Is millet a good food for Galah cockatoo?

[carolflan]

Just wondering if millet seeds are good for Galah cockatoo as I've seen online how they need low fat items to eat and millet and canary seeds are low in fat ? Are they good or not?

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[plumsmum2005]

As with everything in moderation. Treats are fine. Be careful she does not fill up on this and then the 'good' stuff is not wanted

If she eats her veggies then no reason why not ha ha.

 

[Flboy]

Millet=candy! A nice treat, but not a staple!

 

[Scott]

Millet is one of those universal treats, simple to portion (scissors) and easy for the bird to eat. Mine get roughly two 3" sections once or twice weekly. I buy in a large box for 8 beaks, seems to have a long shelf life.

 

[carolflan]

I mean like various millet mixed as a seed food? Millet =candy but everywhere on the internet says its great seed and very low fat so seems perfect? .? Alongside obviously everything else vegies etc of course ..

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[plumsmum2005]

"A little millet is fine in a small bird’s diet, but it should not be the main part of the diet. It is missing some amino acids and essential nutrients. In charts on the nutrient values of different seeds, millet has absolutely no vitamin A, an essential vitamin for birds. That’s where a varied diet becomes important for your bird"

The question here was asked about budgies but still as relevant for parrots.

https://www.petcha.com/all-about-millet/

RB2's are naturally seed eaters and in the main prefer it to anything else. Have you read about wild ones raiding crop fields? Given half the chance they will fill up on this and the good stuff, ie the foodstuff that is good for them, that will not cause any adverse health problems gets side lined. With a RB2 it is quite a lot about low fat but there are other criteria to fulfil; all the vitamins, protein, carbs, amino acids etc, etc, etc. To be healthy it's the same as us it needs to be a balanced diet.

 

[carolflan]

So is a pellet or seed diet recommended as the main food source with all the added extras , vedgies fruit pulses beans etc?

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[plumsmum2005]

Firstly I don't recommend seed or pellets as the main source, I do however recommend a fresh diet with added extras as you term it. With all the anguish with Plum having FLD I would say in hindsight veg, little fruit, sprouts, pulses, little well cooked egg and chicken now and again and some pellets daily. If you can be assured that Jess is eating well and more importantly correctly then a pellet may not be necessary. Anansi for example feeds his two Ekkies only fresh prepared veggies, fruits, nuts, pulses etc, seeds are treats, these two are a shining example of good health without pellets. Unfortunately Plum is very fussy about what he will and will not eat and I therefore have to fill the gaps with pellets. See if she will just eat a fresh diet and is happy on it, with few nuts/seeds as her treats/motivators? It is a lot easier to make a Galah overweight than lose it.

To quote : "An optimal diet for a Galah would consist mostly of fresh greens and green vegetables with the additions of orange vegetables 2-3 times a week. If your bird picks through the fresh food, only eating its favorites, then chop food finely or pulse it in a food processor, making a veggie mash. This will help ensure that your Galah is eating all of the variety of produce you have fed it. Finely choppd fruits can be added. Varieties of millet can be added to the diet for the hard seed and sprouts are a wonderful nutritious addition, which are highly recommended. Also a warm cooked bean and grain mixture and a treat of birdie bread will round out the diet. Fruits can be offered daily. Cooked egg can be offered in small quantities once or sometimes twice a week. Be sure that you offer a variety of foods, not just a lot of the same foods. Make every meal a little different from the last one, this way you should be supplying adequate nutrition."

http://galah.galahs.com.au/content/php/article008.php

https://sproutpeople.org/growing-sprouts/sprouting-basics/

 

[carolflan]

Firstly I don't recommend seed or pellets as the main source, I do however recommend a fresh diet with added extras as you term it. With all the anguish with Plum having FLD I would say in hindsight veg, little fruit, sprouts, pulses, little well cooked egg and chicken now and again and some pellets daily. If you can be assured that Jess is eating well and more importantly correctly then a pellet may not be necessary. Anansi for example feeds his two Ekkies only fresh prepared veggies, fruits, nuts, pulses etc, seeds are treats, these two are a shining example of good health without pellets. Unfortunately Plum is very fussy about what he will and will not eat and I therefore have to fill the gaps with pellets. See if she will just eat a fresh diet and is happy on it, with few nuts/seeds as her treats/motivators?

I doubt she would eat enough vedgies or fruit to sustain herself! She does love beans if all description (black eyed beans,pinto beans,cannelini beans etc )but can they be given every day?

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[plumsmum2005]

Give it a go and see please?

We have some great 'chop' recipes on here and it is time saving and economical to prepare a batch and freeze. Extra fresh bits can be added for interest.

Do please read the article I put up on Galahs.

 

[StChelle]

My boy doesn't care much for fruit or many types of veggies or peppers. I feed him a good pellet which he always has access to. I keep offering veggies even though he mostly plays with them. He loves birdie bread though. we just made a batch using coconut flour with sweet potato baby food, apples and a few oats. That's breakfast and he loves it. Trying to keep away from anything high in fat. I only give him a bit of seed as a treat maybe twice a month. Training is with almond slivers, but would love suggestions on a good low fat training treat as I am paranoid about nuts too lol.

 

[Laylatoo]

I do a chop mix first thing in the morning. It currently has veggies and apple along with wild rice and oats. She also gets a little cooked bean and organic noodle mix with it every morning. In the afternoon she gets a pellet mix with Harrison's fine, zupreem natural and TOPs pellets for variety. I will give a little good quality budgie seed sometimes as a treat (one teaspoon) or a nutriberrie. I also do fresh foods on a kabob. She was fed an all seed based diet until I bought her in February. The transition is still ongoing to narrow down her likes and dislikes which is why I'm constantly trying different things.

ETA- I also offer dehydrated veggie mix as well.