Macaw feeding advice

[umeirsatar]

Hello there, What should a b&g macaw's feeding routine be like? From youtube I saw pellets and veggies in the morning then fruits and seeds as dinner in the afternoon.... should they have food available at all times? And if so then what kind, pellets, veggies, fruits? And during the night do you suggest keeping the food/pellets in the dishes at night or taking it out then offering them pellets/veggies in the morning and fruits as dinner..? And how do you tell if a b&g macaw wants to eat.. I'm a bit confused about this. Hope someone experienced in this field clears it up for me... thanks in advance

 

[noodles123]

How old is the bird?

 

[tfw]

If the macaw is already weaned, pellets should be available all day. I actually have different types of high quality pellets to change things up. I feed fresh veggies and fruits twice a day (morning and night). I feed treats throughout the day in controlled amounts (nuts with and without the shell, some seeds). To make sure she doesn't overeat on treats, I pre-measure the treats into little cups that people in my household can use up for that day.

 

[Cosmographer]

I had these questions also. Gonna keep an eye on this thread

 

[chris-md]

Pretty much what tfw said. Everyone’s going to have their own way of going about meals, but 2x feeding is pretty much the baseline. Some may feed a dry mix twice a day and leave pellets available all day.

Me personally, I feed twice a day and treats throughout the day. I don’t really keep pellets available all day because Parker has treats throughout the day.

 

[LokisMomma]

While my boy is still hand feeding I keep a variety of fresh veggies and fruits available throughout the day for him to try, and have pellets always available for him too. However this is only because he is still in the weaning process. Once he’s weaned, which will be a few months yet, I will give pellets and fresh veggies twice a day, with fruits and nuts used as treats. I don’t plan to leave any food out all day for him.

 

[umeirsatar]

Thanks for replies, I'm just worried of him getting hungry like at times when I'm not around because I'm mostly at work.. I plan on feeding my macaw in the morning (fruits n veggies) and leaving the pellets on his food bowls during the day and occasionally give the macaw some treats during the day and then again a bowl of fruit n veggies at night... and then take out the bowls of food at night until the morning, but I asked this question cos I worried about him over eating. Also should water be taken out too or just pellets?

 

[LokisMomma]

While I do change my macaws water out for fresh water several times a day, I don’t ever take it out completely. He always has it available. I don’t plan to free feed, meaning he doesn’t have food in his cage all day, he will only have it at meal times (once he is weaned). But I know several people who do leave pellets or some form of food available all day. It seems to be a personal choice. As long as your birds weight stays on track I would do whatever you are most comfortable with and what works best for your baby.

 

[noodles123]

Water should be in all of the time...I also leave dry food for my bird all the time, but she is 13 years old.....plus, that isn't what everyone does. The thing is, water can't cause your bird to get fat or sick, so if they want it, it should be there...Dishes should be cleaned every day with safe soap. I do NOT think that cutting off water is smart unless you are worried your bird could drown in it somehow...

I leave dry food in my bird's cage overnight. She is a cockatoo (thin, but not too thin) and she does sometimes eat at night if she happens to wake up..I just figure there is no harm in a bird that isn't overeating...as long as rodents/roaches etc will not come after it at night..

 

[umeirsatar]

Once again thank you for the replies, the post was a part of my research I had a small baby blue and gold macaw that's gone back to the breeder to finish weaning off.

 

[noodles123]

I want to add- if your bird cannot perch well or could fall into the water and not get up then you need to think differently!!!