What to do with unwanted seed

[Talven]

So what do I do with uneaten seeds?

All of my birds started on seeds. Not my choice but that's the way life is. I give them fresh veg, fruit, pellets and some seed. The seed mix is what we get here in Australia as parrot/wild bird mix. Usually it is corn kernels, safflower, red millet, wheat and sunflower seed. Some variation seasonally but generally its the same.

Not one of the birds eat anything but the wheat and the sunflower. The rest of the seeds just go to waste. I can't toss them out into the yard for the wild birds as we have major issues with mice in my town.

I've tried sprouting them with no real success. For some reason no matter how well I keep them rinsed they end up furry.

Any suggestions from anyone?

 

[chris-md]

What about pellets?

 

[OutlawedSpirit]

Can you purchase just the types of seed you want versus a mix? I know many online shops, here in the States anyway, sell individual seed types by the pound to allow people to make their own mixes.

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[Talven]

All the birds get pellets but I am still in the process of finding the right one. The last type of pellets were readily taken but made the bird poop stink and turn green. So looking for a better choice. Quite limited in what varieties are available here in Australia. Pellets are still a fairly new concept here.

We had a pretty bad drought here so finding the individual seeds can be a bit tricky. Definitely something I will be looking into. Here most places sell individual seed in 25kg or larger bags. I never thought to look online.

 

[plumsmum2005]

If you put out old seed in a container then it can be taken back in at night to help not attract mice.



If you feed a good quality pellet * and a good, balanced and varied fresh diet then seed isn't really necessary. My AV always says prefer me to feed no seed.



* Organic, no colours, sugar or additives - tried TOPs?

 

[noodles123]

This may sound paranoid, but I would be cautious about feeding picked over seed to wild birds unless you have repeatedly had your birds tested for ABV/PDD and PBFD (specific test panels are required-not just a CBC). These diseases can be spread by birds who show no symptoms. Even if your birds have been tested, there is still a risk that they could spread disease, as infected but healthy birds will often test negative while spreading the virus to other birds.

These diseases do exist in the wild, so odds are, the wild birds have already been exposed to at least some of the strains, but unlike other diseases, repeat exposure doesn't increase immunity (scientists are still quite confused by it all--and sometimes it has to do with strain combinations). In fact, some scientists believe that early exposure to the diseases actually increase a bird's likelihood of contracting the diseases later when exposed. That having been said, wild birds could also be carriers of these (and other ) diseases, which means you don't want to bring the container back into your home with your birds if wild birds have been eating out of it. PBFD is especially hard to "kill", as the virus is extremely small.
If you have a shed or out-building, I suppose you could move it there when not in use, but you would want to be very careful with hand-washing etc.

 

[OutlawedSpirit]

Noodles has a point, but only to a point. It depends on where you call home. If you have wild parrots around, then yes, there could possibly be some risk I'd imagine. However, there are many places, such as where I live that are home to no wild parrots do it is not a risk at all. Most diseases like PBFD are specific to psittacines only and cannot jump across to other classes of birds.

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[noodles123]

Noodles has a point, but only to a point. It depends on where you call home. If you have wild parrots around, then yes, there could possibly be some risk I'd imagine. However, there are many places, such as where I live that are home to no wild parrots do it is not a risk at all. Most diseases like PBFD are specific to psittacines only and cannot jump across to other classes of birds.

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OP is in Australia where PBFD is a big problem.
Circovirus (BFDV) has been reported in non-parrots as well (from what I understand---granted, it is less common in other types of birds). It is PBFD in parrots and BFD in other birds but it's the same virus.
https://minerva-access.unimelb.edu....n birds (accepted).pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
https://www.jstor.org/stable/30134870?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents

"Circoviruses have been found in parrots, pigeons, Senegal doves, canaries, finches, geese, southern black-backed gulls, ostriches, pigs, and chickens (28)."
https://jvi.asm.org/content/78/17/9277

"Besides Psittaciformes, the virus also infects other avian families like Columbiformes, Passeriformes and Anseriformes [13]."
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4822206/

 

[OutlawedSpirit]

Circovirus infections have been seen in non psittacines, yes, just as they have in pigs, goats, and humans. Circoviruses are a class of virus just like psittacines are a class of bird. PBFD is one specific virus that does NOT cross over. It is a similar but separate virus that infects other classes of birds and other animals.



