What do you feed, and how often?

[ScottinVentura]

I've read a lot of conflicting information about what, and how often to feed an Amazon. I've hit on my own solution, and my vet (an avian speshulist - deliberately misspelled because of some freaky filtering on this site) is also happy with it, but I'm wondering what other people do?

I make Boo's food in batches. It's primarily a mix I buy at the vet, from a place called Crazy Corn. It has to be cooked. While it's cooking, I chop up some cilantro & parsley and put it in the bottom of a large bowl. When the mix is all cooked up and still hot, I spoon it over the parsley/cilantro mix, then cover it and let it sit for about twenty minutes. The heat from the mix is enough to cook the greens. Then I stir it all up to get the greens evenly throughout, put it into the small freezer bags, and freeze it until I need it. Each bag gives me enough to feed Boo twice a day (morning and evening) for about three or four days. When I serve it up, the portion gets microwaved for about twenty seconds, then stirred, so it's warmed up. I sometimes mix in spices, to vary the flavor. His favorites are cayenne or habanero peppers. Sometimes he likes a little apple mixed up with it, and some cinnamon.

Occasional treats are beef, chicken, pork, nuts (unsalted), chili peppers (he eats fresh habaneros like candy), steamed broccoli, stuff like that.

What do you feed your parrot?

 

[ScottinVentura]

This is what he looks like, fresh out of the shower and grooming himself.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmgvbn1rQcU"]YouTube - M4H00050.MP4[/ame]

And that's a video game in the background.

 

[Riley's mom]

Wow!! I never heard of that mixture. What I use for my amazon, and all my birds is a mixture of pellets, (zupreem and kaytee) and seed. They get fresh fruits and veggies everyday and also some of them eat with us in the evening. They also get treats during the day. On weekends I will make birdy bread for them. They also like dried fruit mixes. Have a good day!

 

[Beatriz Cazeneuve]

All my birds get gloop (cooked dish of 50% whole grains and pulses and 50% veggies)in the morning along with a different kind of raw fruit, veggie and a leafy green (zons love their greens! But I never feed parsley to my birds). For dinner, when the sun starts to set, they get a small measured portion of dry grains, seeds, nuts and, occasionally, pellets (Harrison's coarse pepper maintenance). For a large zon, it would be a quarter cup and that would include an almond in the shell and half a walnut. Sometimes the walnut is reaplaced by one peanut or half a Brazil nut or a no-salt pistachio. Once a week, the breakfast gloop is replaced with birdy bread I bake myself with whole grain flours, veggies, fruits and nuts. Treats are dry figs, dates, sugar cane, etc. No animal products whatsoever except for grated hard boiled eggs (from pastured hens that are fed organic, all vegetarian feed with no hormones or antibiotics), the frequency depends on the season (they get it only once a month during the winter months).

 

[ScottinVentura]

But I never feed parsley to my birds

For a specific reason, or just because they don't like parsley?

No animal products whatsoever except for grated hard boiled eggs

And on this one, is this a choice you've made, or is it for health reasons?

Boo loves meat, he has since I got him. I give him a little with no fat on it, maybe a couple of times a week. He's maintaining his weight well, but if there's a health reason he shouldn't have it, I can distract him with a raw brazil nut. He loves those more than he loves meat, and getting the shell off and the last bit of nut out can keep him distracted for ten minutes.

 

[ScottinVentura]

What I use for my amazon, and all my birds is a mixture of pellets, (zupreem and kaytee) and seed. They get fresh fruits and veggies everyday and also some of them eat with us in the evening.

When I first got him, the vet told me he was about 2/3 of the weight he should be, for his size. The rescue place he came from gave me a bag of pellet food for him, but he wouldn't eat it. The vet recommended the Crazy Corn, and he scarfs that right down. His weight went up - too far - I trimmed back the portions, and now he maintains pretty well at what the vet says he should weigh.

 

[Riley's mom]

I have never heard of crazy corn, I'm going to have to check that out. It sounds fun. Like I said before, my birds get the pellet and seed mixture, people food, (including some meat) fruits and veggies, and treats. I know some people get pretty neurotic about bird food, but it sounds to me like your doing a great job. Don't sweat it. Have you tried different kinds of pellets? They sometimes favor the zupreem because of the fruit flavoring. Some of mine will eat it, some won't. Some prefer Kaytee. None of them will touch Harrisons. I end up picking that up off the floor. Good luck!

 

[Beatriz Cazeneuve]

But I never feed parsley to my birds

For a specific reason, or just because they don't like parsley?

No animal products whatsoever except for grated hard boiled eggs

And on this one, is this a choice you've made, or is it for health reasons?

Boo loves meat, he has since I got him. I give him a little with no fat on it, maybe a couple of times a week. He's maintaining his weight well, but if there's a health reason he shouldn't have it, I can distract him with a raw brazil nut. He loves those more than he loves meat, and getting the shell off and the last bit of nut out can keep him distracted for ten minutes.

I don't feed them parsley because, when I was growing up, everybody said that parsley is not good for birds. Now, I will readily admit that I don't know if this is just an old-wives tale or if it carries any truth to it but, just in case, I don't feed it. No need for it, I use oregano, rosemary, thyme, cumin, sage and a million other seasonings in their gloop. Personally, I think the parsley thing stemmed from the fact that, back home, people did not feed their birds a very large variety of greens (we are not big on cruciforms so all we eat, in terms of raw greens, are salads) and the only other green besides the ones used for salads (which are all good in terms of oxalic acid) that is always present in a kitchen is parsley, thus the warning.

