Help #1. Yes me again. I've made countless mistakes and need help correcting them please.

[MissMac]

Yes me again. And as I stated above, I've made countless mistakes and need help correcting them please. I'm in it for the long haul and I have screwed up something fierce so I need a lot of help. Starting with feeding.
Feeding is something I went from weaning her 4 times a day, to an all day buffet and realise this isn't good practice.
I have her food all set up on the table beside where I work and I want to get it into her cage. It's easier to keep clean not to mention it would give me back some of my working space. I also want for her to be in her cage at times so I can work unimpeded and not need to keep looking over my shoulder to see what she is up to or getting up and down to move her to where I want her to be.
How would you do it if it were your feathered family member?
Do I slowly move her feeding station off where I am based and closer to her cage in increments or just do cold turkey?
I also need to get her to having set times for feeding... she had that when I was feeding her and I stupidly slipped and made it an all day buffet. I have reduced the amount I was leaving in her bowls (plural - she has egg in one, pellets in another and chop in the third. This too will need working on.) If I get it into her cage I am thinking Breakfast and dinner are the two meal times? So that she will be in her cage, closed door at both times? Or should I have the door open at those times so she doesn't feel... "caged" but is happy enough to be in her cage of her own deciding?
I am still looking into pellets. I have VetaFarm but she's not keen on them and I'm not keen on the colourants used. I was also giving her seed mix but I am guessing that is wrong for parrots because of fatty liver disease? It's been a decade or more since I've owned a parrot and back then all they got were seeds.
Any help greatly appreciated. TIA.

 

[zERo]

Yes me again. And as I stated above, I've made countless mistakes and need help correcting them please. I'm in it for the long haul and I have screwed up something fierce so I need a lot of help. Starting with feeding.
Feeding is something I went from weaning her 4 times a day, to an all day buffet and realise this isn't good practice.
I have her food all set up on the table beside where I work and I want to get it into her cage. It's easier to keep clean not to mention it would give me back some of my working space. I also want for her to be in her cage at times so I can work unimpeded and not need to keep looking over my shoulder to see what she is up to or getting up and down to move her to where I want her to be.
How would you do it if it were your feathered family member?
Do I slowly move her feeding station off where I am based and closer to her cage in increments or just do cold turkey?
I also need to get her to having set times for feeding... she had that when I was feeding her and I stupidly slipped and made it an all day buffet. I have reduced the amount I was leaving in her bowls (plural - she has egg in one, pellets in another and chop in the third. This too will need working on.) If I get it into her cage I am thinking Breakfast and dinner are the two meal times? So that she will be in her cage, closed door at both times? Or should I have the door open at those times so she doesn't feel... "caged" but is happy enough to be in her cage of her own deciding?
I am still looking into pellets. I have VetaFarm but she's not keen on them and I'm not keen on the colourants used. I was also giving her seed mix but I am guessing that is wrong for parrots because of fatty liver disease? It's been a decade or more since I've owned a parrot and back then all they got were seeds.
Any help greatly appreciated. TIA.

Personally I would slowly move the food to her cage unless she doesn't get stressed about things happening suddenly. I would start closing the door just to make it a routine because there will be times where you can't open the door while she's eating and she would be upset As for mealtimes breakfast and dinner is right and maybe a snack in between, that's how I do it. I give each of my birds 1/4 teaspoon of seed with their dinner each day, plus pellets and legumes, sprouts etc, then for breakfast it's just chop. I would choose a pellet without any artificial colors as well, hope this helps

 

[Laurasea]

My burds have food all the time, in cage and attached to outside and in bowls in top of cage. Burds are more grazers, tgey eat small amounts all day long. That's how their digestive system works as well, they have a simple digestive system. Burds are flight creatures, always ready for flight so not big meals. They don't have a way to store big meals.
Carnivores like dogs and cats evolved to gorge, when prey is available they fill their stomach.

I keep all food at cage areas. I set out big plates or foraging for veggies twice a day. Pellet are always available , seedmix is available in the cages . During the day when I'm home cafes are open. I routinely lock them up for an hour or two after lunch , they nap and forage during that time, they often take their bath just prior to me locking them up, they choose that, then nap dry off and chill.

I definitely think getting her used to flying back to cage and eat on top or go in to eat is a good idea. And certainly helps with mess. I do have snacks at two if their perch areas. One I have hanging over tge trash can to help waste fall down into trssh.tge other I out a trey under it.

