2 food questions

[DavidH]

1. When I got Shanti, the breeder gave me a bagful of something called "Soak Mix," which, as the name suggests, is a mixed bunch of grains (lentils, chickpeas and others) that you soak overnight and then cook like rice. Shanti loves it, but breeder said it was only available from big wholesalers. Does anyone else use something like this, and if so, under what brand name?

 

2. I saw something in PETCO called "Exact," a dry packaged food that claims to provide "exact nutrition in every bite" for several species of large parrot, including Greys. Supposedly 1/2 cup every day meets ALL nutritional needs and requires no supplements Made by Kaytee products. Thoughts on that?

 

Thanks,

David

[BaxtersMom]

Hi David,

Kaytee is a popular brand of parrot food, but with that said..Each product always like to say theirs is the best as in "exact nutrition in every bite". Those are advetising gimmicks and a 1/2 a cup in a might be a lot for a grey to eat. I don't think mine eats a half a cup all day long but he might. If he did eat that much I don't think there would be much room for other foods. Of course you don't have to feed a 1/2 cup each day either if you do like the product. I have never tried it myself.

 

And as the for soak mix...perhaps you can buy some from your breeder as needed? Or you could find out what the ingredients are in it like you said chickpeas, lentils and others and do it yourself? Even if he is not close to you, it could always be shipped in the mail. Or ask your breeder where to order it.

 

The best and safest way to decide what diet for Shanti to be on if you are not sure is to ask your avian vet what would be the best to make sure Shanti gets all the nutrients needed.

[LisaM]

Basically, you can buy the same types of beans your breeder gets and just make it yourself. I make a gigantic batch and then freeze it into individual snack-size ziploc baggies.

 

Here is a recipe I have made before (I didn't use exactly these ingredients...left out the white potato, kelp and alfalfa powder, but added lentils, adzuki beans, mung beans...). It can give you some ideas on the types of foods to try. I vary the ingredients every time I make it based on what I can find, etc. There is a 16-bean mixture that I'll use vs. buying a bunch of different kinds separately. I'll also use the dried mango/papaya when I can't get fresh. You can add peppers, other veggies, whatever!

 

It's fun to be creative and experiment! (This mixture, by the way, was made for eclectus parros so it's heavier in fruit items).

 

*********************************

Mike's Manna Mash

(Recipe by Mike Burton, Land of Vos website)

1/2 cup dry black-eyed peas

1/2 cup dry pinto beans

1/2 cup dry kidney beans

1/2 cup dry split peas - a mix of green and yellow

1/2 cup dry garbanzo beans (chickpeas)

1/2 cup dry black beans

1/2 cup dry soy beans

1 cup dry great northern white beans

1/2 cup dry wheat berry grain

1/2 cup dry pearl barley grain

1 cup dry wild rice

3 medium sweet potatoes

4 medium white potatoes

3 pounds frozen corn

3 pounds frozen peas

3 pounds frozen carrots

3 pounds frozen green beans

1/2 pound fresh parsley

3 medium zucchini

4 large tomatoes

1/2 pound mustard greens

6 large bananas

6 medium apples

4 peeled oranges

1/2 cup cranberries, fresh or frozen

1 mango, peeled and pitted

2 papayas, peeled but seeds left

1 1/2 pounds green grapes

1/4 cup dried pumpkin seeds

1/4 cup sesame seeds

1/4 cup dry powdered kelp

1/4 cup alfalfa powder

Rinse the beans, grains and rice. Soak overnight (at least 8 hours) in a large pot. In the morning add or remove water as needed to cover beans with about one inch of water. Boil beans for 10 minutes. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes more. By this time there should just be enough water left to keep beans moist. Scrub, quarter and slice potatoes into 1/8 inch pieces. Steam lightly, stirring every few minutes, and add to cooked beans. Add corn, peas, carrots and green beans to bean and potato mixture. This helps cool the mixture and thaw the frozen vegetables. Hand chop or lightly food process the next 11 ingredients (parsley, zucchini, tomatoes, mustard greens, bananas, apples, oranges, cranberries, mango, papayas and grapes). Don't process too finely; birds prefer chunky food. Add the remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly. Freeze in sandwich bags in daily serving portions. Defrost servings in refrigerator for 24 hours. Warm food by placing the bag in warm water.

[LisaM]

As for the Kaytee food - if there is artificial coloring, I would steer clear. If corn is listed as the first ingredient, that is supposedly not good. If it has more supplement type ingredients than "real foods", that is something else to watch out for (these are the things my vet told me to look out for).

 

Many people on this board use Harrison's. It's more difficult to get (usually vets or parrot specialty stores, not the larger Petco/Petsmart stores), but it's what most vets recommend. There are other higher quality brands also. Unfortunately, you usually can't get them at the regular pet stores either. When it comes to the nutrition of our birds though, I tend to accept more inconvenience/cost if I believe it is a better product.

 

That said, some birds will not eat Harrison's or some of the others. If that's the case with yours (and I'd keep trying!), it may be better to give them one of the other more easily found pellets out there than not give them any at all. As Baxtersmom said, the best thing to do is run your choices by your vet and see what he/she thinks.

 

Lisa

[casper]

I buy a mix called tidymix. Included in this mix are:

 

Brown rice

soya

mung

aduki yellow and green peas

corn

pinto

blackeye

haricot

chickpeas

wheat grain

lentils

 

You could quite easily make up your own mix, this is what i used to do before I bought the tidymix.

[redkim]

I use a product called Beak Appetit - they make a fun and easily made pack of rice and grains with sme fruits and spices mixed in - Fred LOVES it!! I got all 6 flavors the first time and she has not refused any. It's simple to make - you just empty the packet into 2 cups of boiling water, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. It makes our house smell quite yummy. I will make a pack each weekend and feed it out to her all week. I can even sneak her palm oil in it.

 

Here's a link to the different choices:

http://www.beakappetit.com/products.html

The top 6 products are the cook & serve ones with rice, peas, lentils, etc.

[DavidH]

Thanks to everyone for all the great comments and suggestions. I feel a lot better just seeing the range of options and how different people have made sound choices on diet (and everything else around here).

 

I will definitely consult the vet. I guess I got confused because the hype on the EXACT product says it's best to use it exclusively, i.e., without any fruits, vegetables or other extras. Since I've run into no one who follows a one-item diet, it sounded a little fishy (or birdy).

 

As to the grain mix, thanks for the recipes. I could make my own or go with the beakappetit stuff, which sounds very similar to what I got from the breeder and am using now.