How can I get my parakeet to lose weight?

[ct92404]

Chipper is kind of chubby. The good news is that I have been able to get her to eat vegetables. I bought a food chopper a while back, and I convinced her to eat carrots. Now she actually gets excited when she sees me get out the chopper and a paper plate with vegetables, because she knows it's something for her! She starts chirping and pacing back and forth at the front of her cage. She also likes broccoli, romane lettuce, and spinach. She will happily hop down and eat them from a plate.

But my question is, what kind of food and how much should I put in her food bowl in her cage? Right now, I give her vegetables once or twice a day when I have her out of the cage. But I don't want her to go hungry the rest of the time, so I have seeds in her bowl. She needs to lose weight, but I'm not sure what to do. Should I put less seeds in her bowl? How can I get Chipper to lose weight but without starving her?

 

[MikeyTN]

One good way is to let them have plenty of exercise. Is she clipped?

 

[Betrisher]

You don't say why it is you feel Chipper is too heavy. Did your vet say so? I would only 'diet' a bird under vet supervision, as it's so easy to get it wrong and wind up with malnutrition or deficiencies (the bird, not you).

If your vet has advised you to slim your bird down a bit, you need to start by knowing your bird's weight and what his goal should be. I use my kitchen scales to weigh Dominic (who is a Galah, but the principle is the same). Luckily, he's happy to step on and stand while I weigh him. You might need to rig up a little perch for Chipper to make him comfortable.

Anyway, you don't want all the weight to fall off your bird yesterday. It's a very slow process. Dominic has lost 100gms in just on 12months. He still has another 50-70gms to lose, though, and we're at the point where I must watch him very carefully to ensure he's not losing too quickly. His diet is strictly pellets and fresh vegetables only with the occasional bit of fruit thrown in. I leave food in front of him all the time as he came from a situation where food was not always available, but he would then be flooded with sunflower seed (ie. lard). I don't ever want him to think food won't be there for him, so that's why I do that. Dominic is not supposed to have seeds at all, but I do give him the occasional one as a very special treat. What's life if there's nothing to look forward to, right?

Finally, exercise is the key! Dominic came from a situation where he was permanently stationary in a too-small cage. It has been a task, getting him moving! He is fully flighted but prefers not to fly, probably because of his weight and lack of fitness. So, he walks everywhere. I make lots of opportunities for him to walk and climb: time on the kitchen bench, time on the playgym, a cargo net, a round rope swing, a 'spiral staircase' and a very long (3 foot) ladder to climb on. Dom began to fly in short bursts about six months ago, so I also give him lots of opportunities to fly from where he is (kitchen table) to where he wants to go (playgym suspended over back door). His fitness is improving and his weight loss improved hugely once he began to fly. I can't tell you how much flight improves a bird's fitness, health and state of mind! The day Dominic first flew was the same day he finally found his voice and called out: I think he found his inner bird that day! Now, he calls two times in the morning and two times in the late afternoon, just as he should: he's a proper Galah again.

Sorry for raving on about Dommie: I do get carried away, as I'm so proud of him. I hope this gives you some ideas for your birdie? As I said, please consult with your vet first so he can tell you what a good weight should be for a budgie and advise about a healthy diet for him. Best of luck with it please do keep us in touch with your progress!

 

[legal_eagle]

Are you sure he's overweight? You don't want to unintentionally starve him.

 

[ct92404]

Well, the vet has commented before that Chipper seemed a bit overweight. And the last time I took her there (just to get her claws trimmed), the vet tech said that Chipper was a little "chunky." She weighed 50 something grams. I do have a paper showing her weight, but I just don't have it with me right now. But the doctor hasn't specifically told me to put Chipper on a diet. So I'm going to take the advice you guys gave and ask the vet first. Otherwise, Chipper is healthy and seems to be doing very well. She's active, her feathers are smooth and brightly colored, her eyes and cere are clear, etc. I just don't that Chipper looks pretty chubby, and she glides a little hard when her feathers are trimmed.

I normally do have her her wings clipped, but I think this time I'm going to wait for a while. Partly because she seems overweight and I'm afraid she lands a little too hard with her wings trimmed.

I'm mainly worried about her weight though because I'm afraid of her having liver problems in the future. At least she is eating vegetables now. So for now I'll have seeds in her bowl and I'll keep giving her vegetables when I have her out of her cage. Maybe if she fills up on vegetables, she naturally wouldn't want as many seeds anyway.

 

[cassiepengo]

this is the first time ive heard of a chubby bird
well i think the best you can do is give her lots of time out of her cage to ensure proper excercise. and like all the others said, you can ask your vet about it.
thats all i can help right now

and yeah, you can google "how to make your budgie lose weight"
they seem to have some pretty useful sites

 

[Freespin]

Does she get free access to seed? I give my barraband two teaspoons of a seed pellet mix a day along with fresh fruit and vege. I'm not sire what's recommended for a budgie though

 

[hacatta]

Let her get exercise by foraging when your not home.
On an other forum some one had a parakeet that was way overweight.
Ans slimmed her down with foraging.

 

[Skittys_Daddy]

Exercise is your best bet. Chances are if she is clipped, that is contributing to her being a bit chunky. It is better that a bird is a bit overweight rather than underweight cause active birds shed the equivalent of their body weight rather quickly.

 

[RavensGryf]

I also have a Budgie who was clinically diagnosed the other day with severe obesity. In Pix's particular case though, his brain chemistry doesn't signal him to feel full or stop eating the vet thinks. He was constantly eating. His cage mate is normal weight. We had to put him in separate cage to monitor how much he eats now. Vet says no more than ONE teaspoon of Harrison's lifetime pellets per day. Some additional veggies are fine. That is not a whole lot food per day, but is both what my vet says and what is guideline on Harrison's bag (avian vet created and formulated).

That's great that Chipper already eats veggies. She's on the right track there. Try lower fat maintenance pellets of a high quality too. If she's sedentary, try ways to get her to move, fly, play, climb more throughout the day. Oh, and no seed until she's reduced Good luck!

 

[EdwardH]

You could decrease the amount of seed you feed her. Weigh it and then just reduce it by a couple of grams. Offer Chipper plenty of vegies and leafy stuff like kale, spinach, etc. this way she will still have plenty to eat but a more balanced diet. She cant really eat to much vegies as she will simply poo more.
You could start hiding her food so that she has to forage for it. Also keep plenty of twig like branches for her to chew on. The more time she spends foraging and chewing the less she will eat. This will also keep her mind alert for long periods of time.
Last but not least give her plenty of play time. Combined this will cause her weight to be in a healthier range.

 

[antoinette]

Try lots of exercise
Let her run around when outside the cage
Has she got foraging toys, great way to exercise