Need bird tips

[Yak]

Hello my name is Yak, and I've had a green cheeked conure for quite some time now, she is 2 years old now and everything I've ever dreamed of! I love her so much. However, the bird breeder I got her from said she can eat primarily seeds until I found out online this is a horrible diet for her. I bought her seed balls so she can forage for food instead of just eating it out a bowl but she's so mad at me because she throws it away thinking it's a yucky treat and won't eat from it and I don't want to give her JUST seeds! What do I do? What should I feed her? Any recommendations for pellets because I tried before and she refused to eat them. I need help I really don't want my beloved bird to get sick from a primarily seed diet!

 

[Yak]

Sorry for the markings lol not sure how all the questionmarks got there

 

[LaManuka]

Hello Yak, welcome to the Forums!

I've taken the liberty of fixing up those question marks for you. The problem is somehow linked to new software and/or server. Not being a techno boffin myself I'm not sure how this has affected some of the punctuation marks, but there ya go!

In terms of how you might improve your conure's diet, there are many suggestions, tips and tricks on our "Parrot Food, Recipes And Diet" sub-forum which is linked below.....

Parrot Food, Recipes and Diet - Parrot Forum - Parrot Owner's Community

You don't want to make wholesale changes overnight, as some birds will quite literally prefer to starve themselves rather than try something new. I once got a very stubborn cockatiel to convert to pellets by grinding them up into powder in a mortar and pestle and sprinkling it over her seeds. She had resisted all other attempts at conversion over the preceding 8 years or so, but this method got her to at least appreciate the taste as there was really no way of avoiding it. Within a matter of days she was chowing down on her pellets like she'd been eating them her whole life! It may take several attempts for your conure to make the switch, or even trying several different brands before she settles on one she likes.

You might like to post some pics of your birdie too, it is pretty much a requirement around here as we love baby photos!

http://www.parrotforums.com/technical-support/6287-how-post-pictures.html

Don't worry if the pic comes through as a thumbnail or is the wrong way around - a friendly neighbourhood moderator will happily fix that up for you

 

[Skarila]

Welcome Yak!

The balls you speak of are nutriberries, yes? My little Pascal was really finicky himself with those, I had to crumble them down and offer it to him. Next step was to hold it for him while he is eating it because he is a very young bird and very clumsy, he simply couldn't hold it and eat it. Then I moved up giving a smaller piece that he needs to hold, and later on it became one of his favourite treats, he's a pro now, being a big boy and holding it all by him self and just crunching it down.

Best would be a pelleted diet instead of seeds. My personal suggestions would be either Roudybush or Harrison's, but this also highly depends what is available to you and where are you from.
Harrison's is considered one of the best, fully bio and organic. I like their sizes, they also make super fine pellet which is the size of a millet, which would be a great switch. I switched 3 birds from seeds to pellets, and I realised that size played a huge role. The smaller and more similar in size of the seeds, the better. My only issue with Harrison's is that it is super expencive.

Another one is Roudybush which I mainly use for my budgie and Pascal the little conure, I use their smallest size (nibbles) and they like it. Pascal accepted the pellet within 3 days, I was offering them as if they were treats. It takes a few tries throughout a few days, and so many pretending that you're the one eating it. Once you see that they bird will actualy eat it, try swapping the seeds with the pellets for a few hours per day. Closely watch if the bird eats. Never leave the bird without food (that they will eat) for more than 6 hours!
While Pascal switched very quickly, our foster cockatiel Archie took maybe a month or two, with several tries. I had to pretend with my finger doing the pecking motion in the bowl and he would follow. That's how I managed to switch him. Repeated offering throughout days and months could be the key, one day they just seem interested and start eating. this goes for many other foods, I had to re-introduce veggies for Pascal to eat them.

Usual issue is that the bird doesn't understand that pellet is food, which is why pretending you eat it can be helpful.

 

[Scott]

Welcome Yak, respect for researching dietary needs to keep your GCC healthy! Terrific advice above and you'll find much more within the forum.

Parrots are stubborn in matters of diet, best to keep offering and rewarding success. Might try the "chop challenge" by making two identical bowls of fresh veggies + fruits and offer one to your bird. Begin eating from yours, make "mmmm" sounds of enjoyment, bob your head with delight. Birds are flock eaters and you are a member of the flock!

 

[Flboy]

Hello and welcome! There is seed—-and then there is seed! For many, seed is a better choice over the ‘veterinarian approved’ pellets!
My JoJo’s pellet of choice is TOPS!

 

[Yak]

Thank you guys so much for the replies! So sorry for not responding earlier, it wouldn't allow me to on my phone so I logged onto my computer to do it instead. I am genuinely so grateful for all the tips on what food I should buy and how to get her to eat it. Ill be sure to come on here from now on whenever I need help with my bird and hopefully share pictures with you guys too. I scheduled a vet appointment for her for a new diet plan since she's a picky eater and anything else that may be going on with her.
I'm a very young bird owner compared to the vast majority of adults who own birds, I worry a lot that I'm not always doing the best that I can for my bird and I'm not sure what is and isn't okay since google can be very vague and breeders can be straight up wrong. This website is a LIFE SAVER since I can talk to other longtime bird owners who can help me with my conure.
.Unfortunately I can't send any pictures of Piper. For some reason the forum won't allow me to send any pictures of my bird because all my pictures exceed the file limit.
^ If there is a way to fix this I can show you some cute pictures of her! Thank you guys so much again for helping me with this!

 

[Scott]

Hope I can assist with your technical issues! Many members use Tapatalk app as interface between phone and forum. Your images must be quite large for just one to exceed allotted memory. Two choices: You can upgrade to Supporting Member for $9.99/year and received double forum server memory. Most practical, use a free online pic hosting site such as Imgur.

 

[fiddlejen]

Hello and welcome! There is seed?-and then there is seed! For many, seed is a better choice over the ?veterinarian approved? pellets!
My JoJo?s pellet of choice is TOPS!

In other words -- (as I think you mean?) -- there are seed Mixes specifically designed for parakeets, conures, etc. These typically have somewhat better nutritional profile than merely generalize "birdseed," so I hope you might already be feeding your bird a seed Mix? If not, you might start moving in that direction. While, also taking the other suggestions here for getting your bird to accept pellets.

That said - my birds eat seed mixes. But... they ALSO eat pellets and veggies. My conure likes her seedmix, her nutriberries, and her harrison's pellets all served in Separate Dishes in her cage. My budgies will eat pellets but Only if they are a Small Percentage added to their seedmix. If there is too much pellets in the budgies' seed-dish, Calliope-budgie will just remove them all to the cage floor....

I clip veggies around the cages in different spots, so my birdies chew on them both as veggies to eat, and as toys to stand upon & shred. Preferences for my birds are Orange Peppers, Romaine lettuce leaves, Carrot, and Broccolis.