Variety is the spice of your bird's life. Here are several nutrition options for your bird.
Every bird will have its own preferences. And nutritional requirements vary depending on the species of bird you select. Provide a complete, premium diet designed for your particular bird species, with sufficient variety (including fruits and vegetables), and you'll have a happy, healthy and mentally stimulated bird.
Getting A Good Balance
Poor nutrition can be caused by the insufficient quality and quantity of proteins, a poor balance among fats, carbohydrates and proteins, and inadequate vitamins and minerals. Proper nutrition is essential for good health and a strong immune system. Here's a quick look at what your bird needs for optimal health.
Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are the most important source of energy for birds. Good sources of soluble carbohydrates include fruits and grains (i.e. corn, wheat, rice or oats). However, much of the insoluble carbohydrates, better known as fiber, cannot be digested. A good diet will have limited amounts of these insoluble carbohydrates.
Fats
Fats are also an important source of energy for your bird. Birds require certain fatty acids that cannot be made by the body. Your bird's diet should contain the right balance of fatty acids in order to ensure excellent nutrition. Good sources of fatty acids include corn, wheat germ meal, peanuts, corn, canola, or soybean oil.
Proteins
Amino acids, are the building blocks of protein. They help your bird make strong tissue and feathers. When there are not enough amino acids in the diet, babies suffer poor growth and less resistance to disease, and feathers may be of poor quality. High quality protein sources for birds include soybean meal, corn gluten meal, wheat germ meal and dried eggs.
Vitamins and Minerals
Vitamins and minerals help the body function normally. Unfortified seed-only diets are deficient in vitamins and minerals, especially calcium, copper and vitamins A and D. A healthy diet for your bird must include proper amounts of essential vitamins and minerals.
Your Choices in Foods
For most caged birds we recommend only formulated diets or fortified seed. A formulated diet is one that includes all the needed fats, carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins and minerals in every bite.
Fortified seed is a seed mix fortified with the vitamins and minerals necessary to sustain a bird (provided the bird eats all of the seed and other ingredients). There are exceptions for birds such as Lories that require more specialized diets. If you have a question about the feeding requirements of your bird, consult your veterinarian breeder.
Pelleted Diets
Pelleted foods have no wasted seed hulls but require a little effort to introduce to your pet.
Pelleted diets provide more complete and balanced nutrition than would a seed diet, because each pellet of food has the right blend of carbohydrates, fats, protein, vitamins and minerals in each bite. A bird on a pelleted diet can still benefit from additional supplementation of fruits and vegetables to provide variety and interest in the diet.
Seed Mixes
Seed mixes offer an appealing variety and are readily accepted. Many of the best seed mixes now include nuts, colored pellets and dried fruits and vegetables. Such additions provide important nutrition as well as variety and interest. We recommend that you only feed a fortified seed mix. A diet of unfortified seeds alone will not provide the necessary nutrition to ensure a healthy bird, nor should a bird exist on 100% seeds. Birds that consume primarily unfortified seed must have a vitamin and mineral supplement. A bird on any seed-based diet should have additional supplementation of fruits and vegetables daily.
Fresh Vegetables
Here's a tip on vegetable selection: the darker, the better. Deeply pigmented vegetables offer the greatest benefit from higher amounts of vitamins, calcium and iron. Dark green leafy vegetables, such as broccoli, spinach, kale, and bell peppers should be given to your bird daily, as should yellow-orange vegetables such as carrots, sweet potatoes, corn and squash. Light-green vegetables, such as iceberg lettuce and cabbage, offer no nutritional benefit for your bird.
Birds will take their veggies fresh or cooked. Dried greens are also available and offer yet another texture to your bird. If your bird dislikes a certain food, experiment with different shapes. Shapes are very intriguing to birds, and offering a shredded carrot or a carrot stick might work where a chopped carrot wouldn't do. Hanging vegetables in the cage by a clip may stimulate your bird to eat. Whether you hang your vegetables or put them in a bowl, they must be kept off the bottom of the cage where they could be contaminated with droppings. Always remove fresh vegetables in 2 to 3 hours and dispose of to prevent spoilage.
Fresh Fruits
Although vegetables are a better addition to your bird's diet, fruits will provide the greatest variety because they are more seasonal. Common favorites include apples, pears, grapes and melons. As with vegetables, the darker, the better. Deeply pigmented fruits offer the greatest benefit from higher amounts of vitamin A. These include mango, kiwi and guava.
As with vegetables, you can either hang them by a clip or place them in a bowl, as long as they are kept off the bottom of the cage where they could be contaminated with droppings.
Both fresh fruits and vegetables must be given in moderation since an excess will cause diarrhea. Bananas and raisins, on the other hand, will cause constipation. When giving your bird fruits and vegetables, 75% should be vegetables and only 25% should be fruit.
Vitamin and Mineral Supplements
Vitamin and mineral supplements are generally not necessary if you are feeding a pelleted diet or a fortified seed mix. If you think your bird needs supplements you should consult your avian veterinarian for advice. Birds that are weak, malnourished, or under stress (such as the stress of travel) can benefit from food supplements.
You'll have the best luck getting your bird to take its supplement if you apply it to soft, moist food. We don't recommend dissolving a supplement in the drinking water. Vitamins grow bacteria rapidly in water, and this can be hazardous to your bird's health. Also, some birds may not drink water that has a vitamin taste to it. If you choose to add vitamins to the water, the water should be changed daily to reduce the growth of bacteria.
Vitamin A is not soluble and will need to be given with food. Birds that tend to pluck their feathers from their bodies often have a Vitamin A deficiency.
A cuttle bone or mineral block will be especially beneficial to those birds on a seed-based diet. Not all birds will ingest these products, however, and in those cases, a small amount of the cuttlebone or block can be shaved off into the food.
Water
Clean fresh water should always be available to your bird although depending on their diet some birds may drink very little water. Fruits and vegetables are not a substitution for fresh water.
What NOT to Feed
Avoid feeding your bird avocado, parsley, chocolate, caffeine, and alcoholic beverages. All of these items are toxic and potentially deadly to your bird. Salted peanuts, onions, fattening foods, butter, and salty snack foods are not recommended because of the possible dangers these could pose to birds.
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