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Birds, perches, toys: safe & harmful perch wood
For, cockatoos, parrots, parakeets, cockatiels, conures, quakers, finches, budgies, African grey parrots, macaws, canaries. This page is presented as a unit, not just 2 lists to read, and skip the rest (like the 5th and 6th paragraphs below)
Also, plants we see wild birds on should not all be considered safe for pet birds. And wood that is bad for a few birds may well be considered bad for all birds - “All for One, and One for All” Some difference of opinion was found. Apple for example. Sources like Gillian Willis, say apple is safe: others say it may be harmful. I put it in the safe list due to Gillian Willis' expertise and my opinion that insecticide was the culprit. Elm is on safe wood list. But in many cities, elms are are treated. Maybe refrain from elm, because there is an abundance of other wood that is pesticide free. Call the urban forestry department to find out if street canopy is sprayed. If your yard is maintained by a company, ask if any products are applied.
What you see in the lists is all we are aware of. If you know something we are not been aware of, send a note. Please, no emails about other related questions, or species not listed. We do not omit ones we know about. Also, I may prefer to spend reply time on business related messages like estimate requests. I enjoy chit-chat sometimes. but if my day or work is busy, don't be surprised if my reply is brief or flat: just depends on the day, season and weather. If you have something new to add here, or a thank you, feel free to write.
Lists below indicate wood to use for bird perches, or avoid. This perch wood list assumes perches are clean of fruit and leaves. Most info refers to wood in it's natural state with bark. I compiled information from avian vets and reliable resources, then refined that with my arborist background. The unsafe list has plants potentially dangerous to birds. No tender plants are listed, but some shrubs and vines with firm stems that could be improvised as perches are included. Pine in the safe list refers to branches, not lumber. Beware of residue on stems. Residue that may be overlooked includes moss control products that splash off roofs, sprays for holiday season foliage, decks, weeds , etc.. Avoid sides of a highway or railroad since right-of-ways can be blasted for weed control
For starters, when selecting a cage, look at the biggest you can afford, then maybe double it. It will be a home. Overcome a small cage price tag. When we doubled or tripled cage size for our birds, improved behavior was immediate. A few cubic feet separate a bird cage home from just a mere confine.
Safe & harmful woods lists for pet birds and perches: trees or woody plants for bird toys and perches in bird cages or flight cages. A popular page for pet birds: finches to budgies & parrots to cockatoos - updated July 10, 2011.