 

[Scott]

I see a potential win-win for you and your bird. Move all food inside cage as enticement to enjoy solitary time while you work. Teaching a parrot to self-entertain highly beneficial and includes meals, variety of toys in cage, possibly external entertainment such as TV or computer monitor.

My flock has access to food at all times - either pellets or chop most days of the week. Pellets removed when fresh food offered. Finding the ideal pellet a challenge, we often suggest the "best" pellet is the one your bird eats." Trial and error, expect refusals and/or meager consumption if not satisfied.

 

[MissMac]

I see a potential win-win for you and your bird. Move all food inside cage as enticement to enjoy solitary time while you work. Teaching a parrot to self-entertain highly beneficial and includes meals, variety of toys in cage, possibly external entertainment such as TV or computer monitor.

My flock has access to food at all times - either pellets or chop most days of the week. Pellets removed when fresh food offered. Finding the ideal pellet a challenge, we often suggest the "best" pellet is the one your bird eats." Trial and error, expect refusals and/or meager consumption if not satisfied.

I've just moved her food into the cage... she's has already had some breakfast but I have moved it into the cage. She came over to see what I was doing (she always does - she's part cat and curious, I am sure... maybe in another lifetime....) I will monitor her today to see if she is willing to go into her cage to eat. Of course, I won't close the door on her, I just want to be sure she is eating. She already has water in her cage so will leave her other water dish beside me.... and she's just now come over, found some "crumbs" of her food and eaten them... I will target train her several times more today, to go to her cage and not fear being locked in.
Update* Just did our first target training for today and she manage, albeit tentatively, to get to the ledge of the open cage door. It took a bit and you could see her thoughts, so when she finally got there I really rewarded her and praised her a lot. I hope that in my doing that she doesn't come to expect a treat every time she goes there.

 

[Miles]

I

Yes me again. And as I stated above, I've made countless mistakes and need help correcting them please. I'm in it for the long haul and I have screwed up something fierce so I need a lot of help. Starting with feeding.
Feeding is something I went from weaning her 4 times a day, to an all day buffet and realise this isn't good practice.
I have her food all set up on the table beside where I work and I want to get it into her cage. It's easier to keep clean not to mention it would give me back some of my working space. I also want for her to be in her cage at times so I can work unimpeded and not need to keep looking over my shoulder to see what she is up to or getting up and down to move her to where I want her to be.
How would you do it if it were your feathered family member?
Do I slowly move her feeding station off where I am based and closer to her cage in increments or just do cold turkey?
I also need to get her to having set times for feeding... she had that when I was feeding her and I stupidly slipped and made it an all day buffet. I have reduced the amount I was leaving in her bowls (plural - she has egg in one, pellets in another and chop in the third. This too will need working on.) If I get it into her cage I am thinking Breakfast and dinner are the two meal times? So that she will be in her cage, closed door at both times? Or should I have the door open at those times so she doesn't feel... "caged" but is happy enough to be in her cage of her own deciding?
I am still looking into pellets. I have VetaFarm but she's not keen on them and I'm not keen on the colourants used. I was also giving her seed mix but I am guessing that is wrong for parrots because of fatty liver disease? It's been a decade or more since I've owned a parrot and back then all they got were seeds.
Any help greatly appreciated. TIA.

When I got my GCC, he was on a mix of seeds and Roudybush pellets. He would pick out the seeds and leave all pellet material to go to waste. I knew before I got him that a mostly seed diet can and will eventually lead to a premature death from fatty liver disease or other complications caused by a diet high in fat. But i waited until he had settled into his new home decently before switching his diet.
I found the Roudybush pellets to contain no colors, and to be highly regarded by its users. So I went with those. I get a small bag (I can't remember the weight) of Roudybush Daily Maintenance Mini pellets for about 7 dollars from Amazon that lasts my GCC more than a month.
As soon as he switched completely to the pellets, I noticed he lost some of the extra "chub" he had when I got him. He was a fat little chicken! His weight has stayed constant since then. And he likes the pellets. No colors or anything, just a complete nutrition pellet. You can also get a California Blend, which adds bits of dried fruits and veggies. I tried those and switched because Miles is picky if I let him be. He would only pick out the fruit pieces and leave the veggies and pellets. I find he'll eat them if that's all that is there.

I hope this helps!

 

[Laurasea]

Great job! Thats is great start absolutely! This is a great to teach that going to the cage doesn't always mean you get locked in.

Its good to treat for good behavior. Mine all get a treat for going back to cage when I ask. And I brag on them and give kisses.