fruit and veg for parrots

[sal]

I found on the net a list of fruit and veg which people feed to their large parrots. It included beetroot. Does anyone else feed it out? The list was for raw beetroot so i tried it out and the first day they wouldn't touch it but the second i think couriosity took over and they munched it down. I did peel it as i was worried about the skin.
I also feed all my fruit and veg in chunks with skin on where ever possible. The have to spend time getting the flesh out of oranges, peeling the bananna etc. I also read that the skin of most veg has most of the vitamins in it and that people don't need to peel their veg(mostly). I thought if ok for us ok for the birds. Any thoughts on this?
I have also found that the 'kids' LOVE mung bean sprouts. You can get them in a BIG tub from the green grocer for about $1. Does anyone else use these?
I am really lucky and my birds eat pretty much all their veg and dive on me when i put the dishes out. They are even eating herbs. I do try to give them natural nuts and berries from native trees and have filled my freezer with collected nuts so i will have them to feed out all yr.
Any suggestions on feeding are welcomed as i want to do all the right things for the 'kids'!!
Cheers,
Sal.

[josiedownunda]

Hi Sal,
I fed my tiels beetroot...just washed it and then used the vegie peeler to slice of some strips. They absolutely loved it!!!...and loved getting it everywhere! I had to stop feeding it to the babies as they were due for sale and I didn't want to have to explain purple birds!!LOL My tiels favourite sprout is snowpea ......soft and easy to chew and bought straight from the market they have a nice piece of stem that I hang them by to give the birds some fun. There is another thread in this section on sprouts which should give you some more info. I also feed brocolli, corn,carrots and apple nearly everyday...just grate it up a bit and they love it. A few times a week they get endive , beetroot leaves, bok choy,...anything else available really. I never peel the vegies but i do always wash them thoroughly......never know what could be on them!
Jo-Anne

[hillcresttiels]

Hi Sal regarding the Mung Bean Sprout like Josie mentioned there is a post on how to sprout but that stuff they sell over the counter at supermarkets has lost its nutritional value coz of the length of the sprout they are at their most nutritional when no longer than 5mm cheers Frank

[Viraba]

Just another couple of suggestions regarding special treats. My smaller parrots (tiels, turqs etc) just love celery. Also my finches like to get hold of the tops. The other thing that they relish are pears, apples and they don't mind a bit of rock melon from time to time. The other thing that my finches really go for is the bok choy and parsley. I reckon they'd walk on glass to get to it !!

Viraba

[AussieBirds]

Hi Viraba

Watch the celery it has a lot of water content and not much nutritional value.

[shadow=red,left,300]John[/shadow]

[sal]

Hi Guys, thanks for all the info. My little monsters eat just about anything so all info i can get on good feed is great. I will try sprouting my own mung beans as they love them. Does anyone feed chilli's to their birds. Apparently they like the spicy flavour....i haven't tried it yet but am thinking about it.
Does abyone know if you can feed herbs like oragano, thyme, basil etc to birds. I went nuts and planted LOTS and now need to use the herbs and there is no way i can cook that much!!!! Thought i could give some to the birds.
Is anyone feeding the pelleted feed instead of seed? I bought some of the pellets and the large parrot biscuits. They don't mind the pellets and the bickies they just seem to crunch up! They definatly prefer the seed though. Speaking of seed.......i was told that i shouldn't feed sunflower seed to Gangs. I have put a handful into about 6kg of seed just for variety. I know that it can cause problems with weight etc but what does everyone else feed? Would be interested to know.
Cheers,
Sal.

[AussieBirds]

Hi Sal
Chilli is fine for your birds, the heat doesnt effect them as they don't have saliva glands, my birds get at least a couple a day. I am not a pellet person and believe in a seed diet, this debate on seed versus pellets can go back and forward, as can the sunflower seed debate, so here are my views on both subjects.

I dont like pellets because they are manufactured and i dont know what goes into them, the fact that when they are manufactured they are pressed in a metal press under heat and pressure and after a period of time small particles of metal from the metal mould may find there way into the actual pellet, that worries me.

As far as Sunflower seed is concerned I believe in every thing in moderation and i feed my birds sunflower seed on a regular basis, along with a mixture of other seed, yes they do contain a lot of fat and yes they can cause a problem if you feed them nothing else but sunflower seed however a handfull in the normal seed mix wont hurt them.

