The Dangers of Soy

Hi guys. It's been a very long time since I've come by!

I have a discovery to share with you all. Remember back when I thought that breeding behavior was triggered by high protein content in pellets?
(see here)

Well... a lot happened since I've last been on. Had a life crisis and a very serious falling out with my mother which I do not want to go into. Neither her or her parrot Lina are a part of my life anymore.

Anyway, a lot of changes were happening quickly and I didn't have time for the custom diet anymore. I grabbed a store bought seed mix for my lovebird and called it good for a while. His chronic breeding behaviors did not come back despite being on a lower quality diet.

I have been wondering why that is. I looked at the protein content on the seed mix and it was about the same as the Roudybush pellets I used to feed. Well... then it CAN'T be protein can it? A little research online revealed the real problem: SOY! Soy has been proven to mess with your hormones in people. And my bird has not had chronic breeding behavior since coming off the pellets that contained soy.

I started looking at different pellet brands. Pretty much ALL of them contained soy, with the exception of one completely organic pellet called TOPS. I am looking forward to trying those out.

I came across an article by Harrison's in which they tried to refute the claims against soy. As I like to look at both sides of an issue instead of just one I decided to read it. I read the first three paragraphs and skimmed the rest. I was not impressed. All they did was blame the owner for stimulating sexual behavior by touching and stroking the bird. They badmouthed studies that have been done testing whether soy affects birds or not. They put down a video done by a company that makes parrot seed, which showed a macaw with tattered wing feathers, blaming his feather condition on his diet. Well, Lina the galah had tattered wing feathers despite eating a supposedly "high quality" pellet diet. Harrison's main claim to fame was that their pellets are analyzed by PhD Avian Nutritionists. Well, that's nice. But CLEARLY soy IS a problem, because my bird only had hormonal problems when eating pellets!

Anyway, I think TOPS is the way to go. I want to get their pellets and their seed mix as well, and I will sprout when I have time. Currently, Baby the lovebird is eating the seed mix and some fresh alfalfa/clover sprouts I found at the grocery. Once he's about done with what he's got, I will order TOPS.

If you are having behavioral/hormonal problems with your parrot, consider looking at their diet. If there's soy in it, consider eliminating it as a trial and see if it does make a difference. In my experience, it did!

I use TOPs pellets with Roudybush and Harrison’s. This is good to know. I will consider switching them off of the other two brands and feeding them exclusively TOPs.

Thank You for this.
Actually, Tops has been Levi's favorite for a while now. :smile049:

TOPS is the way to go!

TOPS is a very good food, but not complete (lacking Vit D). It's funny, my caiques don't like TOPS, but love the Green Chunks from PhoenixForagingRolls.com (a very similar product, but a different texture). Mine also get Harrison's, sprouted seeds,fruits and veggies. I just found a website, TheBestBirdFood.com, that has a lot of interesting items. My birds really like their Snak-A-Doodles Natru-Nuggets (a sprouted seed product). I don't like that there is soy in Harrison's. My girls eat the Harrison's when they're finished with everything else, so they get maybe a teaspoon a day.

I know every parront will make the decision they feel is best for their precious birds. The Rb has been on Harrison's for over 30 years, and his certified avian vet says he's in amazing health! I always appreciate the sharing of opinions.

I have some critical bird diet advice to share: Avoid the additive of Polonium 210! Seriously harmful!!

Scott said:

I have some critical bird diet advice to share: Avoid the additive of Polonium 210! Seriously harmful!!

Click to expand...

Spoils too quickly! Half life of 138 days!!

I switched to Harrison's HP Coarse from Zupreem Fruit (2 years on that), seeds before that from previous owner, back on Nov 8, 2017 and Nike has never looked better. I mean her feathers look like she's a different bird. I may try some Tops for variety but I'm a convert to Harrison's.