New to forum and have questions/need advice

[PSps]

All - Thank you for this forum. I had no idea this existed and I am so grateful for it as I think I need help.

We own a GC Conure, have had about 3 years. We purchased from a local pet shop and we have the hatch certificate and he is about 5 years old. We have other pets as well and getting Breez time alone with us has been a trial! But we make sure he is out and about with us at least an hour+ every evening. Every other pet goes up and out of site so we can spend time alone with Breez.

I have so many questions I just don't know where to start - Breez stays in a large cage on the 1st floor during the day and moves upstairs to his bed cage when we go upstairs at night. So he gets a lot of social interaction all day.
We have never done a DNA test because, honestly, it didn't seem to matter to us but now I am wondering if that is correct. Breez goes to the vet annually and is healthy as far as we know.

But now I am concerned about his diet. He is picky but will eat grains and seeds and fruit (which we limit to 1 or 2 x a week) But I have to say we have had bad advice on Breez's diet and I am REALLY worried about it. I mean we have had Breez for a few years and I don't think he has had the right diet all this time and I am sick with concern about this! Until I found this forum I had no idea and I could kick myself for it. Can I get advice on what exactly he should be eating every day? He eats a fruit blend ZuPreem and has grains such as tortillas and crackers every day. He loves potato! But until recently I had no idea what else to feed him. I have only recently been feeding him proteins. I saw mentioned on this forum about pellets but we tried feeding these before and he won't eat them. Now I saw here where that is an important part of the diet so please advice on this.

He was never a bitey bird until the past few weeks. I don't know what has started this and I need advice on that too please. When we move him from the 1st floor to the 2nd floor cage he never bites. He has started biting every morning when I move him to the 1st floor, is every day now that Breez does this.

I know this is a lot of info to ask for but I am so concerned about the biting and his diet. I REALLY appreciate any advice!

 

[texsize]

So for diet Veggies are important. Some people make what is called "chop" blended veggies and greens (like kale). Pellets are good and there is lot's of varieties.
People swear and argue endlessly over what brand is best but the best pellet in the world won't do your bird any good if he does not eat it.
Birdie bread is another good option and you can find lot's of recopies here or just googleing birdy bread.
Crackers have salt and that's not good though I admit I give my birds small bits of no no food (salty/sweat) now and then.

As for the biting your bird could be going through puberty. I don't know when Conure's go through puberty but there are lot's of conure owners that I am sure can help you out more.
Welcome to the forum.

 

[Casper223]

All - Thank you for this forum. I had no idea this existed and I am so grateful for it as I think I need help.

We own a GC Conure, have had about 3 years. We purchased from a local pet shop and we have the hatch certificate and he is about 5 years old. We have other pets as well and getting Breez time alone with us has been a trial! But we make sure he is out and about with us at least an hour+ every evening. Every other pet goes up and out of site so we can spend time alone with Breez.

I have so many questions I just don't know where to start - Breez stays in a large cage on the 1st floor during the day and moves upstairs to his bed cage when we go upstairs at night. So he gets a lot of social interaction all day.
We have never done a DNA test because, honestly, it didn't seem to matter to us but now I am wondering if that is correct. Breez goes to the vet annually and is healthy as far as we know.

But now I am concerned about his diet. He is picky but will eat grains and seeds and fruit (which we limit to 1 or 2 x a week) But I have to say we have had bad advice on Breez's diet and I am REALLY worried about it. I mean we have had Breez for a few years and I don't think he has had the right diet all this time and I am sick with concern about this! Until I found this forum I had no idea and I could kick myself for it. Can I get advice on what exactly he should be eating every day? He eats a fruit blend ZuPreem and has grains such as tortillas and crackers every day. He loves potato! But until recently I had no idea what else to feed him. I have only recently been feeding him proteins. I saw mentioned on this forum about pellets but we tried feeding these before and he won't eat them. Now I saw here where that is an important part of the diet so please advice on this.

He was never a bitey bird until the past few weeks. I don't know what has started this and I need advice on that too please. When we move him from the 1st floor to the 2nd floor cage he never bites. He has started biting every morning when I move him to the 1st floor, is every day now that Breez does this.

I know this is a lot of info to ask for but I am so concerned about the biting and his diet. I REALLY appreciate any advice!

