Can I Feed My Parrot Chicken Feed?

[CocoMaroon]

I started a flock of chickens this year (they are outside, Misty is inside) and discovered that their Dumor Layer-Mix Granules is almost EXACTLY the same as the Zoopreme parrot pellets, and the Dumor Organic line of chicken feed is an even CLOSER match!! the only ingredients Zoopreme has that Dumor doesnt is the millet and fruits.

A 40lbs bag of Dumor Organic is $30 plus tax, meanwhile Zoopreme is $90 BEFORE tax and shipping for a bag that only weighs TWENTY POUNDS!! triple the price for half the amount, with the only difference being some fruit???

HOWEVER I understand that it isn't THAT simple, and I don't want to risk Misty's health by testing it without doing my research first.

So, does anyone know if it would be safe or dangerous to feed my adult Congo African Grey parrot Dumor Organic chicken feed (with additional dried+fresh fruits)?

 

[zERo]

Welcome to the Forums!

To answer your question simply, I would not feed your grey chicken feed OR Zupreem pellets!

First I’d recommend feeding your parrot a human grade pellet. I recommend feeding any of these brands: TOPs or Lafebers.
A birds diet shouldn’t be just two things either. Have you offered you Grey veggies or sprouts?

I don’t think Zupreem is a suitable diet unless it’s a very small portion of it, say, 10-20%.
Its 5th ingredient is sugar which is not healthy. The first ingredients offer little for you bird, corn (high in sugar) and soy (very high in protein)

You can start offering veggies chopped in chunks and see how your bird responds.
All birds should eat vegetables, a little fruit, sprouts (if you can) or cooked legumes/grains, and a bit of pellets.

I’m not trying to be overly critical as I understand that not every can afford or manage to feed a very diverse diet but veggies once a day or at least every other day should try to be offered.

And, a reminder, on this forum, we love pictures!

 

[Keet_Krazy]

No you can't, and definitely not a layer feed!
Parrots and chickens are two very different species and their nutritional needs are different too. Chickens have to have feed that meets requirements for regular egg laying and more. It's actually bad to feed layer feed to non-laying chickens (young/old birds and roosters), so chances are calcium alone will harm your parrot (generally kidney damage/disease). And that's not even looking at other parts of the feed like protein. I just had a quick look at my bag of parrot pellets and it's min 17%, Layer feed is generally 18%, higher quality is generally a bit higher.
So no, I would never reccomend feeding chicken feed to parrots.

 

[SailBoat]

Even the Pellet manufactures do not recommend feed any pellet not formulated for that specific species.

FYI: Cheap pellets are commonly manufactured in facilities that are not certified as "Human Grade." As a result, they can be classified as "wide spec" which means whatever ran last, plus whatever was in the supply tanks, etc... and now a part of what you are about to feed your chickens.

I know zero about chickens, but I am willing to guess that the professional facilities do not use wide spec pellets in their facilities.

 

[Jcas]

I feel your pain, CocoMaroon, everything is so expensive these days! Obviously everyone here has answered your question, but an important thing to notice is not just WHAT the ingredients list is but the AMOUNT of everything. For example, I recently ended up with five unexpected ducklings. Initially I fed them chick starter feed thinking that would be fine, but after a little searching, I found that ducks need MUCH more niacin in their diet than chickens. Niacin is in chicken feed but not in nearly the amount needed to keep a duckling healthy. I imagine there could be similar discrepancies in different vitamins/ minerals etc between parrots and chickens. The fact that you noticed the great similarities between chicken feed and some major brands of parrot pellets is personally a concern for me and the main reason I choose to feed Tops. I just don’t feel that a hook bill should be getting almost the same diet as my chickens! I guess everyone has to figure out what works best for their bird, and their wallets, though! As a side note, from a longtime chicken owner, congrats on your new flock and welcome to the chicken keepers club!

 

[TheofficialParakeet]

i wouldnt feed as a diet, but i got interesred once to see if they WOULD eat it, and in fact they did