Animal Experiences team leader Lizzy says she and her team can be training with birds - from macaws, lorikeets, galahs, and other parrots, to emu - up to 20 times a day, and their hands are constantly dipping in and out of the pouches. It’s a stimulating and enriching experience for these birds...and also means the pouches take a real hammering.
“The ‘off the shelf’ pouches we’ve been using that have had to come from overseas were quite pricy and would fray and break within a pretty short time, and we’ve been really keen for a sustainable local alternative,” explains Lizzy, our Animal Experiences team leader.
Sewers extraordinaire - volunteer coordinator Diana and volunteers Beth and Elizabeth were right on the job. After creating the perfect pouch design, both sewers and sewing machines were pushed to their outermost limits by the heavy-duty fabric.
But soon the talented trio delivered nine bespoke pouches, that in every way are proving far superior to the off-the-shelf ones. Every pouch comes complete with different pockets for different treats, a drawstring to close the pouch when not in use (to stop thieving birds!). Plus, to every team member’s delight – as well as being tailored for their individual hand sizes, their own name has been beautifully embroidered, and stars front and centre!