Hi folks,
Alice had her first visit to the vet last week, and his only negative comment was to point out that she was a little on the porky side. We discussed what she was currently eating and what I'd done so far to improve things, and he thought we were already on the right track but that once she was settled in a bit better it would be worth looking at getting her in shape. He suggested introducing pellets, but I'm a bit at sea as to how much I should be giving, so was hoping for some pointers from the rb2 community?
When I brought her home her diet was basically a nut and seed mix. The shop mixed in bits of fruit and veg chop but having observed her sorting through her food bowl I suspect she was discarding most of these. Fruit is a definite no-no, and raw veg is nibbled at with little enthusiasm. Boiled peas and sweet corn are hoovered up with gusto and I'm giving those every morning - about 10 to 15 of each - and she likes wholewheat pasta and rice, so she gets those two or three times a week.
Out of the big bag of seed, nut and dried fruit supplied with her, I now give her one tea spoon of it in the morning, then about the same again hidden if various foraging locations for her to sniff out while I'm at work - she seemed to have as much seed as she wanted in the shop, so this seems a big improvement! She also gets a few monkey nuts and a broken up walnut a day in the way of treats.
This week we've introduced Harrison's High Potency Fine pellets. Took a few days to get her interested but today I left out the same as the seed mix, one teaspoon in the bowl and one scattered in my usual hiding places, and it's all gone this evening so she obviously likes it.
With anything new I've gone for smaller amounts to start with so I can easily see if she's eating it. Left overs are discarded, bowls disinfected and fresh food served each morning. When I bring the bowl back from the kitchen she's usually sat patiently on the perch by the bowl holder with a hopeful expression on her face!
So, how should I be working out quantities for these elements? Do pellets need to be rationed to a set amount a day or can she eat as much as she wants? Is two teaspoons of seed/nut mix still too much? Presumably the fresh veg can be unlimited? Help!
Alice had her first visit to the vet last week, and his only negative comment was to point out that she was a little on the porky side. We discussed what she was currently eating and what I'd done so far to improve things, and he thought we were already on the right track but that once she was settled in a bit better it would be worth looking at getting her in shape. He suggested introducing pellets, but I'm a bit at sea as to how much I should be giving, so was hoping for some pointers from the rb2 community?
When I brought her home her diet was basically a nut and seed mix. The shop mixed in bits of fruit and veg chop but having observed her sorting through her food bowl I suspect she was discarding most of these. Fruit is a definite no-no, and raw veg is nibbled at with little enthusiasm. Boiled peas and sweet corn are hoovered up with gusto and I'm giving those every morning - about 10 to 15 of each - and she likes wholewheat pasta and rice, so she gets those two or three times a week.
Out of the big bag of seed, nut and dried fruit supplied with her, I now give her one tea spoon of it in the morning, then about the same again hidden if various foraging locations for her to sniff out while I'm at work - she seemed to have as much seed as she wanted in the shop, so this seems a big improvement! She also gets a few monkey nuts and a broken up walnut a day in the way of treats.
This week we've introduced Harrison's High Potency Fine pellets. Took a few days to get her interested but today I left out the same as the seed mix, one teaspoon in the bowl and one scattered in my usual hiding places, and it's all gone this evening so she obviously likes it.
With anything new I've gone for smaller amounts to start with so I can easily see if she's eating it. Left overs are discarded, bowls disinfected and fresh food served each morning. When I bring the bowl back from the kitchen she's usually sat patiently on the perch by the bowl holder with a hopeful expression on her face!
So, how should I be working out quantities for these elements? Do pellets need to be rationed to a set amount a day or can she eat as much as she wants? Is two teaspoons of seed/nut mix still too much? Presumably the fresh veg can be unlimited? Help!