Bad habits are difficult to break. They can cause great distress for:

• The horse owner
• the boarding stable owner
• and the horse

Below are some ideas horse toys that might help keep your equine buddy occupied.

The “Jolly Ball” Can be pushed, pulled – even stepped on – and if not bitten or punctured, will re-inflate on its own.

I had a ball for my horse to kick around. She broke it immediately. I can’t remember what kind it was but it was not cheap and it still broke.

If you are going to get a ball make sure it has a warranty!

Horse Treats

This cylinder shaped horse toy has treats inside. When the horse pushes it with his nose, the treats fall out. This type of toy is supposed to encourage horses to graze in their natural, head-down position, while treats are dispensed by gravity. As long as there are treats it will provide hours of stimulation. Shown is one that is mounted on the wall.

Giant Scented Apple

This is a popular and relatively inexpensive horse toy. 10 inch high red plastic apple in the stall to amuse him. Hang it up from the ceiling and he will butt it with his head. It is a good deterrent for horses that have taken up the terrible habit of weaving side to side.

“Jolly Stall Snack with Apple Treat”

A new tasty way for your horse to be entertained, while helping to alleviate stall boredom. Hang it from the ceiling of the box stall.

The treat that goes inside is also sold separately. The horse can finish up the treat sometimes very quickly by knocking it out of the holder and gobbling it up. It is a great boredom alleviator if he licks it as he is supposed to do.

Make your own Amusement Ball

Horse toys don’t have to be expensive or complicated to make.

Here is what it takes to Make your own amusement ball.

Supplies needed

Directions

Clean out the empty container. Pierce small holes (about 10) around the sides of the jug, tie a strong rope to the handle and hang it from the ceiling low enough for the horse to be able to butt it with his nose.

Open the cap fill it a small quantity of grain or treats such as apple crunch and let him figure it out. If it breaks just make a new one.

The Scratch-Scratch-Post

A Scratch’n Pole provides a safe and comfortable place for your horse to scratch.
Natural sisal rope is wound around a heavy duty plastic pipe and supplies the feel good scratch for your horse, and can easily be replaced when worn out.

To make one:

Take a piece of strong rubber or plastic piping wrap it around with twine and fasten it to a wall of the box stall.

How about getting your horse a pet.

Perhaps a rabbit. My friend Anna Maria had a rabbit for her horse. The rabbit hopped around in the stall and the horse never stepped on it. The Rabbit was good company. A goat is also a good pet for a horse. But they tend to eat everything in sight. A rabbit is less upkeep.

By Ronnie Kellner

For more information on other horse games please visit my website http://www.livingwithhorses.com. Living with horses was created after moving to our ranch in St. Lazare, Quebec. As city “slickers” my husband and I sold our duplex in downtown Montreal, packed up our graphic design office and moved everything out to the country. We did it on a whim and we never looked back! Isn’t it time you started living your dream? I think life is about having experiences and having fun in the mean time.

Copyright 2009 Fine Pet Care.com. All Rights Reserved.

Many birds become very unhappy rather quickly due to the boredom of sitting in an empty cage. Birds have very active minds and strong beaks they need to work out in order to help keep them occupied and happy. Boredom is one of the reasons why many birds become pluckers and pull out their own feathers. This is why it is important to choose the right toys for your new pet bird.

When choosing a toy for your pet bird it is important to make sure that you choose a toy that is the right size. Some toys are specifically designed for smaller birds and are not always safe if you have a large pet bird. Larger birds have much stronger beaks and can easily break apart toys that were designed for smaller birds. This can be a potential choking hazard.

An extremely popular toy for many smaller birds are swing sets and Olympic rings. Many birds get so much enjoyment out of these two types of toys that they will in fact try to swing on both of them at the same time. Some larger birds also enjoy playing on swing sets, but the majority of bigger birds are not as fond of them as their smaller brethren. Toy ladders are a favorite of birds of all sizes but you have to make sure that you have adequate room in your pet bird’s cage.

