Best Bird Toys for Every Type of Feathered Friend

Toys belong on the top-of-list essentials for pet birds. Bird toys are designed to cater to a bird’s natural behaviors, such as:  

• Foraging for food 
• Climbing along branches 
• Tearing apart vegetation 
• Navigating challenging environments that test their problem-solving skills 

Knowing how wild birds spend their day makes it clear that our pet birds have an instinctive need to chew, climb, and explore, and toys offer those opportunities. 

Another reason to add bird toys to your shopping list? Your feathered companions need “busy work” to keep them happily engaged, especially while you are at work or unavailable.  

In general, parrots who enjoy playing with toys on their own—those who engage in independent play—are more confident, more engaged with their environment, and less likely to exhibit behaviors associated with boredom, such as vocalizing excessively for attention, or climbing on your face when they’re out of their cage. 

Toys for pet birds are not a one-size-fits-all category. Like us, pet birds have preferences when it comes to play and entertainment, and they, too, can have multiple playstyles. The best starting point is to try out a variety of bird toys and see which ones pique your bird’s interest.  

Amazon parrots are sometimes called “perch potatoes” who prioritize food over play, but that shouldn’t be the case if offered plenty of fun play opportunities.  

Amazon parrots love toys they can sink their beaks into, or that allow them to shake, rattle, and roll around. 

African grey parrots, on the other hand, have a reputation for being the brainiest of all pet parrots, so toys that test their cognitive skills are must-haves.  

The best toys for parrots include: 

• Super Bird Creations Bagel Cascade: Hanging wooden blocks, bird-safe wood chunks, or compressed cardboard toys will help satisfy your parrot’s need to chew.  
• SunGrow Bird Chew Toy, Medium & Large Parrot Foraging Blocks for Cage: Parrots like Amazons are dedicated foodies, so any opportunity to score a favorite treat will likely elicit a “Challenge accepted!” response. The most tricky foraging toys are often recommended for African grey parrots, which is a testament to their high-level problem-solving skills. 
• Super Bird Creations Birdie Ball: Amazon parrots are among the chunkier parrots, so getting your parrot off the perch and moving offers mental and physical benefits. Foot toys get your bird moving—some parrots like to throw and chase ball toys. 

Parakeets, aka budgies, are small but mighty. They tend to be busybodies, always on the go inside the cage.  

Toys meant to be interacted with, such as bell toys to ring, swing toys with beaded pieces to move around, and shreddable toys sized right for their smaller beaks are typically well received by parakeets.  

Toys to try for your parakeet include:  

• Super Bird Creations Binky Bop Bird Toy: Parakeets play hard, and this includes tossing their toys around or beating up toys meant to be knocked around and knocked down. 
• Super Bird Creations Crinkle Crinkle Little Star Bird Toy: They might have the smallest beaks among popular pet birds, but parakeet’s beaks pack a powerful pinch, and they like to take it out on toys they can shred apart.  
• Caitec Featherland Paradise Parakeet Swing Bird Toy: Parakeets need toys to match their high activity, so toys that swing and climbing toys will help keep them on the go. 

Cockatoos have the reputation of being “Velcro birds” because they are inclined to seek constant attention and close proximity to their favored people. For this reason, developing the ability to play independently is essential for a companion cockatoo’s well-being, making an assortment of toys essential.  

Cockatoo toys to try include: 

• Super Bird Creations PVC Forager Bird Toy: Cockatoos in the wild spend most of their day on the ground foraging for food, and foraging toys replicate this search-and-eat behavior by hiding treats in compartments for the bird to find, or puzzles to solve to reach a favorite treat.   
• Prevue Pet Products Playfuls Sink N Seek Bird Toy: Similar to foraging toys, puzzle toys are designed to test a cockatoo’s intelligence and can also involve figuring out how to reach a treat. Puzzle toys challenge a bird’s problem-solving skills as well as their dexterity and ability to move multiple toy elements simultaneously.  
• Super Bird Creations In the Groove Bird Toy: Cockatoos need a healthy outlet to put their strong beaks to good use, and, for many cockatoos, nothing is more satisfying than tearing apart wood; it is far better to have an appropriate wood toy for your cockatoo to destroy than your household furnishings. 

Good toys for conures include those that bounce and sway, as these birds love to move, and some conures even roll around on the ground to play.  

Here are toys to help your conure get their groove on:  

• Caitec Featherland Paradise Cotton Bungie Bird Toy: Rope perches designed to be springy are the birdie equivalent of a bounce house. Your conure will appreciate the opportunity to show off their ability to hang upside down while bobbing up and down. 
• Super Bird Creations Bird Foot Toy Bundle: Conures not only like to hold a foot toy while perched, but some like to lie on their back while juggling a foot toy with their feet.  
• Super Bird Creations Shredder Rolls Conure Chewable Toy: Conures like to have “chew projects” and will dedicate a good part of their day chewing away until they conquer a toy. Toys with softwood and/or cardboard elements will give your conure the satisfaction of shredding a toy to pieces.  

Macaws are the heavy hitters when it comes to toys, as they require the biggest and hardest toys to destroy since their beaks are large and powerful. 

• Super Bird Creations Beakasaurus Bird Toy: Toys made of hardwood or coconut shells will put your macaw’s chewing to the test. Macaws also enjoy softer wood pieces such as balsawood, which they might approach with a delicate touch for a more tactile experience. 
• Planet Pleasures Pineapple Foraging Bird Toy: Puzzle feeders, treat-dispensing toys, shreddable foraging boxes encourage problem-solving skills and mimic natural foraging behavior, which will go a long way in keeping the highly intelligent macaw’s mind engaged. This one is uniquely shaped as a pineapple! 
• Super Bird Creations SS Tube Bell Exercise Bird Toy: Macaws enjoy making noise, and hanging bells, rattles, and chimes will let them feel like the maestros of their space. 

Remember, bird toys need to be inspected for damage, and removed if parts are frayed and could become dangerous. Plan on a large toy budget for your birdie friends. 

Fill your pet bird’s world with a vibrant mix of toys, and watch them thrive! By tapping into their instincts to chew, explore, forage, and problem-solve, you’ll keep your pet bird engaged, active, and enjoying a life filled with enrichment.