I caved...just how bad are sunflower seeds?

[Allee]

I don't have a Zon, but I did convert a very stubborn quaker from an all seed diet. She was a very angry bird during the slow process. After a year and a half she only gets a tablespoon of seed mix in the evening and she usually ignores it completely, she actually prefers pellets and fresh food now. I only give her sunflower seeds as an occasional treat.

 

[Dopey]

I don't have a Zon, but I did convert a very stubborn quaker from an all seed diet. She was a very angry bird during the slow process. After a year and a half she only gets a tablespoon of seed mix in the evening and she usually ignores it completely, she actually prefers pellets and fresh food now. I only give her sunflower seeds as an occasional treat.

How did you handle her when she was angry? Did you let her out of her cage? Did she have a play stand to go to? This bird is in attack mode if he doesn't get enough sun flower seeds to make him happy.

 

[Allee]

When I brought her home, she was underweight, vitamin deficient and plucking to the point of mutilation. The thing that worked for her was two meals a day, grains, vegetables, fruits. If I put the food in her cage she would dump the food, empty the bowl, have a tantrum and totally trash her cage. I started feeding her two meals a day away from her cage. I used portable playstands with food cups. I couldn't take the seeds away completely, because of her health, but curiosity got the best of her and she discovered she liked the new foods. Her vet recommended organic pellets, she wouldn't touch them dry, but she loved them soaked in apple juice.

 

[Dopey]

My fear is that I will just feed him and ignore him because he is so mean when he doesn't get his sun flower seeds. I don't want to be one of those parronts that ignores their parrot because they are loud or mean (he is both when in withdrawal from sun flower seeds).

I still give him his out of cage time.
I still try to play with him and he is getting better at playing but he usually only tries to play with a toy with me 2 times and then he turns his head away from me.
But it is more of a pleasure to work with the two other birds I have.

 

[Allee]

You aren't the type of owner to just feed and ignore one of your birds! I think you'll discover you have a different relationship with each of your birds. I really think his anger over the menu changes is temporary, just a transitional stage. Try different ways of distracting him, he may never be comfortable with being handled, but if you can engage his curiosity with an activity he enjoys, you'll both be happier.

My male quaker had very little human contact for eight years before he came to us. He was very shy and human attention made him nervous. One of his toys was a bunch of leather strips with wood pieces tied on, one morning when I let him out of his cage I discovered he had methodically untied about twenty knots in the leather strips. I tied them every day and he untied them every evening. We still play that game and he is a very friendly trusting bird now. Sometimes it's just a matter of getting to know a bird's individual personality and likes and dislikes.

 

[Dopey]

Thank you so much. I really do wish I could figure out this guy. He loves to jump on a stick and let me fly him up and down but now his feathers are growing in and he can take off. Of course...I could chase him I guess. Hmmm, maybe a swing for him. Maybe he would like a swing. I will have to see if I have one in my stash. If not, I could buy one for him of course.

 

[Psittaciformes]

How are nuts compared to sunflower seeds as training treats?
Kiwiberry gets way too excited when she sees sunflower seeds, impossible to train her like that ...

 

[Scott]

How are nuts compared to sunflower seeds as training treats?
Kiwiberry gets way too excited when she sees sunflower seeds, impossible to train her like that ...

Have you tried shelled almonds? It's a near universal treat for my birds.
Caution, however..... the US grown ones are safe but somebody posted a horrific cautionary tale late last year about certain almonds - I believe they were grown in Italy.

 

[Amanda_Bennett]

How are nuts compared to sunflower seeds as training treats?
Kiwiberry gets way too excited when she sees sunflower seeds, impossible to train her like that ...

I use almond pieces, a whole one takes too long for Zilla to eat and she gets full after only having a couple. I just use a sharp knife to "hack" one into 5 or 6 pieces and that usually lasts for about as long as her attention span lasts.

I also make sure they are from the USA after reading that post about the foreign ones a couple months ago.

 

[Dopey]

How are nuts compared to sunflower seeds as training treats?
Kiwiberry gets way too excited when she sees sunflower seeds, impossible to train her like that ...

I used nuts for my bigger Zon. Cut them into smaller pieces.
My birds are very gentle with me when I offer them a treat.

 

[Amanda_Bennett]

Have you tried "hiding" his sunflower seeds in some type of foraging toy? Or several in different places around his cage? Maybe if you let him watch you put some in he will "forage" for them?