If you have a bird that has tendencies to pluck a lot, it would be in you and your birds best interest to buy toys which can be preened. Keeping your little buddy busy preening their toys means they are much less likely to spend time pulling out their own feathers. If you purchase a toy that has been made with cotton preening strips you need to pay close attention for any threads that begin to fray. A loose thread could easily tangle around your bird’s neck or foot. Preening toys composed of feathers are significantly safer since you do not have the dangers of any loose threads.

Toy play gyms for pet birds are a lot like the gyms in which children play, and many birds get almost the same amount of enjoyment from their play gyms as children do theres. Most bird play gyms include climbing ropes, perches, ladders, seesaws as well as swings and a small bowl for treats.

There are certain toys you should think twice about giving your pet bird. Any toy that has a mirror or highly reflective surface may cause your bird to become bonded with its own reflection. Also toys with flimsy parts with tiny attachments that are not securely fastened such a small bells can also be a bad idea. If your bird manages to pull off any tiny part from one of its toys it may end up swallowing it, and the results could be fatal.

Lastly worth pointing out is the fact that many birds, just like children are quite happy playing with simple objects rather than expensive toys. For example, a paper towel tube or something like a wooden tongue depressor can be quite a joy for many birds. As always be sure to supervise and watch your pet bird closely to make sure they do not injure themselves with whatever it is that they are playing with.

For more information on caring for your parrot or parakeet or any pet bird visit us at http://pet-birds.lifestyle-web.net

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Stacy_Richford
http://EzineArticles.com/?Choosing-The-Right-Toys-To-Keep-Your-Pet-Bird-Happy-And-Healthy&id=280897

Copyright 2009 Fine Pet Care.com. All Rights Reserved.

In the next few paragraphs, we will explore new ideas and thoughts that may help you achieve your goal and decide what is best for you when choosing toys for your cats.

Toys for girl cats and boys:

When the mouse is away, cats play. And cats have the tendency to both play hard and play soft. Toys are to cats the same as toys are to dogs. It helps fight the boredom experienced by these pets as well as gives our feline friends the opportunity to practice and use their natural inclination to chase and hunt for prey. It also gives the cat owner that great chance to play with their pets, an experience that will aid in bonding their relationship.

But what toys are best for cats? The following are tips and helpful advice to get that perfect toy for the cat owners perfect pets.

Play safe:

The good thing about cats is that they can play ball inside the house and the owners will never know it. Still, there may be things inside the house that cats could find attractive yet might actually endanger their health and safety. Houses must be cat-friendly. As much as possible, take away any string, yarn, needles, rubber bands or other objects that could easily be swallowed by cats. These things could be lethal to cats. Do not let them play with these articles no matter how cute they may appear to be.

Play soft:

Choose soft toys that can easily be machine-washed. It is best that the toys chosen to be played with by cats are also the toys marked as safe to be played with by children below three years old. Toys such as these usually contain fillings that are not hazardous. Also, avoid giving cats toys that are hard and rigid, these types do not appeal to them that much.

Know your cat, know their toy:

It is best that one also familiarize themselves with your cat. Doing so helps in ones selection of the kind of plaything that best serves the size of ones cat – the kind of activity the cat likes and its unique preferences. Know the environment in which the cat likes to spend its time the most.

Choose active toys:

Toys that are great to play with for cats are usually the round plastic ones (such as rings from shower curtains, plastic balls, golf balls, balls used in ping-pong) as these give cats the opportunity to chase and paw around. They could also carry these in their mouths, make sure though that these are big enough they cannot be swallowed but not so large that they cannot carry them in their mouths.

Choose active play:

Balls can be placed inside bath tubs filled with water. Watch as cats frolic and play on and around the toy. It is just as enjoyable to the cat as it is fun for the cat owner. Another added feature that could be placed on balls are bells. One not only sees how cats play, one could also listen and take pleasure in the playful sound
.
Another simple yet effective plaything for cats is a paper bag. Use paper bags that do not have handles. These bags are good for pouncing around. Cats hide in them too. As much as possible, avoid the plastic ones as cats have the tendency to chew these and they may eat the plastic. This is not good.