Hey Psps and welcome to The Parrot Forum..... I have to agree with Texsize on the biting issue. There is a facebook page if you have facebook search Avian Raw Whole Food Nutrition Look for the man standing next to the produce, the other is a knock off. You will find some great food choices, videos, recipe's there. I also use a book named A Parrot's Fine Cuisine Cookbook & Nutritional Guide Although I don't consider it to be the Bible of Parrot nutrition, it has lists and lists of good fruits, good vegetables and the bad ones also. The facebook page I referred you too, He is a major contributor to the book. I hope this helps you get a good start, it's sure a lot of great information at your disposal.

 

[Jen5200]

Welcome to you and Breez! I have 4 conures, all were rescues that came to me as adults (usually on a not-great diet).

There are a million opinions on what the perfect diet is for birds, and the information available is always changing as we learn more - so just think of diet as something that will always be changing, adjusting and improving....and don’t worry too much about the past!

I tend to run with the logic that captive birds are not as active as they would be in the wild, so they probably need fewer carbs and sugars. Veggies are lower calorie than fruit, and have lots of vitamins and minerals - so I generally feed a much larger portion of veggies than fruit. I feed a few whole grains and a bit of seed with the largest portion of their diet being pellets and chop. I’m not a fan of adding protein to their diet - I haven’t found anything convincing that says there’s a benefit to it. I have seen opinions that high protein in their diet can contribute to worse hormone seasons for them (nothing scientific, but I’d be curious if his recent biting issues coincide with the addition of extra protein?).

Pellets - feed the best pellet that they will eat reliably. My 5 birds all prefer different pellets - so I have Zupreem natural, Roudybush, Zupreem fruity, Lefaber and TOPs in my house lol.

Anyhow, there’s tons of info in the diet and recipes section....welcome again

 

[noodles123]

Also- some biting can be related to hormones. There is usually still a behavioral component to it, but you will want to make sure you are minimizing hormonal impacts to get the best results out of daily interactions and training sessions. What do you (and others ) do immediately after the bites (what do you say, does proximity change, does your plan to move him change, do others run over, do you put him down, do you make a sound etc)?

Make sure you have no dark spaces in his cage (shadowy areas/tents/low ledges/ hollows etc) and make sure he doesn't access shadowy spaces outside of his cage (such as under clothing, blankets, furniture etc).
Pet on the head/neck only (petting and snuggles elsewhere send the wrong message and these sexual behaviors stimulate hormone production in birds.
Avoid warm/mushy food if you think your bird is hormonal, as this is another trigger in many.
12 hours of solid/dark/uninterrupted sleep nightly is also a must for immune and hormone regulation.

Hormonal birds who misinterpret their owners as mates (or those triggered by the environment) can exhibit creaming, aggression, plucking and other problem behaviors (including potentially deadly egg-binding in females).

 

[Dots]

Please encourage pellets. I’ve let my amazon eat seeds her whole 21 years and now she and I may have to pay for it as she has been diagnosed with fatty liver disease. Trying to reserve it but it’s goung to be hard to do, if at all�� Nd er wanted pellets so I gave up a long time ago. Trying to get her to eat them now and she won’t do it so I’m focusing on fresh food, eggs, chicken, blueberries, papaya, romaine lettuce. Always loved fresh corn too and now I think that’s no good. I’m new here too and hoping for some good advice

 

[Flboy]

Hi and welcome!

 

[Scott]

Welcome to you and Breez, thanks for joining. Excellent advice so far, might be the onset of puberty or hormonal issue, as previously mentioned.

Diet is a complex subject and is crucial for long term health. Pellets are generally better than an all-seed diet, but fresh vegetables and some fruits are essential. In my opinion, there are better pellets than Zupreem Fruit Blend, fairly high in corn, sugar, and artificial color. Birds can be fussy with food, so the "best" pellet is the one Breez actually eats.

A few threads from our Food/Diet forum:
http://www.parrotforums.com/parrot-...7-converting-parrots-healthier-diet-tips.html
http://www.parrotforums.com/parrot-...afe-fresh-foods-toxic-food-lists-sprouts.html
http://www.parrotforums.com/parrot-food-recipes-diet/49831-chop-day-recipe.html