- May 2, 2021
- 3,519
- 8,032
- Parrots
- Stormy(M): blue Australian budgie
Apollo(F): sky blue dominant pied Australian budgie
Budgie diet. A very, VERY controversial thing when it comes to keeping these little guys. However, a correct diet is extremely important for budgies, as they often develop lipomas (fatty tumors) as they age. They are also one of the only birds that is frequently given an improper diet, resulting in them, as a species, being quite unhealthy and not living a long time.
A common issue with a budgie’s diet is they are often fed an all-seed diet. This is harmful because seeds are high in fat, and budgies are prone to fatty tumors. Feeding an all-seed diet can greatly increase the likelihood that your budgie will develop fatty tumors earlier rather than later, and therefore have a reduced lifespan. The tumors are often fast growing and invisible until it’s too late.
I often hear people saying ‘Well, seeds are what budgies eat in the wild, shouldn't they also eat that in captivity?’. Yes and no. See, in the wild, a budgie may fly up to 500 kilometers (310 miles) a day! In captivity, they fly maybe 1-2 miles a day if they’re lucky. So in the wild, they easily burn off that fat, but in captivity they don’t, so they develop fatty tumors when their body can’t store all that fat.
So, diet. A budgie’s diet should consist of 4 things: seed, fruit, veggie, and pellets. All of these things are very important to have in a budgie diet. However, you need to get the right amounts of each to have a healthy budgie.
Budgie food recipe:
Veggie chop:
Offer whole, chop up or blend in a food processor. And there ya go, fresh veggie chop! Can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days, and always make sure not to give any spoiled food to your birds.
Seed/Pellets:
Offer 1 or less teaspoons of seed per budgie per day (excluding training). Offer a high-quality pellet, such as Harrisons, Tops, or Roudybush freely all day.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Never, and I mean NEVER leave your budgie without food for more than an hour. Budgies are small and cannot eat a lot of food at onceem so they need to eat small portions of food regularly.
Ok, thanks for reading, and I hope feeding time has become easier for you and your flock!
-Ollie
A common issue with a budgie’s diet is they are often fed an all-seed diet. This is harmful because seeds are high in fat, and budgies are prone to fatty tumors. Feeding an all-seed diet can greatly increase the likelihood that your budgie will develop fatty tumors earlier rather than later, and therefore have a reduced lifespan. The tumors are often fast growing and invisible until it’s too late.
I often hear people saying ‘Well, seeds are what budgies eat in the wild, shouldn't they also eat that in captivity?’. Yes and no. See, in the wild, a budgie may fly up to 500 kilometers (310 miles) a day! In captivity, they fly maybe 1-2 miles a day if they’re lucky. So in the wild, they easily burn off that fat, but in captivity they don’t, so they develop fatty tumors when their body can’t store all that fat.
So, diet. A budgie’s diet should consist of 4 things: seed, fruit, veggie, and pellets. All of these things are very important to have in a budgie diet. However, you need to get the right amounts of each to have a healthy budgie.
Budgie food recipe:
Veggie chop:
- Assorted Organic Leafs
- Carrots
- Peppers
- Broccoli
- Apple
- Blueberry
- Your budgie’s favorite fruit/veggie!
Offer whole, chop up or blend in a food processor. And there ya go, fresh veggie chop! Can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days, and always make sure not to give any spoiled food to your birds.
Seed/Pellets:
Offer 1 or less teaspoons of seed per budgie per day (excluding training). Offer a high-quality pellet, such as Harrisons, Tops, or Roudybush freely all day.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Never, and I mean NEVER leave your budgie without food for more than an hour. Budgies are small and cannot eat a lot of food at onceem so they need to eat small portions of food regularly.
Ok, thanks for reading, and I hope feeding time has become easier for you and your flock!
-Ollie
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