# da bird longevity



## cinderflower (Apr 22, 2012)

I was just noticing how ratty the guinea feather attachments had become. I generally have quite a few new replacement ones, (before I caught on to buying the super pack, new pole and all) but I found out if you put two old ratty broken ones on there, they still think it's fun. my last pole and all its lures is about 1 1/2 years old, and it's about time to get another new one. is that about how long everyone else's lasts? I have two cats that are really rowdy with it. the old cat will play with it but only if it's dangled on her and the playing is so gentle that it doesn't really count.

but the thing I really noticed was the loss of swivel action on the older ones. the new one really does it with a fluttering swivel. I wonder if it stops because my cats really chomp down if they catch it. plus they almost always manage to break off part of a feather and eat it.


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## Alex Harris (May 4, 2012)

The feathers usually last about 2 weeks for me. My two get really rough with this toy and sometimes I have to replace sooner.


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## cinderflower (Apr 22, 2012)

WOW! I do NOT have rowdy cats compared to that! thanks for the perspective lol.


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## snowy (Aug 23, 2012)

ha, I don't use da-bird feather exclusively, I alternate between my diy feather, so the original feather actually lasted me around 6mths for 1 cat, then I had been using the DIYed ones until last week when I took out my spare original feather. Ya, when ET chomped on the original feather, bits and pieces of feather fall out, not sure if he swallowed any, but the moment I see it, I picked it up first. I've had this for approx 10mths now, the pole is still as good as new. But a word of caution, I find the original feather hard and can injure kitty's eye if not careful, I make sure I don't wave too close to the eye. I much prefer the softer feather replacement and I diy with a softer feather too.

In comparison, I like da-bird better than neko flies. I can't handle neko flies as well as da-bird and ET almost always manage to grab the neko flies attachment better and its harder to get him to release the attachment.


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## MowMow (Nov 6, 2010)

They usually last me one play session. Every single wand I've ever gotten has snapped in half and/or the feathers get chewed apart.

Book is VERY hard on wand toys.


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## wallycat (Nov 10, 2012)

I had not heard of this toy before....
I use a red pipe cleaner attached to a fishing line and pole. My cats go insane.


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## Wannabe Catlady (Aug 6, 2012)

Mine usually last months, but my cats are pretty gentle and I put it away immediately after play time. 


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## NBrazil (May 16, 2013)

About two weeks - string is usually broken first, which is a pain to re-attach.


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## snowy (Aug 23, 2012)

When I 1st got the da-bird, I re-tie the string with a fisherman's knot and use a torch to burn the edge, so it stays. And if ever the string gets dirty or frays, I happen to have one whole roll of the similar string.


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## Manue (Jan 3, 2013)

Mine lasts about 2 weeks if I leave it out, or a month if I hide it between play sessions. I got tired of buying replacements so I keep the red things at the end and put some colourful feathers from an arts and craft package. Not as good ad the original but close enough and cheaper.


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## Jetlaya67 (Sep 26, 2012)

Mine don't last long, maybe two weeks. For those that have done "do it yourself" replacements, how do you do it?


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## cinderflower (Apr 22, 2012)

snowy said:


> Ya, when ET chomped on the original feather, bits and pieces of feather fall out, not sure if he swallowed any, but the moment I see it, I picked it up first. I've had this for approx 10mths now, the pole is still as good as new.


the first time one of the cats has ever eaten a feather was a few weeks ago. Houdini managed to pull out one of the fluffy green ones from the soft attachment. I tried to get it but he ran from me and went, "nom nom nom," and I thought, "great. now i'll have green fluffy throw-up to clean up." but he didn't, and then I thought, "well cats eat feathers all the time."



MowMow said:


> They usually last me one play session. Every single wand I've ever gotten has snapped in half and/or the feathers get chewed apart.
> 
> Book is VERY hard on wand toys.


really! da bird wand is the only one I've ever bought that would last, I've never had one broken out of three. (but I've always bought the one piece. it isn't as long as the two-piece one, but at least i don't have to deal with it coming apart) two of my cats used them through kittenhood, which is probably as bad as it gets. I've seriously lifted up both of them (separately) off the floor trying to get them to turn loose. they probably weren't more than 4-5 lbs. at the time, but every other wand toy i'd pick up, like at the grocery store, would last exactly one play time and break or come apart. so even when I see cute toys, I don't get them because I would just have to throw them away.



Wannabe Catlady said:


> Mine usually last months, but my cats are pretty gentle and I put it away immediately after play time.


I definitely hide mine. I put it in the top drawer of my chest of drawers, and have hidden their cat charmers and cat dancer in the oven lol. if I ever left them out they'd be history in a week or less.



