Natural Feeding Questions

[Annageckos]

Firstly, I am sorry for all the questions, but it has been a while since I have had any birds.

I believe in feeding as close to a natural diet as possible. All my animal eat a species appropriate diet, and I want the same for my future bird (looking into a GCC). I have read a little about the Chop diet, but can't really find a whole lot about it. It seems most people feed pellets. I do plan on feeding some pellets too, but want most of the diet to be fresh and not processed. I don't care about the time it takes to make the meal up, I just want what is best for the bird. So is there anything you can tell me about feeding this way? Any tips or what I should or shouldn't do? Any good sites with info about feeding this way? Thanks!!

 

[Parrotmamma]

I like to feed my fids a balance of fresh fruits and veggies , pellets ( I like TOPS organic pellets) and seeds.
Here is a good website with an interesting article about a whole foods diet..
Commercial Bird Pellets Good Nutrition??

 

[lene1949]

Many years ago I read that we would be able to live on a few tablets (pellets?) daily, because they would be packed with everything we need in term of vitamins, minerals etc... What a boring life that would be...

Most parrots eat seeds.... They have got a beak especially designed for this job... They also eat anything else that grows on trees, such a fruits and nuts, flowers etc... They have learnt to eat gains and corn and anything else the farmers grow...

Pellets here in Australia are very expensive - $30 for a 2kg bag...

I will keep to the natural diet...

 

[dishgal1]

I totally agree, we have caged them up and took away their freedom and all they have to look forward to is pellets??????
How boring .....You will love the site parrotmamma gave you. Read all the articles. You will love it.
I feel exactly the same way about the diet. We do natural for all our pets.
Good for you it is a lot of extra work but we owe it to our fids.

 

[dishgal1]

Many years ago I read that we would be able to live on a few tablets (pellets?) daily, because they would be packed with everything we need in term of vitamins, minerals etc... What a boring life that would be...

Most parrots eat seeds.... They have got a beak especially designed for this job... They also eat anything else that grows on trees, such a fruits and nuts, flowers etc... They have learnt to eat gains and corn and anything else the farmers grow...

Pellets here in Australia are very expensive - $30 for a 2kg bag...

I will keep to the natural diet...

I totally agree with you. Natural and unprocessed is always the best.

 

[Annageckos]

Thanks for the link. I agree with is said. I still need to take my time and really read though it all. What I really need is recipes, I guess you would say. Like I feed my dogs raw, and they eat 80% meat, 10% bone, 5% liver and 5% other organs. What is the best ratios for GCC? How much grains, veggies and fruits. Anything else that is good to add? Do they need any added vitamins?

 

[dishgal1]

My Gcc Forrest pretty much is a selective feeder as in he seems to know what he needs at any given time for his proper nutrition, it is pretty amazing how he does it. Some days he eats more pellets, than seed and vice versa. At least 50 - 60% of his diet though is fresh fruits and veggies and he always stuffs himself on that first, although I have different feeding stations around the room with seeds and pellets in separate bowls .......as the day progresses he goes to seed and pellets.
Some of his favorites are corn, green peas, RED bell pepper is super favorite, yellow peppers, green peppers, broccoli, carrots, sweet potatoes are very good, (not his favorite) dehydrated veggies like Dr. Harveys Veg to Bowl, a good seed mix that contains a lot of dried fruit etc is Higgins Yucatan blend.
Good fruits are apples, oranges , grapes, bananas, blueberries, pears, peaches but dont use the part near the pit, cantaloupe and watermelon.
Most people prefer Harrisons pellets, mine won't eat them. He does like In Tune and Totally organics pellets.
Hope this helps. Feel free to PM me if you choose, not a lot of people use this particular diet plan so you may not get too many responses.

 

[dishgal1]

Also Parrotmamma is my daughter and she has a great birdy bread recipe, you can pm her for that. We take turns making different foods and sharing with each other. She lives across the street from me.
Also we both give them Coconut oil a couple drops right off the spoon it is very good for them and helps fight bacteria.

 

[Annageckos]

Thank you for the info, sorry I didn't respond sooner. Are these the pellets you feed? Totally Organics TOP Organic Bird Pellets There is a bird store close by that carries them, in fact I got a small amount to try. I hope she likes them, the ingredients are great. They have no added colors, or chemical preservatives and are cold pressed. They are also very reasonably priced.

 

[taylor_]

Also we both give them Coconut oil a couple drops right off the spoon it is very good for them and helps fight bacteria.

coconut oil is HEAVENLY. for everything. you can bake with it, rub it on your skin, use it as chapstick. anything and everything. GOTTA LOVE IT!

 

[Spiritbird]

Plant based diets are good for birds and us. I make mashes out of the seasonal foods available and try to get organic. Phoenix Landing has a wonderful cookbook that I have and love. It has nice recipes and some educational information as well.

Here is the link: http://www.phoenixlanding.org/books.html