a question about hemp..

[laurenkill]

i always have some hemp lying around because i like to use it to make bracelets, and it hit me that if its safe, it can be quite useful in bird toys and things. at the moment, i use lanyard to tie the sliding doors on my sun conure's cage [he quickly learned how to open them] but lanyard is really hard to knot because the knots undo very quickly. im going to try to go out and buy sisal rope or untreated leather, but i was wondering whether hemp is considered safe for birds to chew on. i know marijuana is [OBVIOUSLY] unsafe for birds...so when i was looking up hemp online, i found contradicting answers; some sites said it was unsafe and others named them as a main component in bird toys.

also, does anyone know if those binder clips are safe for birds?
these kind: http://www.jwodcatalog.com/imgLg/7510002855995gp.jpg
b/c theyd also be helpful in holding down the sliding doors or holding up toys/treats. i have doubts about them though because of the metal and paint; but still any ideas/suggestions would be welcomed.

[Monica]

I wouldn't think those clips would be good to use... you might try looking into stainless steel quicklinks or pear shaped links...

As for hemp, my bird store sells hemp seeds by the pound! I've seen another bird store that sells hemp seeds by the 5 lbs! Of course, they've [seeds] been treated so they can't grow, but hemp seeds ARE sold for birds, and is said to be good for their feathers and skin due to the natural oils! And hemp string should also be safe!

[Wiggi]

Hemp rope is ok, but it has to be the natural hemp, not the polyester (?) one. Natural hemp smells a bit funny though...

[Anneka]

Bird seed mixes (for parakeets for example) sold in Europe have hemp seeds.

[Parrotpeople]

Good question and I am glad to hear hemp being used more and more. We could save a lot of trees if regular people/farmers could raise hemp for so many things. But so many only think about the drug aspects of the hemp plant and then there's the government, but we won't go there.

[TJ Relic]

Lost my first message, lets try again.

It would scare me to lock/tie the door closed, because in an emergency I think I would panic and fumble with the lock. Is there a way to tie something heavy to the bottom of the door instead, so he can't lift it but you can?

[Nazir's]

Originally Posted by laurenkill

also, does anyone know if those binder clips are safe for birds?
these kind: http://www.jwodcatalog.com/imgLg/7510002855995gp.jpg
b/c theyd also be helpful in holding down the sliding doors or holding up toys/treats. i have doubts about them though because of the metal and paint; but still any ideas/suggestions would be welcomed.

I don't know what type of bird(s) you have but I'll just throw this out there to be considered... Those binder clips are not very sturdy and can very easily be broken apart by a medium to larger size parrot. When squeezed together the silver part easily separates, comes apart from the black part.
Personally, I wouldn't use them for any medium to larger size parrot. Though, I am sure that they'll work just fine for the smaller parrots. Alternatives should be easy to find should the binder clips not be an option.

[Nazir's]

Have you considered using 4" alligator clamps or some large bolt snaps?

I don't know how these will do but I thought that they would be worth suggesting.

[tiger_221917]

I use the clip hooks for my quakers cage as he knows how to open his doors as well.he also nows how to unscrew things.the hooks i use are like the hooks at the end of a dog leash that hooks to the collor.some parrot toys also use them.so far this is the only lock Furby has not got open yet lol.

[Nazir's]

Yeah, I believe those are called bolt snaps. I provided a link to them in my previous post.