Asharion Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Hello! I am new to the forum here, and while I do not yet own a Grey, I am doing all I can to research and prepare for bringing one into my life. One of the most difficult things I have found is figuring out what to feed the bird. (I realize it will depend, at least in the beginning, largely on what the parrot has already been fed.) I've read everything from pellet-based diets with veggies supplementing, to more 'natural' ones that cut the pellets out and consist of home-cooked meals such as Shanlung's Tinkerbell Mash. After reading into some of the ingredients pellets can contain, such as on the helpful list Shanglung provided, I would like to aim for a more 'natural' food diet for my future grey. (assuming the birdie lets me!) On the flip side, do any of you know of pellet foods that lack such ingredients and have the best interest of the bird's health in mind? For those of you who feed more natural foods as a whole of their diet, what are your routines? I know every bird and every pet human has their preference, I'd love to see a variety of answers and what has worked for you. Any suggestions on what foods a beginner to make sure she has stocked up before taking home an African Grey, would be awesome! I am quite fond of what I saw of Shanlung's Tinkerbell Mash, though I would love to know if anyone has tried anything similar. Another question I've been wondering about that I haven't been able to find the answer to; how much food does an African Grey, on average, go through on a weekly/monthly basis? I was looking into some organic pellet diets in the beginning, and wondered how long a 3lb bag would last a Grey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve 2 Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 Hi there Asharion. I feed my Toulouse (timneh grey) harrison's pellets, veggies, Lafeber's seed cakes "foraging-weight maintenance" daily. I put palm oil on the pellets. My wife makes biscuits which have veggies that I haven't been able to get Toulouse to eat consistently such as kale and broccoli or fresh carrots. I also give brown rice, couscous, and other whole grains when we cook them. He does enjoy some fruits like tangerines, strawberries, and blueberries, but his stools can get watery. And yes....I give bad stuff like pizza, chips, and cheese once in a while. Looking forward to see what others do. Good post. Thanks Asharion Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timbersmom Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 Timber always has a good quality seed mix available. Each day he gets a variety of fresh food, like peas in the pod, broccoli, carrots, cooked sweet potato, chicken or lean beef, sometimes boiled egg (whites only are better some say), etc. Not all at the same time, I rotate stuff. I also give him Nutriberries. He is a thin, picky eater, so you might say he gets whatever he will eat ha. He will almost always eat a rice mix made by Higgins (Worldly Cuisine Mundo Brazil). That is a cook and serve. I sprout seeds for him (I get them from sproutpeople.org - big bird mix). He also eats some of whatever we are eating for dinner. I'm sure I've missed something, but that's basically it. I think the key is variety. They need a variety of foods, not just the same pellets or whatever all the time. Timber, FYI, would waste away before he would eat a pellet, and I've tried them all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asharion Posted July 20, 2015 Author Share Posted July 20, 2015 Do you have any recommendations for reading on the bean sprouting? I've seen it mentioned many times, and am curious to know more. I'll do some looking around, but I'd love to see what knowledge you think worthwhile to share. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muse Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 If you are on Facebook, this is a great group to join that advocates a raw, natural diet: https://www.facebook.com/groups/AVIANRAW/ It's run by a biologist and aviculturist, Jason Crean, who has done a ton of research. Patricia Sund contributes frequently and there are many others who practice natural feeding. We've been feeding natural for years now. Maks came to us on a seed diet and wouldn't touch a pellet from the beginning and he's now over four years old (probably closer to five) and the vet gave him rave reviews at his yearly physical. He's a handsome male cockatiel. His blood work and fecal were both perfectly normal. Our vet supports this but I have been to another vet that nearly froths at the mouth when we discuss the subject of diet. We support natural diet and flighted birds (exercise promotes cardiac health) as being in the best interest of a healthy and happy parrot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timbersmom Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 I took the easy route, though not the cheap one, on sprouting. I ordered the easy sprouter and the big bird mix from sprout people. I followed the instructions carefully and haven't had a failure yet! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asharion Posted July 20, 2015 Author Share Posted July 20, 2015 I'm afraid I don't have a facebook, I read up on too many things they did with information that I did not feel comfortable with, so I never went further than signing up a few years ago. I might make a new account just so I can read up on their information, it sounds like a good resource! Thank you for sharing, Muse! And thank you to all poking their heads in to pitch in, it's a wonderful eye-opener. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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