Suffering plucking, screaming, bad behaviour etc? Something to think about!

http://www.animalenrichmentaustrali...ads/2017/02/Healthy-Food-List-for-Parrots.pdf


Found this interesting and wanted to share.

Came across this information and found it interesting. I have come to believe that we are feeding our parrots too much, too high energy foods. Maybe even some of the 'problems' associated with keeping parrots comes back to diet. There was a couple of surprises on this info for me and will certainly bear in mind for now, not taking it as gospel but certainly thought provoking.

I want to say take this with a grain of salt. On a Facebook ekkie group one of the first things they jump to when someone asks how to help with hormones is “lower the sugar in the diet!” Parker gets some of the worst hormonal aggression bouts every year and he’s already on a lower sugar diet, by virtue of the fact that he’s on a high fiber diet. So there goes that myth.

My larger issue here is that collectively here we know that many issues are training related. Your bird is screaming because you taught it to scream... no amount of diet change will undo poor training and husbandry. They are naturally high energy animals designed to fly miles a day. It’s what you signed up for. It’s something to be celebrated, not corrected.

All that said, there is no denying you are what you eat...

Great article

I live in a cold country and have free flying macaws and if I were to follow the article, I would have really underweight macaws

I think nutrition has to reflect the activity level, as with any other species. The amount going in has to match the amount going out (and I don't mean the other end )

If you have a bird, who never flies and is content with life in your arms on the couch, that bird should not have a high energy diet.

If you have a bird, who's actively flying many hours a day, they will need more readily accessable energy, as a lot is spent compared to more inactive birds.

chris-md said:

I want to say take this with a grain of salt. On a Facebook ekkie group one of the first things they jump to when someone asks how to help with hormones is “lower the sugar in the diet!” Parker gets some of the worst hormonal aggression bouts every year and he’s already on a lower sugar diet, by virtue of the fact that he’s on a high fiber diet. So there goes that myth.

My larger issue here is that collectively here we know that many issues are training related. Your bird is screaming because you taught it to scream... no amount of diet change will undo poor training and husbandry. They are naturally high energy animals designed to fly miles a day. It’s what you signed up for. It’s something to be celebrated, not corrected.

All that said, there is no denying you are what you eat...

Click to expand...

Funny my ekkie, Sofus, (5 years) is on a relative high sugar diet and never has any hormonal issues. He might not have reached sexual maturity, but he should at his age. I do however fly him a lot both in and out. I don't know if that's the reason he never gets hormonal or territorial

I definitely don't agree with the part about no more than 5% seed for granivores. Assuming you've got a bird who enjoys eating a variety of foods and enjoys eating veggies, I don't see why they can't be fed a lot more seed.

I free-feed my birds because I have a mixed flock, and the different species require different ratios of each food. So, they have access to pellets at all times (which they all enjoy eating), a variety of vegetables placed throughout the aviary (well, I've been lazy lately, and I need to go to the grocery store to buy a bit of everything), as well as several handfuls of millet placed in foraging toys and thrown on the floor for them to forage. I also throw a handful of nuts and sunflower seeds on the floor for Noah and the kākāriki. They could easily choose to eat nothing but seed, but even the budgies will only eat a couple of grams of seed each after first choosing to eat pellets and greens. I also keep a dish of dried food-grade flowers (make sure they're intended for ingestion, as most dried flowers have harmful preservatives in them), a thing of soluble and insoluble grit, kelp granules, a Manu mineral block, and a blend of herbs in there for them.

While this is the best way to feed my guys, I'm sure that other birds would probably end up getting sick due to only eating what they want. My budgies and kākāriki (and Noah to a certain extent, since he's the guy who was trying to eat dried krill and dog food) seem to know their bodies and choose how much to eat of certain things depending on their nutritional needs at the time. Also, they live in an indoor aviary and are fully flighted, which means they're far more muscular and active than the average parrot in captivity. However, I definitely wouldn't trust larger parrots, or parrots whose diets vary greatly throughout the year in the wild due to food availability. I think when kept in a flock, parrots are more inclined to eat a healthier diet since they're copying everyone else, whereas a singly housed bird will just load up on fatty, unhealthy foods.

Kind of got off topic... Anyways, I think an improper diet CAN lead to a cranky bird. If they have too much protein in their diet, this can trigger hormonal behaviour. Too much sugar can lead to candida, which can make them feel tired and cranky. Not to mention that some birds are addicted to certain foods and refuse to eat properly, resulting in tantrums if they don't eat the food they want. They can actually start exhibiting symptoms of withdrawal due to the yeast and bacteria in their body demanding more carbs or sugar. If the carb and sugar levels don't return to "normal", the yucky bacteria and yeast suddenly die off, making them feel really sick. But, once they're flushed out of their bodies, they actually start feeling really good and have more energy. Or at least this is what happens when humans have to go on a special diet when they suffer from candida.

The only observation I have with this list concerns pasta. As with bread, there are bad pastas and more beneficial types. The common variety from bleached white flour is not very redeeming. I offer pasta that is either 100% whole grain (high in fiber and nutrients) or a blend with whole grain and a high concentration of nutritious greens. Strangely, the only shape my birds will eat are spirals. Tube-type or strands are not welcome!