Hope this helps you

[glow=red,2,300]John[/glow]

[Catbird]

Red veges are meant to be great for birds because they contain a vitamin not found in other fruits and veges. Of course I can't remember the name of it (typical!). But chili's, capsicums and beatroot are all good.

My birds get fresh daily:
celery (inc leaves), spinach/bok choy leaves, sweet corn (fresh or canned), red capsicum or chilli if I have some spare, string beans, sultanas dried, apple (2 types) and pear. Sometimes frozen peas and a bit of brocolli, it depends what I have in the fridge.

Its all diced up in to small bits (less wasteage). The majority is apple as this is the birds favourite. The Barrabands and Neophemas get the majority of it. The tiels are picky and eat only the leafy greens and the apple.

- Claire

[chrischell]

I buy chilli flakes (little herb type packets from supermarket) & sprinkle it over the chopped up fruit & vegies, they love it! My vet said too much sunflower seed can cancel out calcium, even though they always have cuttlefish on hand. I am not concerned about this as feel correct ratio of mixed seed that I buy won't have "too much" sunflower seed in it. Any views on this?
Shelly (chrischell)

[AussieBirds]

I agree with you Shelly. I have been to forums, mostly overseas ones, that are against any sunflower seed at all. I guess Aussie birds are a little less fragile than overseas birds ;D. I have also been to forums that have been against any seed diet at all and tell everyone to feed nothing but pellets .

[glow=red,2,300]John[/glow]

[lovemytiels]

Hi Sal & Shelley,
If you feed your birds a balanced diet which you both seem to do, a good seed mix, fresh fruit & vegies, sprouted seeds, some good weeds from the garden & anything else that is good for them , there is no need to feed pellets & i don't beleive they are as good for them. Never no what nasties are there through processing. As was discussed on chat one night, when you see birds in the wild feeding from a pellet tree, then i would consider buying them LOL
Cheers for now Anna ;D

[sal]

Thanks everyone for all the great info! I won't bother buying any more pellets for them, the kids are not really keen and they are expensive!!
I totally agree that anything in moderation is ok. I think the sites i got the sunflower and pellet info from were from the U.S and they are big on the pelleted/manufactured everything!!
Cheers,
Sal.

[suecc]

Apart from anthing else with pellets I found the cages/poops messier. Back to seed and greens for mine.

[fischer]

Hi Anna, How about AUSSPELLETUS GRANDIFLORA NANA , I might try to sell some to the Americans. ;D
Tony

[hillcresttiels]

Ok guys thats enough of yank bashing for now as they probably read this too remember Lol Frank

[nova]

Ok i have a rainbow lory what do others feed theirs??
Mine just started to try the apple yesterday.
tried Banana & watermellon but didn't even try it lol.

[Catbird]

Some birds need a fattier diet than others and so cancelling sunflower out of their diet all together could be disasterous! Especially birds in cooler climates.

I increase the amount of sunflower in my birds mix around april/may to get them to put on a bit of weight to help them through the colder months. In July they start on the breeding mix which is mostly smaller seeds and a greater proportion of veges.

I'm not a big fan of pellets. At least birds actually feed on seed, fruit and vege in the wild. All the ingredients added to pellets are artificial, they start off with no nutritious value at all. I've heard people say that their birds breed profusely and the chicks are bigger on pellets - but who says this is good for the birds. I've always read that you shouldn't overbreed your birds. Also pellets are relatively new - who knows in 10 years time we might start to understand if they are as good as we'd hope or if they cause any health problems.

Until know I'll stick to my tried and true diets of a mix of seeds, fresh produce and sprouts.

- Claire

[fischer]

Hi Frank, Sorry, I was the only really guilty, and I apologise to everyone. Tony

[sal]

Hi Guys,
it was mentioned earlier that you can feed capsicum and watermelon seeds to the birds, (maybe it was another part of forum??!) Anyway does anyone know if the seeds of say honeydew melon, rockmelon, pawpaw and other fruits which we generally throw out can be fed? If so do they need to we washed and dried or just fed out? I would be interested as i have seen wild birds helping themselves to my compost heap!
Cheers,
Sal

[eckie]

hi here is what i give my eckies, ringies and princess parrot every morning.
red apple
green apple
kiwi fruit
pear
strawberries
frsh corn on the cob
bean sprouts
celery
carrot
snow peas
and at the moment they are getting grapes only when they are in season and cheap
and also if i go to the fruit shop and they have stuff on special like paw paw and stuff like that ill get some extra stuff