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[noodles123]

Some of these sources seem to be unclear on that. I knew it was a class, but the implication is that one bird type can pass it to another bird type...
Read what it says in this link (I am not saying you are wrong---but read the link article below):
"Besides Psittaciformes, the virus also infects other avian families like Columbiformes, Passeriformes and Anseriformes [13]."
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4822206/
Within that specific paragraph, it doesn't seem to be talking about the viral class.

I am no expert on virology, so like I said, I am not saying you are wrong, but I am not sure that scientists are even sure on this one---with viral mutations etc, the implication is that many years ago, the virus started out as one strain and mutated to infect parrots and non-parrots.

 

[noodles123]

Circovirus infections have been seen in non psittacines, yes, just as they have in pigs, goats, and humans. Circoviruses are a class of virus just like psittacines are a class of bird. PBFD is one specific virus that does NOT cross over. It is a similar but separate virus that infects other classes of birds and other animals.



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Here-- read this one. It summarizes what I was trying to say about cross-family transmission:

"Until recently these circovirus species were thought to be restricted to within avian Orders such as the Psittaciformes for beak and feather disease virus (BFDV) and Columbiformes for pigeon circovirus with little evidence of cross-family transmission or replication. We report evidence of a naturally occurring novel host switch event with self-limiting BFDV infection in a group of rainbow bee-eaters (Merops ornatus) a species of Coraciiformes unrelated to parrots and not previously known to be susceptible to any avian circovirus. The outbreak highlights important and unexpected aspects of disease emergence and host-switching pertinent to other situations when viruses might cross species boundaries as well as the potential of avian circoviruses to infect disparate host species."

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4585972/

"Whether non-psittacine species can carry and disseminate
infection has been identified as a critical gap in our knowledge about BFDV [19]. Until recently BFDV infection was
thought to be specific and restricted to the order Psittaciformes [6, 10, 16, 25], but there is growing evidence that
distantly related non-psittacine orders, including Coraciiformes and Strigiformes, can be naturally infected with
BFDV from parrots [6, 11, 16]. As psittacines are abundant
and widely distributed in Australia and there is high prevalence of BFDV infection in many of the most common psittacine species, birds from other orders would frequently be
exposed to BFDV [16]."
https://www.microbiologyresearch.or...est&checksum=F9F032EA88154AEEB94B1AE3DD6BA0C4

".... may be able to infect non-psittacine bird species with one report of BFDV replicase gene (Rep) sequences in Gouldian finches that had feather lesions suggestive of PBFD19. Such events are presumably rare but probably more likely to occur when captive psittacine and non-psittacine bird species are mixed together in captivity. "
https://www.nature.com/articles/srep14511

 

[Tami2]

My local wild birds get all of Levi's leftovers.

 

[Talven]

Well that was a lot of info to go through.

The plan is definitely to go to pellets. Sadly my local stores are limited in variety. Looking for a reasonably priced online supplier here in Australia at the moment. The seed is there to stop my birds going hungry. I started them with these pellets https://vetafarm.com.au/product/nutriblend-pellets/ But the smell and the colour of the birds poop was quite unpleasant so I'm in the process of changing pellets. So the seed is a necessary evil at the moment.

The mice are so bad here due to the harsh summer we just had, that they are out during the day. They are so desperate that they ignore my dogs to find food. Putting seed out for wild birds will just attract them. My neighbours leave bowls of dog biscuits out all day so plenty of mice around.

Feeding wild birds here is frowned upon and in some places comes with fines. They don't want the birds to become reliant on humans or to overpopulate and cause problems. I live close to several schools and we have a problem with crows/ravens (hard to tell with the Australian ones) because of the readily available food. Can see flocks of 30 - 50 which is unusually large. There is also the issue of feral birds. Quite a lot of repercussions for putting food out for the wildlife here. Plus the chance of spreading disease as well.

Certainly seems that the smartest option is the bin.

Thanks everyone for the information, much appreciated.

 

[Tinabell]

Sprout it! Then put it in his chop or mash . It’s super healthy then!

 

[Flboy]

For wheat and sunflower, I pick up bulk seed at the ‘health’/wholistic type stores, very inexpensive! Also, most home brew stores carry malted grains! Malted grains have been sprouted, then baked to various points. This starts the conversion of starch to sugar!
Rumors are, there are home brew shops on every corner, out your way!