That way he would still get them, but would have to work more for them

 

[Dopey]

I had one in his cage for a few weeks. He never touched it...or at least it looked like he never touched it. I gave it to the Severe Macaw to start him on foraging and he finally got a nut out yesterday. I can try something again. I have something that might work. If it doesn't work it will let me know that he is truly a lazy bird.

 

[Psittaciformes]

Amanda, I'd never get enough time to actually get near the cage before she flies over to steal the treats from me, she must recognise the sound of the sunflower seed bag haha

But I'll give it a shot anyway
-
About the almonds, I'll see if i can find some shelled ones, I know I can get ones out of the shells from Australia, those are fine, right?
What's the deal with the Italian ones?

 

[Psittaciformes]

I had one in his cage for a few weeks. He never touched it...or at least it looked like he never touched it. I gave it to the Severe Macaw to start him on foraging and he finally got a nut out yesterday. I can try something again. I have something that might work. If it doesn't work it will let me know that he is truly a lazy bird.

What's your plan?

 

[Scott]

Amanda, I'd never get enough time to actually get near the cage before she flies over to steal the treats from me, she must recognise the sound of the sunflower seed bag haha

But I'll give it a shot anyway
-
About the almonds, I'll see if i can find some shelled ones, I know I can get ones out of the shells from Australia, those are fine, right?
What's the deal with the Italian ones?

The thread: http://www.parrotforums.com/general-parrot-information/48503-urgent-raw-almonds-italy-can-kill.html

Speaking of occasional foods, does anyone give Cheerios as a treat? It's one of the better commercially made dry cereals, relatively low in sugar. Cheerios now are non GMO, at least the product produced in the US. They are very "beak friendly" for most any bird!!

 

[Amanda_Bennett]

Speaking of occasional foods, does anyone give Cheerios as a treat? It's one of the better commercially made dry cereals, relatively low in sugar. Cheerios now are non GMO, at least the product produced in the US. They are very "beak friendly" for most any bird!!

I give Zilla Cheerios as an occasional treat, also chex cereals, grape nuts cereal, shredded wheat, bran flakes...

I think the only reason she eats the golden obles pellets I give her is because they look so much like Cheerios she thinks they are a type of Cheerio!

 

[Dopey]

I had one in his cage for a few weeks. He never touched it...or at least it looked like he never touched it. I gave it to the Severe Macaw to start him on foraging and he finally got a nut out yesterday. I can try something again. I have something that might work. If it doesn't work it will let me know that he is truly a lazy bird.

What's your plan?

I have this flat piece of wood with holes drilled part way through the wood. You are supposed to put some type of spread (I'm using organic peanut butter) in each of the holes then the bird has to spend some time getting the spread out. I will put the sun flower seeds in the hole and then the peanut butter over it. He will have to work to get to the seeds but he should like the work. My Severe loved it and worked on it for two days. Licked the board clean.

Then after I get him hooked on the peanut butter I will start mixing it with other veggies. Then I will cut down on the sun flower seeds.

That is my plan unless someone else has a better one.

 

[Abigal7]

Amanda, I'd never get enough time to actually get near the cage before she flies over to steal the treats from me, she must recognise the sound of the sunflower seed bag haha

But I'll give it a shot anyway
-
About the almonds, I'll see if i can find some shelled ones, I know I can get ones out of the shells from Australia, those are fine, right?
What's the deal with the Italian ones?

The thread: http://www.parrotforums.com/general-parrot-information/48503-urgent-raw-almonds-italy-can-kill.html

Speaking of occasional foods, does anyone give Cheerios as a treat? It's one of the better commercially made dry cereals, relatively low in sugar. Cheerios now are non GMO, at least the product produced in the US. They are very "beak friendly" for most any bird!!

I give the regular cheerios (not the honey nut) as a treat. The breeder had given Captain Jack cherrios as a treat.

 

[Psittaciformes]

The thread: http://www.parrotforums.com/general-parrot-information/48503-urgent-raw-almonds-italy-can-kill.html

Thank you so much for the link

 

[Psittaciformes]

I have this flat piece of wood with holes drilled part way through the wood. You are supposed to put some type of spread (I'm using organic peanut butter) in each of the holes then the bird has to spend some time getting the spread out. I will put the sun flower seeds in the hole and then the peanut butter over it. He will have to work to get to the seeds but he should like the work. My Severe loved it and worked on it for two days. Licked the board clean.

Then after I get him hooked on the peanut butter I will start mixing it with other veggies. Then I will cut down on the sun flower seeds.

That is my plan unless someone else has a better one.

I think I'll try this, although Kiwiberry eats some veggies and fruit, she's still too into the sunflower seeds.