Treat ideas and food opinion?

[bluecrownmama]

Hi, I have a blue crown conure and I'd like to bring in some new, perhaps more favored treats. What do you all use? Do you have an ever changing variety or do you stick with just a few?
My second question is I feed my Blue Crown Hagan's Tropimix (along with fresh fruits and veggies). Is anyone else familiar with this and what is your opinion of it? Or do you use something else that you swear by and why? I've had a hard time finding how much I should be feeding him each day--I've had him over a year but I'm starting to wonder if I overfeed him. Does anyone know where I can find such info?

 

[psittac]

I feed harrisons high potency super fine because it's what my vet sells and recommends, it's not cheap but a lot of the stuff from the pet stores isn't good for your bird.

As for how much to feed I just leave the bowl full of food and refill it when empty, she does just fine.

Also have you tried jalapeno peppers? My bird absolutely loves them and since they have no saliva in their mouth it doesn't burn, they just eat them up.

 

[bluecrownmama]

I've noticed harrisons at a local store recently and have been wondering about it. Do you feed yours solely the high potency super fine? I looked on their website and it says you can also just feed it to them for just 6-9 and it helps with molting-we may have to try this! And jalapeno peppers....I never would have thought!!

 

[psittac]

yeah I thought it was crazy at first, figured someone was yanking my chain but it's true, birds LOVE hot peppers.

I only feed her the high potency super fine and have been ever since I first got her minus a few months when I couldn't make it into the vet.

 

[strudel]

My galah loves cashew nuts for treats, but also loves wheat/oat grass. My garden is full of weeds and she loves them.

 

[MonicaMc]

I feed Harrison's. Most of the birds get the Adult Lifetime but I am feeding two the High Potency.... one because she's an older bird, the other because she's new to my flock and didn't come to me eating pellets (which she's been eating here since day one of her coming in!)

Treats are anything your bird loves and will work for. Sunflower seeds, safflower seeds, millet, dried fruit, nuts, etc.

 

[Captsteve]

For treats try a pine cone with a little peanut butter smeared into it. They love it and it will help to condition the beak.

One other thing I do often is take some (bird) trail mix and make little treat pouches in a large sheet of tissue paper (for gift wrap) I twist up 3-4 pouches randomly on a sheet then ball up the whole thing and toss it in the cage. It make a mess but it also make a happy bird!! and it's a cheap foraging toy.

 

[bluecrownmama]

Love the tissue paper idea! Yenko loves shredding paper so that will be perfect!

 

[ruffledfeathers]

Gilbert was weaned on Roudybush and in the past i always used Harrisons (with sometimes some zupreem in the mix). I had him on Roudybush when i got him and gradually got him used to the Harrisons. He doesn't care for the normal one but likes the pepper variety. He just eats the Adult Lifetime Coarse, like Georgie did, and i always thought they only needed the high potency if they were found to need it (by bloodwork/exam) or for any special needs. Georgie did need it at one point.....

Gilbert is not fussy at all and will accept most new foods. I try to just vary it a little from day to day and he goes in spells where he LOVES the carrots, where he tosses the carrots and wants only the peas, etc. I just let him do his thing!

 

[strudel]

I hope you don't mind me piggybacking another question on your thread, OP, but it's related and I hope an answer might help us both.

OP asked about food quantity and I understand it's fine for her to eat what she needs from her "good" food, but how much quantity of treats can I give her when I'm trying to train her, ie how many cashews (I break them up) in total should I restrict it to or how many fruit and seed treats (I have a bag which is sunflower seeds and dried fruit and peanuts and all sorts of different things. I was told that sunflower seeds and nuts can make her fat, so I don't want to mess up her diet by stuffing her full of treats. Is there a limit?

 

[MonicaMc]

What you could do is to feed her what she'd normally eat and see what the first 3 items are that she eats out of her food dish every day.

Once you have a good idea what those 3 items are, remove them from her dish and use those as her treats. If she eats all that you withheld, then you can't be feeding too much if you feed a specific amount of food each day!