Avian Fast Food

[Ian]

Hi Everybody

 

Being new to this site and blessed with an insatiable thirst for knowledge i have been browsing various entries in order to increase my already capacious knowledge of African Greys. Having read numerous on-line articles regarding avian nutrition in general and deciding to strictly adhere to a natural and nutritious dietry regime. I have noticed several owners who like to offer there greys various `treat` foods. My own grey enjoys a small peice of cheese of which he can subtract protein and some dietry calcium from. I would be interested in any input regarding regular offerings of other such foods and possible long term implications that may have been noticed or diagnosed by a veterinary practioner.

 

In short, how many of you guys offer regular `junk` foods to your parrot and what is the nature of the food offered.

 

Many Thanks

Ian

[Tari]

No I don't really give my birds any of my food. I use to give a cheese nip every now and again untill we had this thing on her about salt.

What I do is buy a bag of frozen veggies add some pasta or rice sometimes some soaked beans to it. And seed/pellets and that is their food.

I dont even feed my dogs left overs cause it is bad for them and well shorten their life span. So they get dog food only.

As a treat I like to feed ZuPreem Parrot Crunch and they all love it and sometimes millet spray.

[loviechick]

I don't "regularly" give my birds and "junk" food. They get frsh fruit and veggies, and I won't give them any fast food unless I am almost positive I know what is in it. Like today for lunch I had taco bell and each one got a tiny bit of tortilla so they can eat with mom. I've heard some people only feeding pellets, and others who only feed fresh foods. I'm all about moderation, and my vet recommends any fresh foods that are full of vitamins, so I go with that!

[Ian]

Thanks,

 

It sounds like you guys are like me, plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables and quality parrot foods. George`s personal favourites are broad beans and pomegranite with banana coming in at third favourite. I have recently acquired two bonded TAG`s for which i have constructed an aviary for with the intention of breeding them. They too love there fruit and vegetables and dont refuse much in the way of healthy offerings (although they detest cheese). Shopping for my greys has become a regular routine and i try to purchase a variety of different fruits each time from Sharon fruits to blueberries in order to ensure a diverse range of vitamins and no deficiencies.

[Guest briansmum]

brians diet is mainly pellets veggies and fruit. he gets about 15 sunflower seeds a day and twice a week he has some warm spoonfed baby food. he does get some of what we have occasionally, rice and pasta with sauces, a little bit of pizza, a crisp (chip) or chip (fries) but never anything high n salt.

[judygram]

Same here as Beccy, Josey eats off my plate at the evening meal. She gets very little "junk" food as it usually is high in salt and fat. She gets pellets, fresh veggies and fruits, and a few seeds, some cereal and the morning baby food. She loves any kind of rice or pasta and of course cheddar cheese is a favorite.

[dblhelix]

To answer the question, no doubt Kip gets some "Junk" every now and then. She loves potato chips, corn chips, french fries and sugary stuff. Everything in moderation, but variety is the spice in life (for us and them), so a little junk food is not gonna hurt em in my opinion, provided the main diet being eaten is healthy. But you gotta watch it, or else they will only eat the treats and nothing else! I generally find that Kip just wants what I have, so most of the time thats healthy stuff.

 

Fresh fruit, veggies are the staple along with Harrisons and Zupreem pellets. Kip also gets small quantitites of seeds offered a few times per week and Goldenolbles Bean Supreme pretty regularly.

 

Every day her fresh food bowl has broccoli flowers, figs, almonds, apples, green beans, a few pine nuts, carrot slices and some other fresh fruit. She also gets a fresh food skewer daily hung in her cage with fresh corn on the cob, carrot and some leafy green.

 

Here is a pic of her fresh food bowl and skewer:

 

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1273/910084485_8c3df97945_b.jpg

 

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1427/910084579_e2b9efae80_b.jpg<br><br>Post edited by: dblhelix, at: 2007/07/27 04:04

[judygram]

A potato chip, corn chip, nor a french fry has touched the tongue of my Josey, I do not eat them in front of her, I don't want her to be begging for those kinds of foods. I feel guilty if she has a little cheese.

[Guest Lidia]

Joshua has had a bit of everything I am eating since I first got him almost eighteen years ago! I do limit the junk, and he doesn't have it everyday. He eats a real variety of food and I don't think a little bit of something junky now and then will do him any harm.

[danmcq]

The closest thing that might be considered junk food given to Dayo so far, are nutriberries.

 

He seems to really like them and they come in a variety of ingredients. The content listed on the packages seem healthy and I have so far not read anything negative regarding them.

 

I think this area of diet all boils down to moderation.

[Ian]

I guess the underlying root message here that formed the foundation of the posting and may have been misinterpeted is that many of us give our Avian companions a little bread or cheese now and then. The term `fast food` was just used euphimistically in a collective term for labelling foods that you would not normally associate with parrots but are not necesarily junk foods.

 

Thankyou to everybody that replied.