Food change not going well!

[KiwiandSally]

Kiwi came to us at 15 and eating seeds only. After taking her to the vet after bringing her home the vet suggested putting her on Harrison's pellets. Excited because I read about them here I ran home to let try thme out. Well she hates them and I have tried two different flavors but both are dumped on the floor as soon as I put them in her dish. Next we tried Zupreen which she likes except for the green ones which make up most of the bag for some reason.

 

I am being tested here and have run out of ideas on feeding. She also won't eat veggies or fruit of any kind. Does anyone have any futher suggestions, tricks, or maybe a different brand I didn't try?

 

Any advice will be accepted happily!

[judygram]

It will be difficult to get this seed junkie to eat a healthier diet but it can be done but it will take time, lots of it.

 

Keep offering the veggies and fruits, offer different ones and in different ways as some prefer certain ones certain ways, sometimes they will ignore them and finally one day will try them so keep at it.

 

Some here have had success with eating the foods in front of your bird to show them you are enjoying them, they are like children who see you eating something and they want what you have. A few have commented that the pellets didn't taste half bad.

 

If she is dumping the whole dish you may have to get several food dishes that you attach to the side of the cage that she cannot dump, she might pick them up with her beak one by one and throw them out but the main thing is to keep trying.

 

A lot of people especially avian vets do recommend Harrisons pellets but there are a lot of other brands that are almost as good that maybe one of them she will eat, they all would provide nutritional value.

[lovethatgrey]

Persistance, patience and gentle determination is essential on your part. I know it can be frustrating and pretty annoying. Parrots will eat what they are familiar with. I would continue to offer the pellets even if they are ignored, wasted or tossed on the ground. Try making mash and adding your pellets to it. That is essentially how I got Emma to eat her Harrison's pellets. Some parrot owners make birdie bread and sneak pellets in the batter. I would think that a certain amount of routine and predictability is important but it is also vital to mix things up a bit and get your grey familiar with change. This doesn't apply just to her diet. Change can be exciting and fun. She just needs to discover it at her own pace.<br><br>Post edited by: lovethatgrey, at: 2009/09/09 04:22

[Marianna]

Hi,

 

I see this post a bit older and since then you might have already changed her diet or at least have some good progress.

 

You've gotten much good advice, but my experience may still be helpful to you or others who will read this tread.

 

Julia, my first grey was wild caught and before I adopted her, she lived in a dark basement in a nesting box (not even a cage for them!)with another grey for at least couple of years and had nothing but seeds and dirty water...I wonder sometimes how they survived on that!

 

When she came to live with me I fed her the veggies and fruits by hand and at the table while I was eating, so she got use to it.

 

She gets fresh veggies at least 3 times a week, on a skew wrapped up with brown sandwich bag, so she has to work a little to get it:)

 

She likes to chew, so this seemed to be an obvious solution.

 

Breakfast is the best time to introduce new food, assuming there is no food in her cage overnight to fill her up.

This is the time when you should offer sprouted grains and legume mix with fresh vegetables and a little fruit (berries are very good), making a breakfast mash.

 

In the beginning you can mix seeds into this mash, you can do half & half. She will go for it and start picking out the seeds and meanvile also ingest some good food too.

 

Then you can start withdrawing the seeds gradually and eventually she will eat the whole mash without the seeds.

 

This is how I did it with Julia....but of course her favorite is still the seeds which she and the others get early evening for snacking on while getting ready for sleep.

When they are done I take out the food bowls.

 

I hope this helps.

 

Just be patient and keep trying, don't give up!

 

Good luck,

Marianna

http://www.juliascountrypantry.com<br><br>Post edited by: Marianna, at: 2009/10/28 22:34