Benefits to Colorful Toys?

by masonbee Sat 15 Apr 2017, 2:51 pm

Hello!
I've noticed that a lot of small animal toys and products are super brightly colored. I like to make my own toys, (plus my partner has a very particular sense of design Wink

) so I was wondering if there's any benefit to having toys be bright, rainbow colors as opposed to more natural hues. To my knowledge, mice have a very limited perception of color, right?
I was thinking that toys are so colorful because people think of them like baby/toddler toys.

by PastelMouse Sat 15 Apr 2017, 3:01 pm

I think it's just for aesthetic. After all, marketing colorful toys is common with small pets because a lot of kids have them. My experiences with small animals haven't proven any difference. I personally like plain toys because a lot of pet store toys have dye that runs.

Edit: Since your making them yourselves just make what you think looks good. Be sure you use safe dye if you make colored toys!

by masonbee Sat 15 Apr 2017, 3:59 pm

PastelMouse wrote:I think it's just for aesthetic. After all, marketing colorful toys is common with small pets because a lot of kids have them. My experiences with small animals haven't proven any difference. I personally like plain toys because a lot of pet store toys have dye that runs.

Edit: Since your making them yourselves just make what you think looks good. Be sure you use safe dye if you make colored toys!

Right right that totally makes sense!
I usually just like natural looking ones, but was thinking of working with vegetable dyes! I'll definitely do some research if I decide to

by River Sat 15 Apr 2017, 4:25 pm

Parrots love bright colors -- so bird toys are super colorful, and work well for mice if chosen right. However, small animal toys that are bright really are just for aesthetic purposes, yep! Have fun making toys.

by PastelMouse Sat 15 Apr 2017, 4:50 pm

masonbee wrote:
PastelMouse wrote:I think it's just for aesthetic. After all, marketing colorful toys is common with small pets because a lot of kids have them. My experiences with small animals haven't proven any difference. I personally like plain toys because a lot of pet store toys have dye that runs.

Edit: Since your making them yourselves just make what you think looks good. Be sure you use safe dye if you make colored toys!

Right right that totally makes sense!
I usually just like natural looking ones, but was thinking of working with vegetable dyes! I'll definitely do some research if I decide to

That should work well. I also think any non-toxic dye that doesn't run in water works well.

But with store-bought toys, if you put them in water, they start to color the water. If you're toys don't do this they'll be fine. You just want to make sure they don't eat the dye, or get it on their fur.

Good luck, your mice will surely love the new toys! Making custom ones is really fun. Smile

by CallaLily Sat 15 Apr 2017, 6:50 pm

Mice have limited color vision. Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but it's my understanding that they see color like a person who is red-green colorblind. So they see in duller shades of yellows and blues.

So yep, those colorful toys are just to pull us into buying them. Though it doesn't hurt anything. Go with what you prefer, just as was mentioned be sure to use safe dyes. Food coloring is generally considered safe. You can usually find natural, veggie-based food coloring at most grocery stores.

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