Most food from foraging?

[ZoeS]

I'm on a renewed mission to teach my birds to forage! But, aside from a few kinds, my guys are not super into vegetables, and I don't want to overload them on treats to get them to forage.

Does anyone feed their conures most of their food (my guys get Harrison's pellets mostly - plus whatever I'm eating that they can/will eat, and a bit of treats like sunflower seeds and millet) via foraging? They love their pellets and would probably work for them, and I'd still leave some in a bowl of course. I was just wondering about the viability of them getting say 90% of their food through foraging.

Not all really tricky things, even just a cup on a string that they have to reach for and hold to eat, or a draw they need to open to access some pellets.

 

[Carabella]

I'm on a renewed mission to teach my birds to forage! But, aside from a few kinds, my guys are not super into vegetables, and I don't want to overload them on treats to get them to forage.

Does anyone feed their conures most of their food (my guys get Harrison's pellets mostly - plus whatever I'm eating that they can/will eat, and a bit of treats like sunflower seeds and millet) via foraging? They love their pellets and would probably work for them, and I'd still leave some in a bowl of course. I was just wondering about the viability of them getting say 90% of their food through foraging.

Not all really tricky things, even just a cup on a string that they have to reach for and hold to eat, or a draw they need to open to access some pellets.

Our YNA loves to forage, especially with his new cage since the tray is too far to reach. I use a plain old baking pan (make sure it's NOT Teflon coated) and layer it with cedar chips or shredded cardboard/paper. Sprinkle it with seed, pellets and any other foods they like. You can throw in some things they may not particularly like but the fun part is hunting for the good things.

I'm not sure about the viability of 90% foraging - there are so many experts who can answer that. Benj gets a tiny bit of whatever we eat every night. He's got a special little red bowl I swear he zeros into every night when I'm making dinner. He can see into the kitchen from his cage and immediately starts calling for his bowl. He gets some lean meat, maybe a teaspoon of sweet potato and/or some salad. He forages through the bowl for what he likes and leaves what he doesn't.

 

[Flboy]

Our YNA loves to forage, especially with his new cage since the tray is too far to reach. I use a plain old baking pan (make sure it's NOT Teflon coated) and layer it with cedar chips or shredded cardboard/paper. Sprinkle it with seed, pellets and any other foods they like.

Putting my ignorance aside, there may be a real issue with using cedar chips! I understand they are harmful! I would rather error on the side of looking stupid, to having your buddy hurt!

 

[flyingron]

Cedar is reputably is bad for birds (I suspect especially the aromatic stuff). Actually Bacca will dig through shell husks for hours looking for one good seed kernel in the mix. I think I'm going to try some pistachio hulls and hiding the good seed within it.

We've tried other foraging toys (I made little tissue paper pinatas and my wife bought one of these puzzle things) but Bacca isn't even interested in it even with her beloved seed inside.