As to animal products, yes, it's for health reasons. I don't feed any milk product because they lack the enzymes to digest them and I don't feed meat because all parrots, except a couple of very rare exceptions, are all classified as vegetarians. People talk about birds eating insects but you can't compare insects to beef or chicken. For one thing, parrots are not insectivores, and, for another, even if they were, insect meat has no cholesterol so, when you feed chicken, beef or pork meat, even if it's lean, you are feeding something they cannot process well. Vegetarian animals were not meant to eat meat so nature never gave them the digestive process for it. And cholesterol is not only bad because of the cardiovascular problems it brings, it also strains their livers something terrible (all protein goes through it), and we all know how delicate their livers are! And you have to be especially careful with zons because they are very prone to obesity and fatty liver.

 

[Auggie's Dad]

Some good points there I will have to think about and do some checking into for meat. I have given Auggie meat on occasion.

I do give Auggie cheese occasionally, and quite regularly he gets a little milk - just licking out the cap as I pour myself a glass. It's true they cannot digest the lactose, but in small doses this is not an issue at all - it is not toxic nor does it build up cumulatively but a high dose will give indigestion. This of course could lead to dehydration and serious other problems, but small doses of dairy would not cause this, and can be a good source of nutrients.

 

[Riley's mom]

I have never given my birds cheese. How interesting. I'm sure they would love it. AD, do you give any certain kind of cheese?

 

[Auggie's Dad]

Auggie loves soft white cheeses: mozzarella, muenster, swiss, etc.

But I give very small amounts in moderation, because it will upset their digestive system if they get much at once. He's an absolute addict though, if I let him he'd scarf down a block without taking a breath.

 

[ScottinVentura]

I don't feed any milk product because they lack the enzymes to digest them and I don't feed meat because all parrots, except a couple of very rare exceptions, are all classified as vegetarians.

When he gets meat, it's not fatty (we don't eat fatty meat, so there's none around), and it's a small sliver. I will check into it, though.

As for the dairy, I hadn't even thought of that. Cutting cheese completely isn't an option, I'm afraid. Whenever Boo sees a block of cheese on the counter, he starts ringing his bell like the hunchback (his signal that he wants whatever it is you're eating). If he doesn't get at least a taste of it, he resorts to screaming. Although his favorite is sharp cheddar. He looks at white cheeses, maybe licks them a little, then drops them on the floor.

 

[Beatriz Cazeneuve]

Like I said, it's not so much the fat in the meat, it's the cholesterol that's a big worry and, if you feed 'regular' supermarket meat, it's the crappola hormones and antibiotics that are in it. Animals raised for food are not fed a natural diet, they are pumped full of stuff to make them real fat and big in a very short period of time to increase profit. I used to work for a grain company that supplied chicken growers, and part of the chickens ration was the cheapest animal fat which is, again, full of cholesterol.

 

[Riley's mom]

Does anyone ever give their birds chicken? During Hurricane season, when we have to hunker down, one of my "comfort" foods is the rotessire chicken from Sam's. I give each of the big birds a little piece and they love it.

 

[Auggie's Dad]

I've given Auggie bits of chicken from time to time. He enjoys it, but he's not a big fan like he is for dairy.

I think the point about cholesterol is an interesting one though. But insects DO certainly have some, often quite significant amounts.

 

[ScottinVentura]

if you feed 'regular' supermarket meat, it's the crappola hormones and antibiotics that are in it

Yeah, my mom was a big health food person, so I'm kind of immunized against the Evils Of Additives talk. Simple fact is, we live a LOT longer than people used to back in the day, so the food we eat now can't be that much worse than what people used to eat.

And you do know that cholesterol is actually required for the body (both ours and parrots) to function, right? If we don't eat enough, our body makes it.

 

[Riley's mom]

I've given Auggie bits of chicken from time to time. He enjoys it, but he's not a big fan like he is for dairy.

I think the point about cholesterol is an interesting one though. But insects DO certainly have some, often quite significant amounts.

I never thought about insects and Cholesterol. Very interesting.

 

[tastakelin]

I just purchased a blue fronted amazon. I posted about him under the 'bird identification' thread. I have read quite a bit about diet and I understand it's important to incorporate fresh fruits and veggies, which he is currently not eating. I would love it if someone could give me a quick run through about what is safe and what is not. I read about avacado and mushrooms being dangerous. I have some strawberries in the fridge and was going to offer him one, but I searched online and found a website warning of pesticides in fruit, strawberries included. This person wrote that they only feed organic fruits. Is that neurotic or true? I want to give my bird the best possible care, but I can't even afford to eat all organic. Any tips? Also, the person we bought him from said to only give him bottled water, which we have been doing. Is that true?

 

[caliopi]

I only give my birds bottled water because we have additives like flouride in the drinking water here in Australia and probably a huge amount of other chemicals.

 

[birdcrazy]

I feed zupreem pellets with a few seeds mixed in to the conures - i also give them a bowl of dried pasta in various shapes, crackers, dried fruits, nuts, various things like that - they have a great time playing with it. I also offer different fruits and veggies, and I have on occasion given them some boiled chicken breast.

The cockatiel gets pellets, but a few more seeds - she's always been a little under weight, as well as crackers and nuts and millet and such.