(Part 3) Best bird food according to redditors
We found 107 Reddit comments discussing the best bird food. We ranked the 65 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 41-60. You can also go back to the previous section.
If you want to order heavy stuff on Amazon, and on the cheap, I would highly recommend birdseed. A few 40 pound bags at $20 should do the trick.
I have the same problem.. I started buying this seed, and never looked back. It doesn’t have all the weird cat food like pellets (seriously, wtf are those?), no sunflower seeds, and no dust. It’s perfect for my picky tiels, and it has some dried fruits which makes it smell amazing.
Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole. I'm so sorry you had to say goodbye. I've been there and it is really hard.
I love the puppy picture and the trip to the groomers. So pretty!!
This is my Porker. He is a 5 yr old Eclectus. He makes my days better by talking to me and singing sweet songs. He'd love to have this pinata, or this bag of food He's such a porker. He loves his treats!!
Most pet stores sell spray millet in the bird aisle.
You can also find spray millet on amazon pretty cheap.
The link below should show you at least what you would be looking for.
https://www.amazon.com/Kaytee-Spray-Millet-12-Count-Packaging/dp/B000VOE3QW/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=spray+millet&qid=1565105062&s=gateway&sr=8-4
Pellets are fairly easy to find online. Here are some examples:
Harrison's pellets
Roudybush Crumbles and the smaller Roudybush Nibbles
Zupreem Natural pellets and Zupreem Fruit Blend
There are many more, but these are the one's I've looked at for my own cockatiel. My bird is not a big fan of pellets, but he will occasionally eat Zupreem Fruit Blend for budgies and the Roudybush Nibbles. He ignored the larger, "cockatiel" versions of the pellets.
My cockatiel is also not a huge fan of veggies. Like your bird, he'll eat the broccoli bits that look like seeds. I found out that he'll eat anything that looks like that, which includes cauliflower (especially purple cauliflower) and broccolini. He likes crunchy stuff, so he'll nibble on the stems of kale, spinach, and other greens (not the leafy part). Try as many crunchy vegetables as you can: green cabbage, red cabbage, snow peas, green beans, pea pods, etc. If I make a big show of eating sweet peppers and carrots ("mmm, yum yum, these peppers are sooooo good!"), my bird will get interested and try a bit. If you can, make yourself a little salad with lots of different vegetables and pretend to keep it away from your bird. When she comes up to steal a bite, let her get away with it. My bird will eat more vegetables if he thinks he's sneaking "people food!"
Most of the items were from local pet shops, but they are available online. The Rosewood Naturals and Trixie lines are great and provide a lot of choice. Here's a full inventory of what I used with links:
https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F131889404264
Wooden Nissan House Hut for Hamsters or Gerbils https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B003TONZH4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_pFVsDbQSKGR1V
5 Play tube
https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F233143281028
I bought this from a local pet shop. You can easily make one with the kind of wicker toys in the link below, tied together with some jute/hessian string.
AUOKER 5 Pack Syrian/Dwarf Hamster Chew Toys for Teeth, Natural Wooden Molar Teeth Care Toy Set for Hamster, Ferret, Parrot, Chinchilla, Guinea Pig, Rabbit Chew & Play - Hamster Cage Accessories Toy https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07N3YVYT6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_PQVsDb1YS325F
I've tried both these and the Harvest Festival version which are more aimed at rodents but they prefer this as they can climb it :-) I also included millet which you can get from any pet shop.
Rosewood Naturals Bird Pick-n-Fly https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B002ST9A2K/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_qUVsDbAK4MDHW
Bedding is dust free wood shavings and soft hay.
I am so excited for Spring. I have this on my Spring wishes wishlist. 🐦
No - just meant to say he was eating hard types of treats as well, which sometimes contain seeds. I just wanted to make clear that he is eating things that are hard (not just soft foods)
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Treats that are like this:
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https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002NC3LY0/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
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https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00WW4EDTQ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1
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https://www.amazon.com/Kaytee-Natural-Timothy-Rabbits-Animals/dp/B0002DK8OI/ref=sr_1_3_sspa?keywords=hay+rabbit+traet&qid=1555517252&s=pet-supplies&sr=1-3-spell-spons&psc=1
I have a 21 year old cherry-headed conure. I feed him a mixture of Roudybush Maintenance pellets in Mini and ZuPreem colorful pellets (either [Pure Fun] (https://www.amazon.com/Pure-Bird-Parrots-Conures-ZuPreem/dp/B01GVVJKUW/ref=sr_1_11?keywords=zupreem+pellets&qid=1563513544&s=gateway&sr=8-11) or another colorful type pellet), and I add one or more types of Goldenfeast nut/dried fruit mix - Central American Preservation Blend II is a favorite. I mix all this together, and that's his regular dry pellet food.
