FEEDING MY FLOCK

PELLETS VS SEED - NO CONTEST!

	Years ago, I started out with just one bird - a Quaker parakeet. Like so many others just starting out, I fed that one bird a commercial seed based diet. Several years later, I made the switch from seed to pellets when a Blue and Gold Macaw named Brock, joined our household.
When I adopted Brock in 1998, I was told she was “somewhere between 25 & 30 years old”. She had spent most of her life confined to her cage with little human interaction. Her thankfully roomy cage consisted of one “toy” - a huge rawhide donut on a grungy chain. She seemed to have no idea what to do with toys and was totally unfamiliar with the idea of chewing on wood. What a tragedy considering how Macaws love to chew! So what does a bird who has no toys do - alone in her cage all day?
	In Brock's case, she entertained herself by plucking out her feathers. The plucking went on for so long, that now, years later, the follicles are exhausted, the feathers no longer grow. To make matters worse, because Brock was unfamiliar with the concept of baths or showers, her skin was very dry. Today, Brock has beautiful, iridescent feathers on her head, neck, wings and tail. Her body is as bare as an oven-ready Cornish hen - and always will be.
My avian vet suggested Harrison’s High Potency Pellets instead of seed. At first the birds refused the pellets. Afraid they might starve themselves, I tried mixing seed with pellets - they picked out the seed leaving the pellets untouched. The vet suggested I try leaving pellets in the cages all day, offering seed for only 20 minutes per day, allowing them to eat all they wanted in that 20 minutes. Once they began to eat the pellets, I just stopped feeding the seed.
	That's Huey to the left and as you can see - he LOVES raspberries! While I do offer my birds various quality seeds such as pumpkin, squash and pepper, I no longer feed commercially prepared seed diets of any kind. Feeding a diet of seed is like sending your child off to school with a good lunch, once there, the child eats the cookies and potato chips and throws the sandwich, apple and carrot sticks in the trash. When offered seed, birds will pick out the tastiest bits. These are usually the ones highest in fat and least nutritious like the sunflower seed and peanuts. Then you throw out what the bird doesn't eat. Besides being wasteful, all those seed hulls make a terrific mess each time the bird flaps it's wings. Veterinarians report that birds who exist on commercial seed diets alone are usually found to have multiple vitamin deficiencies. Such birds are nearly always deficient in vitamin A.
Now I feed all my birds a daily base diet of Harrison’s with the addition of fresh vegetables, greens, sprouts, fruit and a few nuts. I also include moderate amounts of healthy table food, Birdy bread and other recipes that I prepare especially for my birds as well as healthy cook and serve mixes such as CRAZY CORN. This seems to keep them all happy, healthy and thriving. Check out some of my recipes on the RECIPE page of this site.
	When my birds awaken in the morning they all have pellets available in their cages so I know they eat these before they have a chance to fill up on anything else. Every day, late morning or early afternoon, the birds each get a bowl of 5-6 different types of fresh vegetables which often includes greens and sprouts along with a few bites of fruit. I top it this off with a sprinkling of pine nuts and pumkin seeds and 1 - 2 nuts depending on the size of the bird. Nuts are usually almonds, sometimes walnuts. I never feed peanuts. Peanuts are very high in fat. Too much fat in the diet leads to obesity which can result in fatty liver disease. In addition, peanuts can harbor an invisible mold responsible for a disease called aspergillosis. Almonds and walnuts, relished by most birds are a good source of protein and calcium and are a much healthier choice overall.
Birds are a lot like kids when it comes to eating. If every time your child said “I don’t like it”, you were to take them at their word and stop serving that food, the child would never learn to enjoy a variety of foods and of course grow up to be a picky eater. If you keep trying, keep offering different foods in a variety of ways, sooner or later they may just decide they really DO like it after all. If your bird won’t eat certain vegetables whole, try chopping, grating or slicing. If raw vegetables don’t go over well, try steaming them lightly. Try the Layered Salad recipe on my RECIPE page. Birds love to forage through the many ingredients in search of favorites and in the process might just try something they hadn't really planned on! ************************************************ Feeding companion parrots can be a controversial subject. I have tried many different types of diets for my birds. The method that I have settled on is the one that I feel seems to best suit my flock. My parrots are all healthy, happy and have an iridescent glow to their feathers - a sure sign of overall good health! Of course, you should use your own good judgment when deciding what works for you and yours.
	When it comes to feeding baby birds...I choose Scenic Hand Weaning Pellets. For years, I have used this product to hand fed all of our baby birds. Scenic is excellent as a hand feeding food for babies 21 days or older. It also helps ease a young bird's transition from hand feeding to pellets. Laughing Parrot babies never go to their permanent, forever homes until they are fully weaned. Even so, when the baby does leave here, I always send a supply of Scenic along with them. When young birds leave the security of the only home and humans they have known they will occasionally regress back to hand feeding in search of the security it provides. Hand feeding using formula in a syringe is tricky and can be dangerous for someone inexperienced. New owners, whether experienced or not, find it very easy to feed using Scenic pellets.
Scenic is simple to use - just soak in hot water and feed warm from your fingertips. Unlike feeding with a syringe, there is little if any risk of aspirating the young bird. The act of feeding the youngster soft, warm, wet food with the fingers provides the baby with a sense of comfort and security. It helps create a bond and assures the baby that he does indeed still have someone he can depend on, a Momma who will continue to provide for his every need. For more information or to order Scenic Hand Weaning Pellets, vist the "Weaning Food" page of this website.