help please

[lovemikka01]

Hi all as a forum newbie and a new mum to an african grey who was being severly mistreated trying really hard to gain his trust which is going ok the main problem is he wont eat anythin but sunflower seeds anybody any ideas on how to get him to eat more than just the seeds

 

Many thanks lovemikka01

[CeasarsDad]

Hi there and welcome to the family.. I'm happy you decided to join us..

 

How long do you have this bird?

 

This topic has been discussed many times.. There is much to read here in the forum about converting. Do a search on Harrisons and you will have more then you can read..

 

I would also direct you to http://www.harrisonsbirdfood.com There is a database there that you could search.. LOTS of great reading on the conversion process..

 

We have a welcome room.. Why not stop in and introduce yourself..

 

CD

[lovemikka01]

Only had him two weeks tried him with everythin we can think of but will follow the links you have sent and try and get some hints and tips thankyou

[CeasarsDad]

Love.. Don't worry about converting him just yet.. 2 weeks is really a short time.. Let me settle in.. He doesn't need the stress of conversion now.. Let him learn of his new home slowly.. There will be plenty of time for you to convert him later..

[danmcq]

You could also try just offering an abundance of of veggies, fruits etc. in separate bowls that your Grey could pick at out of curiosity.

 

Then note what he/she likes or dis-likes.

 

Also, I have noticed some days the veggies and fruits I have placed in the cage are not touched and the seed or 7 bean and veggie mix are consumed.

 

They seem to bounce back and forth from day to day on what they consume.

 

Hope this helps by throwing some ideas at you. :-)

[Tari]

I prefer Zupreem for my pellets but I feed very little of that. Dan makes a great suggestion for food.

Also right now is not a good time to convert Id wait a couple months then work on that. When you do be sure to offer him all the regular food he wants just add good stuff to it. It can take months to convert him to a better diet you just have to keep at it.

[lovemikka01]

Thanks dan had will try that only had him two weeks which aint really that long but will try what you have suggested once again thankyou

[itzazu2u]

I understand your concerns of a strictly sunflower seed diet. I am no fan of sunflower seed at all. A diet high in these seed can eventually deplete the vitamin A, leading to major health issues. Other vitamins will be depleted as well, primarily B and D. I attribute such a diet as being the number one cause of blindness in my U2 as well as horrible feather quality in my CAG, both of whom ate nothing else at the time they came home. Needless to say, I eliminated these seeds quickly and completely from the diet of all my birds and currently use them only for treats and reward only...and sparsely!

 

How I converted my sunflower seed junkies to a healthier diet was easy. I just didn't give them any. Yes, for some I am sure this sounds hard core. However, how can I continue to feed something which has already caused so much harm to my birds already? Another example of this approach... This past summer I rescued an IRN. I was told by the family the birds favorite foods were advocado, chocolate, and rum and coke! Was I hard core when I removed the Oreo cookie from his grasp as he munched happily away? No, not at all. In fact, IMHO gradual weaning away from something less than healthy only adds to the harm already done. Okay, so I am a cut and dried kind of person. In exchange, I have gained healthier birds quicker than if I had taken the "kinder and gentler" approach. BTW, none of my birds who came here with a history of horrible diets have died or become ill and all dietary changes have been with the recommendations and supervision of an avian vet.

 

If you can not bring yourself to simply eliminating sunflower seed completely from your bird's diet, as I have, I certainly understand. What works for some does not always work for all. Birds are hungry first thing in the morning and are more likely to try new foods at this time. I would recommend you introduce a new diet at this time. If you must feed the diet you are trying to get away from, do so only during the miday snack and evening meal time. Eventually you can begin to eliminate the SS seed during other daily meals as well. Always monitor your birds food intake and weight. If anything, with a healthier diet, you should only see an over all improvement in your bird.

 

Good luck!

[lovemikka01]

Thanks that really helped

[lovemyGreys]

Hi here is a link which will show you a variety of different foods that our members feed their greys.

 

http://www.greyforums.net/forums/bird-food/24030-whats-your-greys-diet.html

[Laurie]

I'm a rookie, too. I found out by accident how to get Klaus to try new things. Just let him see you eating something! For example, I offered him a piece of Life cereal one day, and he didn't want anything to do with it. A day or so later, I was eating a bowl of Life cereal, and he practically begged me for some. Your grey may be a little stressed out for that, but I think in time as his comfort level increases, he'll get REALLY comfortable with you. Enough to flat out demand some of what you're having!

[Guest]

Goodluck with your birdie! Just take things slow and easy on the fellow. Let him get use to everything!

[Number6]

When I got Gina, she was on a seed mix (mostly sunflower) only diet. On the way home, I picked up a bag of what she was used to, along with a few pounds of a mix of dried fruit, peanuts, peppers, and some other things (looks just like trail mix). I let her get used to her surroundings and gain my trust before I gave her the fruit mix. After a week and a half or so, I mixed half and half with seed mix/fruit mix, then slowly slimmed out the seed mix. The next time I got a seed mix, I got the one with the least sunflowers. After a while, I introduced zupreem pellets mixed in, and now she's used to a mix of the 3, mostly the fruit.

[dblhelix]

Hello Lovemikka01 and welcome!

 

Some may have success in extreme diet change. However, this is not generally considered wise. Birds have literally been known to starve themselves to death rather than eat foods they are not familiar with. I would suggest creating some sort of plan where you phase out the seeds and phase in pellets, fresh veggies, fruits etc. While it may work, all or nothing could be a real recipe for disaster. Why introduce unescassary stress associated with diet if not needed? Absolutely show your bird new foods, eat them yourself and show how yummy they are. This goes a long way in helping them try/accept new foods, toys etc. Lead by example.<br><br>Post edited by: dblhelix, at: 2007/09/17 02:44

[judygram]

Mark is right, birds can and will starve themselves to death rather than eat unfamiliar foods. You could mix the seeds with some pellets and gradually increase the ratio of pellets to seeds until he is having almost all pellets. Of course this will take time but eventually it will accomplish the task of getting him off seeds. Then you can use the seeds as an occasional treat.

[imran]

this is what i do.. i mix seeds with fresh veggies cut it small pieces.. very less seeds and lots of vegies and fruits mixed.. with them.. so when he tries to eat seeds he gets the veggies in his beak.. ehehe try doing this really helps.. gotta work smart not hard

[BMustee]

I agree. I wouldn't pull out the sunflower seeds all together...plus you haven't had him long so I wouldn't push anything on him just yet. Now, the avacados and oreos are a different story, that stuff could kill a parrot. Start eating with the bird like Laurie said...my grey will go nuts if I don't share what I'm eating with him.

[judygram]

If they see you eating something then they want it too, you know the saying, "monkey see, monkey do" but it is a good way to get them to try a new food.

[loviechick]

I've had to get 2 Greys myself out of rescue situations where they just ate a bunch of creap, mainly sunflower seeds. What I did was mix pellets in with their seeds and did a 20/80 ration and had it mainly seeds. Then every few days to a week I would up the ratio, to where I finally was giving them 100% pellets, on top of fresh fruit and what not. They still get seeds sprinkled on their food, but mainly as a treat, not a main staple.

 

Good luck!