Joolesgreyuk Posted August 25, 2009 Share Posted August 25, 2009 ..does your grey eat and how much gets wasted? I've noticed that Beau wastes huge amounts of food, certainly enough to feed another parrot lol! I see huge lumps of cauliflower, carrots (one of his favourites)etc on the floor of the cage, sometimes when he is eating I can hear it drop when I'm in the other room. He is pretty good with his parrot mix but he won't eat small pieces of his Harrisons in fact I recon that he eats only about 10% of what I give him - with the exception of the parrot mix. This I find very wastful. I guess when I get my Hahns he can just have Beau's scraps :ohmy: :laugh: and could easily live on that. One thing that does please me is that if anything gets dropped it doesn't get eaten from the floor of the cage or the grid at the bottom. Are all parrots this wasteful or is it just mine lol!? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted August 25, 2009 Share Posted August 25, 2009 Dayo wastes a ton of food also and would estimate 90 percent waste as well between thrown out or down. Some items he just will not eat at times others he will, which is normal for most. The bottom line is though, that fruit and veggies must be thrown out after a few hours and seed mixes and pellets with in 24 hours. It is painful to watch all that love out in to the preparation and $$$ just go down the drain. :pinch: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted August 25, 2009 Share Posted August 25, 2009 I think they are all wasteful at least mine are, it seems they drop more than they take in especially if it is something crunchy, it gets broken up and the pieces fall while they might get a tiny morsel of it. The only think I have seen my parrots eat and not lose a tidbit of is when I give them a little sliver of cheddar cheese, they eat that up without losing a crumb. I think it is just natural for them to be wasteful like that, in their natural habitat they provide food for the ground dwellers who scavenge up the forest floor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
she Posted August 28, 2009 Share Posted August 28, 2009 Charlie wastes far more than he eats.A small fortune goes in the bin.He is ok with his Harrisons though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvparrots Posted August 28, 2009 Share Posted August 28, 2009 Oh yes my fids drop what they don't want all the time. It truly must be the nature of the parrot, God love 'em!:kiss: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimaysmommy Posted August 28, 2009 Share Posted August 28, 2009 I also agree that it is just in their nature...Chimay drops what he doesn't want, and sometimes he just likes to throw his food because it's fun. Lol! I mean who doesn't like a good food fight? J/k...My boyfriend definitely isn't a fan of food going to waste. Neither am I but so long as he eats what he needs to and stays healthy, I'm perfectly fine with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JillyBeanz Posted September 6, 2009 Share Posted September 6, 2009 I've started buying scented nappy bags to put the waste in because the fresh food in the bin in the kitchen was smelling - you don't actually realise the true amount of waste until it's there, in a little bag sitting on your bench top! The kids wouldn't leave the dinner table with that amount on their plates in this house!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovethatgrey Posted September 6, 2009 Share Posted September 6, 2009 Alot of waste was going on in this household too. Emma loves her Harrison's pellets but I still chop the pieces in half for her. This seems to cut down on unintentional waste. Regarding the vegetables and fruits, I started chopping them in much smaller pieces as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted September 6, 2009 Share Posted September 6, 2009 lovethatgrey wrote: Emma loves her Harrison's pellets but I still chop the pieces in half for her. This seems to cut down on unintentional waste. This is why I buy the fine pellets, Josey wastes very little of them and then you wouldn't have to cut them in half. I think cutting their veggies in smaller pieces does cut down on waste but sometimes they enjoy having a piece that they can hold onto with their foot to eat from so determine which ones they like to eat that way and finely chop the rest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovethatgrey Posted September 6, 2009 Share Posted September 6, 2009 Judy, how much smaller are the fine pellets compared to the bigger size? I might have to consider purchasing the smaller size. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 I don't really know as I have only purchased the fine but what you are purchasing must be pretty good size if you can cut them in half. I would say they are about the size of barley seeds or buckwheat. You can go to their website and compare the sizes I am pretty sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 I feed Dayo the High Potency Coarse and break them up also. This cuts down on the "Bite the whole Block and pieces shoot everywhere. He eats the smaller pieces much more efficiently. The reason I do this is two fold 1) Less waste 2) The Coarse is specifically formulated for Greys, the fine is formulated for species such as Conures. I also buy the hot and spicy coarse. Greys love that "Hotness" and it encourages them to eat a little more of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovethatgrey Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 Very interesting. Thanks to the both of you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fendana Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 I worry about 5 month old Squonk, he is a very fussy eater,. I have tried him with all types of veg, except sweet potato which I will give him tomorrow, celery, cucumber, tomato, and most fruits but he only seems to like grapes and nectarines, no veg at all. The breeder gave me a small sack of parrot mix which is nearly gone and has a high sunflower content so I suspect he is already a junkie. I am going to buy a pelleted food tomorrow to try him on and give him less seed, I just hope he will take to it. I gave him some warm scrambled egg today which he hated, instead he makes a beeline for my cup of tea so I have to make sure he doesn't get to it when it's hot, I know caffeine is bad for parrots but are a few gulps of luke warm tea now and again going to be very harmful to him? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovethatgrey Posted September 8, 2009 Share Posted September 8, 2009 Somehow I don't think that anything containing caffeine can be good for a parrot. I don't even think moderation is appropriate either but to know for sure consult your parrot's vet. They should be able to give you some good advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnNJ Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 danmcq wrote: The bottom line is though, that fruit and veggies must be thrown out after a few hours and seed mixes and pellets with in 24 hours. I understand that fresh foods must be thrown out quickly but why seed mixes and pellets after 24 hours? Thanks, JohnNJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 I don't throw out pellets within 24 hours, I just add to the bowl, the only thing that goes in that bowl is the pellets and as long as they stay dry they are still good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovethatgrey Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 I don't throw pellets out. They get eaten pretty well. If they were not being eaten very well... then I would replace the bowl with a fresh supply after 3 days and discard the old. That's just me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnNJ Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 lovethatgrey wrote: If they were not being eaten very well... then I would replace the bowl with a fresh supply after 3 days and discard the old. That's just me. Again, same question. Throw out the pellets after 24 hours or 3 days - why, if they are dry and look OK. Is there some guideline from the manufacturers or from vets? Thanks, JohnNJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovethatgrey Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 JohnNJ wrote: lovethatgrey wrote:If they were not being eaten very well... then I would replace the bowl with a fresh supply after 3 days and discard the old. That's just me. Again, same question. Throw out the pellets after 24 hours or 3 days - why, if they are dry and look OK. Is there some guideline from the manufacturers or from vets? Thanks, JohnNJ To answer your question, there is no guideline. It is a personal preference to remove and replace with a fresh supply. Aything that tends to sit there for long periods of time collects dust and debris. I don't feel comfortable with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JillyBeanz Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 John - I'd just go with this lot - their birds are fine, healthy specimens - and I follow their info and guidance to a tee! If they told me that I had to feed Harvey caviar - I'd do it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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