What Do Your Birds Eat (Be Honest!)

Okay, so I try to give my birds a somewhat healthy diet, but I really slack off during the winter because I don't have access to wild grass seed from the yard, dandelions, chickweed, purslane, or vegetables from our garden. Sure, I can buy them stuff from the store, but there's hardly any organic veggies for sale, and the vegetables come in too large of quantities (seriously, a thing of wilted Swiss chard takes us humans at least 3 huge meals to eat up).

During the spring, summer, and fall, I give my guys sprouts at least 4 days a week (lentils, mung beans, millet, grains, etc.), at least five different veggies a day (lettuce, dandelion, chickweed, purslane, beet leaves, carrot leaves, tomato, Swiss chard, etc.), Goldn'obles III, TOPs, and birdie bread. Maybe some mash, if I'm not too lazy. However, they've only been getting millet, TOPs, Goldn'obles III, and birdie bread lately.

When I hear about how everyone feeds their birds mostly veggies and all sorts of healthy stuff, it makes me feel like I'm a bad parent. My guys don't eat nearly as many veggies as they should, and probably get too much seed and pellets. At best, they eat 10g of veggies a day. Then again, the pellets they eat have a ton of fruits and veggies in them.

My ol' man is a health/fitness nut, so it'should easy to mooch healthy veggies, grains, etc. from his menumber. About 50% of Rb's diet is Harrison's. A few almonds a week. A few sunflower seeds in the summer when my sister-in-law grows them.

Now then... MY DIET?????
Ummmmm...

Well keep in mind that several of my birds are breeders which is why they need the seed content.

This is their daily diet.

DRY FOOD:
Roudybush mini
Royal seeds
Egg food
Fruit cocktail
Cuttle bone
Mineral block

FRESH FOOD
At least one leafy green
At least one sprout
At least one non green veggie
At least one fruit


SUPPLEMENTS
red pepper
Cinnamon
Ginger

(SOME birds get featherific, bee pollen, or other issue-specific supplements).



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Sage, please, how do you serve that cinnamon/ginger? I already sprinkle some ground dried pepper on the Harrison's now and then...

I know I am not a good daddy now.
Salty gets free access to Roudybush Maintainence all day
1/2 a peanut as soon as he wakes up
Lunch is at least two kinds of fruit
Dinner is chop mixed with Avicake Parrot or 1/3 or a sweet 'tater or 1/3 of a squash. The chop meals I try to vary by mixing in some baby food - carrots, peas, beans, or other baby food veggies.
He gets pine nuts when we train, each nut cut up into 3rds or 4ths.

Oddly enough, it's chop makin time in the ol' Wrench-a-roosa this weekend, having gone thru 62 or so baggies of chop from the last session. I will be stealing some recipes from here,I know that !

GaleriaGila said:

Sage, please, how do you serve that cinnamon/ginger? I already sprinkle some ground dried pepper on the Harrison's now and then...

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I mix all my powdered supplements/spices together and sprinkle it on the fresh food


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wrench13 said:

I know I am not a good daddy now.
Salty gets free access to Roudybush Maintainence all day
1/2 a peanut as soon as he wakes up
Lunch is at least two kinds of fruit
Dinner is chop mixed with Avicake Parrot or 1/3 or a sweet 'tater or 1/3 of a squash. The chop meals I try to vary by mixing in some baby food - carrots, peas, beans, or other baby food veggies.
He gets pine nuts when we train, each nut cut up into 3rds or 4ths.

Oddly enough, it's chop makin time in the ol' Wrench-a-roosa this weekend, having gone thru 62 or so baggies of chop from the last session. I will be stealing some recipes from here,I know that !

Click to expand...

I have tried so many times to do the frozen chop thing! That's one reason my Fidel's get a smaller variety of fresh food each day; half of them reject frozen chop. So they get only a few things a day but I try to switch out as often as possible with the ingredients.


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My ekkie gets Goldenfeast Goldn'obles I pellets (orgniac healthy pellets, first ingredient is quinoa) during the day in his cage while we're at work, and fresh chop at night.

I freeze chop, so I'm all for taking high quantity veggies from the store. Here is the last batch I made, admittedly way more than I ever wanted to make, but it's due tot the number of ingredients I added

Oh and I should disclose; my sister lives with me so we split the chores. I feed the fresh food and water in the morning, and she handles the dry food and refreshes the water in the afternoon.


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My big fids get almost a cup of pre-made pre-frozen chop in the morning. (except Tiki hasn't gotten this lately since the latest batch of chop has caused toe-tapping issues, so I've been giving him fresh chop when I've been able to, otherwise it's been all pellets for him, sad to say. But at least they are compatible with him, so it at least eliminates the toe tapping). Then they get half a cup of dye-free pellets at night. Right now they are on Mazuri, but I plan on switching them to Roudybush when I finish off the Mazuri I have. They get other tidbits, but nothing regularly, just depends on what we have on hand, or are eating.

My fosters, usually depends on what they are eating when they come to me, I try to stick with what they are being fed when I get them, since they are not my birds. Of course, I am usually asked to at least convert any birds that should be on a pelleted diet to pellets when they are on an all seed diet, so I at least do that much whenever possible. I offer them bites of fresh foods when they are willing, but usually if I can get them to accept pellets, it is a win.

