy!:)

[Deuce81]

Try to get Edward used to stepping up on a perch.If you can get him used to doing that then you will have a much better chance of getting him back in his cage without a lot of stress for either of you.:)

I have been working on getting him to step up on a perch...but ever since his scary bath he has been really panicky. Every time I get close to the cage he flies off. I think he is still a bit traumatized.

[ryanbudgies]

well done! what a great bonus for the fids

[Pippin's mom]

I have been working on getting him to step up on a perch...but ever since his scary bath he has been really panicky. Every time I get close to the cage he flies off. I think he is still a bit traumatized.

Yeah I imagine it will take a little time after a scare like that, but he'll come around soon. Just keep trying backing off if he's too uncomfortable and trying again later.:)

well done! what a great bonus for the fids

Thank you!:D

[softie]

I'm still very interested in making a tree for the fids myself. I don't have any branches in my backyard that I would use, mainly because I'm not sure of the tree's species :S

Does anyone know where I could find safe tree branches? Like.. Home Depot? lol :D

[Pippin's mom]

If you have trees in your back yard then I would take a leaf, small limb to your local Master Gardeners, an arborist, or a nursery that specializes in native planta and trees and find out what they are. You may have perfectly good branches you could use.:) That's what I would do first.

[Squeak_Crumble]

I'm lucky here in Australia as i can just go up the backyard and cut some branches down and quickly check them then....Done. Just cut them to size and put them in.

[Cannuck]

That is awesome! I am inspired! I have been putting off making one of these for our fids. Think I will get on with it! Thanks for sharing it!

[Pippin's mom]

You're welcome!:) I'm looking forward to seeing yours and Softies!

[Josie]

That's brilliant!
Great work!
I like the flock name ball, it's really cute! :)

I'm sure your budgies will love it when they're out of confinement!

:D

[Cannuck]

Dumb question, are pine branches safe? I know the needles are'nt but the cones are, what about the branches? That is all I seem to have near me.:p

[LORI]

:wave:If you have trees in your back yard then I would take a leaf, small limb to your local Master Gardeners, an arborist, or a nursery that specializes in native planta and trees and find out what they are. You may have perfectly good branches you could use.:) That's what I would do first.That tree is awesome it makes them feel like their in the wild:p Our yard has lots of berries and trees do you think a birch or maple is a good branch? Could you see me climbing up a tree to get a branch ohh i certainly would. you would scrub them with vinegar and than rinse them and bake them? Sorry for all the questions but i just love your tree did you take pictures with your babies on it? Thanks again. How is the air quality now?

[clifff123]

Awesome tree stand I might be over to play in in too!!

[Pippin's mom]

Dumb question, are pine branches safe? I know the needles are'nt but the cones are, what about the branches? That is all I seem to have near me.:p

I'm not sure if pine branches are safe. I just did a search here because I know there is a thread that lists Bird safe trees , but its not coming up for some reason..try google.:)

:wave:That tree is awesome it makes them feel like their in the wild:p Our yard has lots of berries and trees do you think a birch or maple is a good branch? Could you see me climbing up a tree to get a branch ohh i certainly would. you would scrub them with vinegar and than rinse them and bake them? Sorry for all the questions but i just love your tree did you take pictures with your babies on it? Thanks again. How is the air quality now?

I cleaned my branches with vinegar and water. Most of our branches were too long to fit in the oven so I put them on top of a shed in the hot sun for a week. You really don't need to leave them in the sun that long..a few days is fine.;)

I'm not sure about Birch or Maple either..seems like they would be safe, but check to make sure.:)

The air quality is much better!:D Thank you for asking.

Awesome tree stand I might be over to play in in too!!

Come on over Clifff..bring the flock!:D Keep an eye on Babbles though.;)