Toys with tails:

Cats like playing with soft toy animals – specially the ones that have tails. They either bite them, paw them or chase these little stuffed toys around. It is best if these toys are as big or as small as the cats playing them.

Toys with catnip:

Catnip is sometimes used as stuffing for toys that are soft. Putting catnip in such playthings make the toys more enjoyable to carry, kick and throw around. More importantly, it is safe for cats to chew on, roll around in, or eat.
It is okay for owners to place catnip on carpeted floors, or (to make clean-up easy) on towels. There are now catnip oils that can be placed on carpets, and they usually stay there. Cats detect these too. Although small cats, specifically kittens who are younger than six months have shown a certain kind of immunity to catnip.

All in all, it is best that cat owners define what kind of toy should be played by their cats. It is advisable that different kinds of toys be given on certain days, and that displaying all toys simultaneously may not be a good idea. Cats can easily tire of seeing the same fluffy toy animal again and again. Variety always works best. However if cats show a certain liking to a specific toy, let them play with it, or sleep with it – whichever they like. In closing, it will benefit you to seek out other resources on this topic if you feel that you don’t yet have a firm understanding of the subject matter.

Ken Charnely is webmaster at two of Internet’s popular article directories. For more articles on this topic and for free content for your website visit ArticleTeller.com and ContentWOW.com

Copyright 2009 Fine Pet Care.com. All Rights Reserved.

Bedding material serves two purposes: as a soft cushion for your hamster to walk on, but also to soak up urine. Hamsters love to burrow and dig so make sure you place at least two inches of material on the bottom of your hamster cage. The most common material used for bedding material is wood shavings, but it’s important that you NEVER use Cedar shavings. Cedar shavings contain a chemical that can cause serious illness in your hamster, so it’s best to avoid it altogether. Pine shavings are an option, but have been shown to cause allergic reactions in some hamsters. Your best bet is bedding material made from Aspen shavings or litter made from wood pulp. Also try to avoid any scented products – it may smell great to you but your hamster’s sensitive nose will not appreciate it.

You may think that simple cat litter would do, but the dust from the litter can cause respiratory issues for your hamster, and the tiny grains get caught in your hamster’s feet causing irritation. Hamsters spend the entire day sleeping, so they like things comfy. They’ll construct their nest out of whatever is available, including bedding material, but would prefer something a little softer. Shredded paper towel or bathroom tissue would be ideal, as long as it doesn’t have dye and is unscented.

Although you may be tempted to supply your hamster with cotton for his nest this should be avoided at all times. The cotton strands can get wrapped around the hamster’s limbs or neck, cutting off blood supply. Stick to bedding material or the shredded paper for nesting material.

Exercise wheels are a must have for your hamster cage. In the wild hamsters roam up to five miles every night in search of food, so whether they’re in a cage or out in the desert they’re going to feel the need to run! The most common hamster wheel that comes to mind is the wire frame wheel, with rungs laid across the length of the wheel. These can be very dangerous for your hamster, as a missed step can lead to the hamster putting his leg between the spokes while it’s turning, thereby breaking his leg. The ideal choice is a hamster wheel with a solid base and entry holes instead of spokes. This greatly reduces the chance of injury for your hamster.

Although you can place a food dish in your hamster cage, it really isn’t necessary. Hamsters love to forage for their food, so simply sprinkling their food throughout the bedding material in their cage will suit them just fine. In fact, if you do put food in a food dish they’re likely to simply remove it and store it elsewhere anyway! As for water bottles, any water bottle designed for small animals should do just fine as long as the spout has a ball bearing at the end and a screw on top.

Consider adding extra toys to the cage to enrich your hamster’s life, such as cardboard tubes, a wood gnaw, a sand box, a hamster house, etc. Your hamster will thank you for it!

Visit the Hamster-Zone website for even more detailed information on hamster care, hamster diet, hamster cages, and much, much more. Learn important tips on how to keep your hamster healthy and happy, including proper diet, care, and cage enrichment.

Copyright 2009 Fine Pet Care.com. All Rights Reserved.