NBrazil said:


> About two weeks - string is usually broken first, which is a pain to re-attach.


i'm surprised by this too, it's another thing I've never had to re-attach on da bird. it's pretty heavy duty string, and for some reason, maybe the way I swing it, it ends up knotted. mostly around the end of it, and I don't always bother to take all those knots out.



Manue said:


> Mine lasts about 2 weeks if I leave it out, or a month if I hide it between play sessions. I got tired of buying replacements so I keep the red things at the end and put some colourful feathers from an arts and craft package. Not as good as the original but close enough and cheaper.


I've thought about doing that (keeping the red things) but what do you use to keep them in there after the cat catches them? super glue? I wish I knew how to tie my own fishing lures, but I don't.

before i discovered da bird, i thought i would be really smart and bought a child's Scooby-doo fishing pole. i figured reeling in the toy would be fun. ha. the first time i used it, the cat broke the line. the reel was all one piece and couldn't be replaced, so i had a $16 one-time toy. the line supposedly had a 50 lb. test on the line, but i don't think it really did.


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## 0ozma (Sep 22, 2012)

yeah... I only have one cat and it only lasts 1-2 weeks. 2 weeks is rare. Hachi likes to grab it and try to play tug-of-war and is very rough with it. This is while hiding it between sessions


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## Marcia (Dec 26, 2010)

I've had mine with it's three refills over a year with 5 cats! .....
They are all either afraid of it or indifferent to it. sheesh.


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## Jacq (May 17, 2012)

MowMow said:


> They usually last me one play session. Every single wand I've ever gotten has snapped in half and/or the feathers get chewed apart.
> 
> Book is VERY hard on wand toys.


If you see it somewhere for a good price, you could try the bamboozler. It's made out of this weaved plastic stuff (like the finger traps, but skinnier) and Io can't even make a dent in it even if we accidentally leave it out and she chews on it all day.

The bamboo stick is pretty flexible and sturdy, but I could probably snap it in half if I tried. The "string" part though is really slippery, so it's not like a cat can really get a good enough grip on it to snap the pole.

Here's the product, I got mine for a really good price (free!), but its worth $15 I think: Boinks Bamboozler


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## Mitts & Tess (Sep 4, 2004)

Whats the cheapest place to buy da bird? How much do you all pay?


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## MowMow (Nov 6, 2010)

The problem is always the wand stick. Book clamps on to it if he catches the lure and pulls HARD until I let go or the wand snaps. If I let go he runs off. If the wand gets nagged he'll pull until it breaks. IF it doesn't and he gets to wherever he's headed he chews the lure up.

Unless of course I can grab him and then I have to pry his jaws open while he growls and fights. He doesn't react well to his 'catch' being taken away.


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## cinderflower (Apr 22, 2012)

Mitts & Tess said:


> Whats the cheapest place to buy da bird? How much do you all pay?


amazon. i buy the super pack for about $15 (looks like it's on sale for $11, i might have to get another one Amazon.com: Da Bird Super Pack (Includes 1 Da Bird Original 36" Single Pole Cat Toy, Feather Refill, Sparkly Attachment, Kitty Puff Attachment, and Peacock Feather): Pet Supplies ). that comes with a one-piece wand, a fluffy soft feather, the usual guinea feather one, a rabbit fur piece, a sparkly one, and a peacock feather by itself (<---that one goes pretty fast but it's fun). if you buy all the replacements one at a time, they go for like $4.50 each, so that's why i just get new poles whether i need them or not. wait, maybe i lied and bought the rabbit fur one single, now i can't remember. and i didn't even know you could break one of these wands (well i never actually *tried* to lol) because i think they're fiberglass and the way i fit it in the drawer, it has to bend a little and it always does.

Mow Mow, Book sounds turbo-destructive with a wand toy lol so you might try a cat dancer. they're only 2.99, look ridiculous because all they are is a piece of wire, kind of curved (you store it that way to, i do anyway) with little rolled-up pieces of cardboard on the end. i'm sure he'll gnaw them apart once he catches it because mine do, but if you can keep it away from him for a little while, he will go berserk over this toy. and it's cheap enough that you don't feel completely ripped off when they get it all chewed up. usually if one of mine gets it and doesn't want to let go, it's not that hard for me to get it back because it's wire, but if i let the cat take it, they retreat to a corner and chew on it for awhile. then i go get it and put it away after they've forgotten about it.

you can also get one that hooks on the door for like $5 but i never have because it's too much fun to play _with_ them.


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## Mitts & Tess (Sep 4, 2004)

thanks for the info


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## Straysmommy (Dec 23, 2010)

The refills stop fluttering when the "stem" of the feather is broken. This can happen the first time it's used or never, depending on how it's used.


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