My little birds are free fed Roudybush breeder crumbles. They also get a couple tablespoons of chop in the morning. (Which is why the big birds get almost a cup, I steal some of theirs for the little guys). If they are actively breeding I also mix between half a tablespoon and a tablespoon of seed into the chop, depending on if they are feeding chicks or not. I also mix in egg food with their chop, again the amount depends on whether or not they are feeding chicks. I would not give them seed at all if they were not breeders. Luckily, they love their fresh foods enough that mixing the seed in with it does not stop them from enjoying the fresh foods as well, and there tends to be just as much left over seed as fresh food when I pull the bowls from their cages.

I'll admit, as much as I try, not all days are perfect. There are days that I am short on time, or just don't feel well when chop isn't given, and everybody gets some extra pellets thrown in their bowls and sent on their way. Is it ideal? Of course not, but it is what it is, and they'll all survive.

Since Jasper won't eat anything cooked (I still try) I cut up fruit and veggies for him and Tillie every morning. I also do just a few things because when I was trying to add a lot of variety I ended up giving him way too much food. It seems like when I put a lot in the bowl, he doesn't eat any of it. But when I give him a smaller portion, he eats it all.

The things I generally give
broccoli
carrots
squash
zucchini
cauliflower
snow peas
sweet potato
sweet peppers
Still trying brown rice and a mixture of grains and lentils but no go so far
grapes
apples
mango
kiwi (not a big fan of)
raspberries
blackberries

Everyday in his foraging box, Jasper gets 1 brazil nut, 1 fruit, 2 veggies. Sometimes a piece of whole wheat low salt cracker. I'm going to make birdie bread someday.

They also get Roudybush pellets.

I feel like I'm doing a good job with their diet. I feel bad that I let Jasper's tastes dictate what I give Tillie. She'll eat anything. I'm sure she'd love warm food. She generally eats the rice and lentils when I put that in.

Thats funny - Salty loves yams and Squash, but only if they are cooked. I serve it up warm, not hot. They are his favorite dinner, he will dive right in and come up with a 'chop face' .

Noah only taught the budgies to eat from a plate a few months ago, so they're only now eating mash and chop. Well, they're barely touching the chop, but still. Before, they'd get upset if I tried to put anything besides seeds, sprouts, or pellets in a dish, and they wouldn't even go near a plate. They'd make me clip blueberries to the side of their cage! How am I supposed to clip BLUEBERRIES to their cage!?

Anyways, Ria finally started eating leafy greens on Thursday, and Tiki started eating them yesterday. They freaking LOVE them! I'm so happy, because at least 50% of a red-fronted kākāriki's diet should consist of veggies. I'm hoping the kākāriki will encourage the others to eat more veggies.

Teddscau said:

Noah only taught the budgies to eat from a plate a few months ago, so they're only now eating mash and chop. Well, they're barely touching the chop, but still. Before, they'd get upset if I tried to put anything besides seeds, sprouts, or pellets in a dish, and they wouldn't even go near a plate. They'd make me clip blueberries to the side of their cage! How am I supposed to clip BLUEBERRIES to their cage!?

Anyways, Ria finally started eating leafy greens on Thursday, and Tiki started eating them yesterday. They freaking LOVE them! I'm so happy, because at least 50% of a red-fronted kākāriki's diet should consist of veggies. I'm hoping the kākāriki will encourage the others to eat more veggies.

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Have you tried one of these?

You'd think that would work . Honestly, you wouldn't believe how fussy they used to be. Man, you haven't seen fussy until you've met a budgie!

However, that would definitely work for Noah and the kākāriki. The budgies would probably eat off that now, too. I'll have to start using that more often...

Just did a chop making session.
Red pepers
Green peppers
Habenero peppers
Ghost peppers
Chilie peppers
2 other kinds of peppers
califlour
Broccolli
Kale
Corn
Carrots
green beans

74 baggies of chop, I hope he likes it

I just made mash/chop/whatever you call it too.

Sweet potato, brown rice, quinoa, cauliflower, broccoli, pasta, carrots, green beans, peas, kale, collars greens, and a liberal sprinkling of red pepper flakes. Then I will add fresh goodies daily - for the next few days, jalapeños, yellow pepper, carrots, strawberry. Tomorrow when I cut up the stuff for MY salad, she'll get radishes, radish greens, cucumbers.

Oh and Wrench, after I cooked the sweet potatoes I gave her some while they were still warm and said, "Salty likes them this way!" She dug right in. [emoji3][emoji211]




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Bumble will likely eat acorn squash cooked ,too. I take a slice, cover with clear wrap, zap if like a potato , and let it cool a bit. Serve with the seeds and all.

Getting Willow to try anything new is like pulling .....beaks??

Regular food is Harrisons Course.

Treats are:

Sunflower seeds.
Chips. (BBQ are her favorite)
Corn. (ANY, but on the cob is favorite)
Apple slices.
Grapes.
Orange sections.
Pomegranate. (Although I hate giving it to her because of the mess)

I'm sure I'm forgetting a few things.

What a cool thread!!

I feed my birds a mix of...

- Frozen CHOP (current batch includes corn, green beans, carrots, peas, broccoli, cauliflower, sweet potato, mango, whole grain pasta, red quinoa, 9 bean soup mix, oats, flax seed, millet)

- Volkmann's Cockatiel sunflower seed-less seed mix

- Zupreem Fruit Pellets

- Tropimix cockatiel mix

Here's a shot of their chop



I offer spray millet and crackers as treats, they love that stuff!

I'm actually making a new batch tonight, going to venture into the bell peppers and zucchini this time!