Bunny Piñata

A foraging toy that is 100% edible, under $5 and ready for the holidays? YOU WIN!

Rabbits bodies are designed to forage all day, their digestive tract says so. My rabbits have constant access to hay but I supplement with pellets, which they devour instantly and it drives me crazy. So, foraging toys it is. 

This little deer-man was only $2.99 at Joann Fabric. They have a massive selection of paper mache goodies. I think my next project is going to be a letter E for miss Ellie. A totally edible foraging toy this cheap and cute gets me pretty excited and the bunnies LOVED it to pieces. Get it? to PIECES?! because it's edible?! Annnyways. 

Here's what you'll need:

• Paper mache deer man

• Drill

• Pencil

• Paper straw

• Seagrass rope

First, drill a hole in the top large enough to fill him up with your goody of choice. I filled my dude up with my bunnies Oxbow organic pelleted feed. Don't make it too crazy big because this will be the same hole you hang the feeder from. 

Next, drill a hole in each of his feet large enough for the goodies to fall out of. I used a pencil after to smooth out the shredded paper so pellets would be knocked out easier. 

Now, were going to make the edible hanger!

I cut the paper straw in half. Then, I took a length of seagrass rope and threaded it though the straw a finished with an old school double knot like this. 

The straw/knot combo slips right into the hole and the straw(inside the deer along his back) keeps it from popping out!

Hang and enjoy! 

Wrap it Up

Thats right, you heard me. WRAP IT UP!

Your cage. Wrap up your cage. weirdo. 

We hang stuff. We put foot toys in...but there is SO much potential in the cage itself to be used as enrichment. In the wild, the environment is for the birds taking. To taste, to touch, to shit on. Those bars that keep my little "Ellie" safe when I'm not supervising her are never-changing. In the wild, cockatoos can spend 88% of their day foraging. How many hours of fun are you providing your bird? 

Lowes home improvement is my jam. They have what I need to put enrichment together, but sometimes they provide the enrichment itself! 

This is cord made from grass. Think softer than wicker but tougher than hay? 

Anywho, I bought it to string toys and to make new ones but, when I sat it down Ellie went right to work tearing it up, so I made it a toy itself. 

Im going to be honest. This took a stupid amount of time, but it is SO fun! You can leave it as is or

• weave herbs through it.

• attach toys to it

• sprinkle spices on it

Its a pretty cool way to utilize all of their space to offer the a change in their environment. 

The Right Pipe.

If you give a zookeeper a PVC pipe they will BLOW YOUR MIND with what they can create. Serious Talk. The toys, the feeders, olfactory stimulators, hides, swings. The next time you go to an awesome zoo (only AZA accredited facilities, people)  start looking for PVC. You'de be wasted-face if it were a drinking game. 

PVC doesn't need to stay in zoos, though. Let's liberate the pipe!

I showed the herd of Nigerian Dwarf Goats over at Omas Haus some fun with a PVC sweet feed foraging toy. In the wild, Nigerian Dwarf Goats spend the majority of daylight foraging. Animals built for snacking throughout the day don't thrive in environments where meals can be consumed in 20 minutes, leaving them mentally and physiologically stressed. I don't blame them, I get Hangry too. 

 This project is super simple. Heres what you'll need:

• 2 pvc pipes, one fitting inside of the other. 
• 2 pvc caps that fit the smaller pipe. 
• a drill
• a saw of your choosing

Take the smaller pipe and cut to the length you want. This one was a tad more than a foot. 

Then you take the larger pipe and cut a few small pieces. The less you have, the easier it is. Before you slip those on and cap the end, go crazy and drill some holes in the smaller pipe. The size of your holes are going to vary depending on what your wanting to fall out. Sweet feed is pretty small, so the holes are just big enough for the bits and pieces to fall through. You feel me? 

This project should take about 20 minutes, but I had company.  

When B helps everything takes about 78 times longer, but who am I to say no to a home made maraca? 

When they goats finally got their snack, everyone was in on it. I saw the ladies using muzzles, horns and hooves to manipulate the feeder, so I'de consider this a win.