supplements?

[OolovebirdiesoO]

I'm looking to buy some supplements for my lovebirds. Hopefully a product that is suitable for Rosella aswell. I'm just wondering what supplements I need to get and which are best? at the moment they have a mineral block each and cuttlebone but that isnt enough.

I know I need calcium but in which form? and I'd prefer it if I didnt have to add it to their water.

What else do I need to get?

Most of my flock are female.
Thanks again

 

[aliray]

Why do you want to use supplements? the cuttlebone and mineral block provide calcium. A healthy diet with daily fresh veg and fruit. dark leafy greens. some hard cooked egg with shell ground up also supply calcium. Some raw or cooked unsalted nuts, Bits of cooked chicken or fish or non fatty cooked beef, Mixed cooked whole grains also pellets and or seeds or some of each and you shouldn't have to add supplements and they would do more harm then good if mixed with pellets.

 

[OolovebirdiesoO]

Thanks that's really helpful they eat alot of broccoli and carrot...that's their main veg. They haven't taken to cabbage yet. The do like fruit as well, mostly apple and melon but they get veg more than fruit. I'll go out and get them some of the nuts tomorrow. They do have some Harrisons pellets but only my black masked lovebird has taken to them.

I was just worried that the cuttlebone and mineral block wasnt enough for the hens if they lay (which isn't often, but when they do)

Thankyou

 

[weco]

Aliray's right, but thought this information might be of interest also:


Be careful with vitamin supplements. Giving your bird too much can cause overdosing, where the buildup of vitamins will begin to act as poisons.

For the majority of us, the subject of supplements is a guessing game. We guess at which supplements our feathered friends require. Since there is the multitude of supplement options – which one do we choose? What if your Pesky Parrot is allergic to a particular supplement, will you know? What will you do?

After we decide on a type and brand of supplement, how do we get Pesky or Pollyanna to consume the supplement? Do we sprinkle it on their food or do we mix it in their water, do we mix a solution and feed with an eye dropper?

Because there has been relatively little study done on specie specific requirements (birds), many of the supplements offered are the same as those offered we humans.

We often hear of tainted foods and product recalls in our own food chain as well as in the pet industry.

The supplement industry is, as of this writing, an unregulated industry in the United States. That being the case, how do we know what is safe and what is not To be honest, we don’t. You may want to ask your veterinarian about a particular supplement and/or the brand before offering to your feathered friends.

In commentary about the ingredients used in supplements, Susan Weiss, president of Ark Naturals, a supplement manufacturer, said:

“It can be a real challenge, even for manufacturers, to get to the reality of ingredients. Manufacturers buy raw materials and get a certificate of analysis. The supplier basically warranties the quality, but how do you know? There is no authority that warrants that the COAs are valid.”

Eve Adamson, writing for Pet Product News International, August 2008, wrote:

“If a manufacturer can’t even be sure that an ingredient is what it says, how does a retailer, and then a consumer, trust the label?”

Weiss goes on to state:

“You can’t test every single lot of every ingredient you buy. Both the time and cost would be prohibitive. So 100 percent oversight over ingredients is impossible.”

Considering Weiss’ statement, my birds will never receive any products from an industry that cannot concern themselves with properly testing the raw materials that are used for their offerings.

Just because it is on the shelf in your favorite pet store or in the catalog of an online vendor does not mean it is necessary for companion birds. Remember, the pet store, online vendors and the supplement/additive manufacturer are in business to sell product and make money, they are not necessarily good sources of medical advice. Just because they make and sell a product to the pet bird market, do they really know if that product is of a benefit to the birds?

 

[LoveMyParrots]

If you feed your parrots a pelleted diet, they won't need any supplement. If they is on a seed diet, cuttlefish and mineral would probably be enough for a normal parrot if fresh fruits and veggies are available each day.

But if you do want to give your parrot supplement for some reason, contact your avian vet first.

 

[antoinette]

Never ever give your birds supplements without a vet's approval EVER
You could be doing more damage.....

 

[OolovebirdiesoO]

thankyou so much!

I'm glad I came here first because I wasn't sure about them. I heard too much calcium was bad before but havent heard much else. I am now avoiding supplements they all have cuttlebone and mineral blocks, fresh fruit and veg. I'll just keep doing what I'm doing.

On the advice about gettin them some nuts and things I went out and got some nuts from a health food store. I checked they have no preservatives and salt (I'll keep them as treats because I dont want little fatties haha).

I didnt see the mixed nuts bags at first so the shop attendant showed me them and I explained they weren't for me but my birds. She did look at me weirdly at first. Then she said some ladies come in to get fruit for their birds there and they often get the dried fruit mixed bags. I picked it up and read the label and It had lots of tropical fruits in but it said sulphur dioxide and I wasnt sure what that was but I got the fruit anyway just incase it wasn't dangerous. Anyway I never risk giving my birds something before checking so I searched the internet and it brought me back here again. I saw a thread on it, I think it there was a post from Antoinette about dried fruits having sulphur dioxide as preservatives.. My birds won't be having any of the fruit then. I hope those parrot ladies that shop at that store aren't giving it to their birds

Thanks again for your knowledge, you're all so helpful