Pellets+seeds etc.. brands in Canada???

[t0mmick]

Hello everyone ,
i need some help choosing a healthy diet for all my birds i have 2 parroletts (male,Female) and i will have and indian ringneck and a conure in a week, Can they all eat the same thing as far as seeds and pellets go? And what brands (in canada) would you recommend?? Hopefully someone has some suggestions for me , thnx for reading!!

 

[Jewelz]

My conure loves his Harrisons pellets....buy mine at my avian vets office.... Roudybush is also popular

 

[crimson]

I feed mine Higgins seed(not Hagen), along with Zupreem natural pellets
Tropican lifetime pellets are good, they smell like bubblegum believe it or not,and use natural flavours and colours.

anything Zupreem is fairly good, just watch out for the fruity blends, they have too many additives.

Parrotlets are suppose to eat cockatiel seed, or cockatiel/lovebird seed, but I would try and see if they eat pellets.
As I understand it, parrotlets are NOT to eat an all pellet diet.

Versele Laga is one of THE BEST seed manufacturers, and found in some stores.(not Pet Smart type stores) more the independent stores.
the seeds are grown here in Canada, shipped over to Belgium, going thru a rigorous process to ensure the quality, then shipped back here into Canada....as crazy as that sounds.

 

[GaryBV]

Hi t0mmick, I'm not sure that all your birds will be able to have the same diet. Parrotlets are quite small, and another thing is that probably have the largest appetites for their size - my parrotlets definitely eat more than my lovebirds which are larger. I feed them a mix of Harrison's pellets (fine) and Roudybush pellets (crumbles), LOTS of fresh vegetables and fruits, and soaked and sprouted seeds, and some dry seed mix, and scrambled eggs about twice a week. Variety for all birds is a key factor over time for good health. An all seed diet is bad, and will lead to liver problems and an early death. For treats I like to give nutri-berries, avi-cakes and organic millet.

 

[t0mmick]

Thnx everyone all the advice is useful, wonder If you all have some more for me , so I had had this couple of paroletts for about a week now and I assume they are fairly happy because they did the wild thing right in front of me and a group of friends lol, but I suppose this means I should put a nest box in and nesting materials right?! Any suggestion for home made nest ideas(materials and such)???

 

[GaryBV]

t0mmick - it seems to me you're jumping into this too quickly, that you have got 4 new birds within a week - so I don't really think this is the time to think of breeding them or actively breeding them. I would suggest you let them settle in, and in the mean time to educate yourself on the special needs and care of these various species you have just gotten. Breeding is a big deal, and requires a lot of work and cash and time. Would you be letting the birds feed the chicks or would you hand feed them and hand tame them? Are you home 24/7 to feed the chicks? Why do you want to breed? There are so many questions to answer and issues to consider.

 

[crimson]

I agree with Gary....
first of all, your birds won't breed right away, they need to get use to their new environment, that could take months.

I certainly hope you wouldn't jump into this making rash decisions before you are fully informed.

there is a whole other side to breeding, that you should look into before you consider putting up a nesting box, you don't want to be ill prepared....trust me, things can and will go wrong in a hurry, and it is your RESPONSIBILITY to know what to do.

there is plenty of good info on here, so before you jump the gun, please find out as much as possible, and get a mentor who can help.

 

[GaryBV]

Hi t0mmock - I'm just wondering if you came to a decision about breeding your birds.

 

[t0mmick]

Well I wasn't looking to breed at all, it just so happens this couple is mating already , I was not told this unfortunately! I just assumed that she would still need a place to lay her eggs even if they weren't fertilized.??!!

 

[t0mmick]

Oh yeah and on another note I am home a lot as I'm a stay at home mom , I could afford the breeding but would rather just stick to birds as pets , I have worked with birds before I am not inexperienced but I wouldn't say experienced either, lol!

 

[GaryBV]

Hi t0mmick, not to be contrary, but you are inexperienced as you didn't even know what to feed your birds, but putting that aside, educating yourself is the best thing you can do and I can certainly appreciate that fact. If you don't want your birds to breed the best thing you can do is to remove the breeding box - because it's inclusion will encourage them to breed. Are your parrotlets related to each other? If so, or you don't know, I'd suggest discouraging breeding. Many times people get 2 birds from a breeder that will be siblings, and not always from the same litter, but still full siblings. I myself have a male and female Fischer lovebird that are full brother and sister but not from the same litter. My female too has laid eggs, and I removed them, but she laid another in her cuddle hut, so I replaced her eggs with artificial ones. If they are unfertilized you can leave the eggs with her until she tires of caring for them. Check out this website called 'dummy eggs'

DummyEggs.com Sells Plastic Dummy Birds Eggs, Nest Bowl Kits, Plastic Fake Bird Eggs for Sale, Immitation Plastic Bird's Eggs, Fake Bird Eggs, Artificial Dummy Bird Eggs, Stop Bird Breeding, Egg Laying. Plastic egg reproductions for Cockatiel, Lovebi

There is a lot that goes into breeding and caring for the young, and things can go wrong, and it happens fast ending in tragedy. My suggestion for you is if you want to be serious about breeding any of your birds, to educate yourself on how to go about it, what you will need in terms of resources, proper nutrition and what is your final game plan - will you be selling the babies? keeping them? What about leg bands? Genetics? It's really not that simple. I myself can't part with any pet I've raised - and I had 4 baby pugs that I had for 15 years to prove it! lol Good luck whatever your next step is.

 

[crimson]

don't put up any nesting box, she will choose a spot and lay eggs.

when you see them, remove them,,,but wear a good thick pair of gloves

 

[GaryBV]

Crimson, why the gloves?