I only recently found out that he will eat the ZuPreem pellets MUCH more readily than he eats the Roudybush ones! The rescue where I got him fed him coloring-free Roudybush pellets mixed with Goldenfeast II, so I always figured it was the best - all natural, dye free, expert recommended. Apparently my bird child is like every toddler, and likes brightly colored nonsense that looks like fucking Trix or Runts or some shit, so I've been mixing the ZuPreem in.
Fresh fruits/vegetables is his second serving of the day, and we try to mix it up. Again, he's super picky, but he likes mango, frozen bagged corn and peas (doesn't like corn on the cob), sugar snap peas (frozen and fresh), egg white, grapes, strawberries, and apples. He doesn't touch kale, spinach, or healthy leafy greens, which sucks. It can't be a color thing, because he loves frozen peas!
He takes medication for his kidneys, and we put his liquid medication into a little piece of bread crust. If we want to get him to do stuff with treats, he is a whore for processed carbs - bread, pasta, pizza crust. For non-special treats, we give him Lafeber's Senior Bird Treats. He likes the Lafeber's Fiesta better, but he's a senior bird and our bird shop folks said other bird owners reported these were beneficial, so he can fucking deal.
Ah, it's heartbreaking to see a bird plucking.. Even if it's just a habit, it's not a healthy one. :/ I'm guessing that this is your first parrot?
If you can, find out any history of the bird and when it started plucking, what it's diet was like, what the home that it stayed in was like, did it have toys, has it ever been moved, etc.. Basically, take note of everything (again, if you are able). Also, did you take her to an avian vet, or a general vet?
We've got a CAG that started plucking in November 2013 after our roommate (his owner at the time) returned from a two month long trip. It didn't stop for over a year and it has taken a substantial amount of time and effort on our part to make him feel happy and secure. Yet, that didn't help. He would be happily preening on one leg, fluffed up, and pull out neck feathers while he was on our shoulders, knees, etc. (I call it his "survivor's guilt" for enjoying new owners). He was very comfortable, and very content. It made no sense. Here's some solutions that worked for us, or have been recommended (in case you have more luck with them than we did). Also, bear in mind that habitual plucking doesn't always mean that the bird is unhappy (even if she is at the moment). It's a bit like a person biting their nails. It starts out for some reason or another, but then it turns into a habit and they do it because they do.
What we've tried and has been working (He's been on the supplements for 4 months and it didn't look like they were doing much for the first two): A healthy diet of minimal seed, pellets, and fresh veggies twice a day - one scoop of featheriffic! in the mornings, and one scoop of Avicalm with each meal (breakfast/dinner). These supplements have worked for us, but our vet had warned us that they'll mask any underlying problems if they should work. Just something to keep in mind.
Another thing suggested, which might not be a good solution for you as you just got the bird and it might not like being sprayed: Featherglo. The bird store where our CAG originated from rehomes a lot of birds and recommended it as something that has worked on a few of their pluckers. I hate the smell of it and this only got attempted once.. :/
Some general things to do:
Sorry that this is long.. :/
I don't have any experience with homemade feed, but I don't think that much seed would be good. I don't think it's advised to give ducks seed at all actually.
I have the book Storey's Guide To Raising Ducks by Dave Holderread and it has a recipe for home mixed starter, grower, and adult feed.
Here is the recipe for ducklings 0-2 weeks old
11 cups cornmeal
3 1/2 cups soybean meal (44% protein)
2 cups wheat bran
1/2 cup meat and bone meal (50% protein)
1/2 cup fish meal (60% protein)
1/2 cup alfalfa meal(17.5% protein)
1/2 cup dried skim milk or Calf-Manna
1 1/2 cups brewers yeast
1 tbs dicalcium phosphate
1 tsp iodized salt
free choice chopped greens, grit, and oyster shell
This makes 20 cups of feed, but I suppose you could scale it down if needed (my three ducks ate 10 lbs in the first two weeks)
Or you could order feed online instead, because I'm not sure it would be worth the effort of mixing your own and trying to find these weird ingredients.
http://www.amazon.com/Manna-Pro-Chick-Starter-Medicated/dp/B003AEXOEW/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1425756222&sr=8-2&keywords=chick+starter
http://www.amazon.com/Manna-Pro-Organic-Chick-Starter/dp/B00I41XZP4/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1425756222&sr=8-4&keywords=chick+starter
When I had a couple of birds, I would make huge batches of Crazy Corn and freeze it in little baggies to warm up a tiny bit for every meal. That's not too much of a pain.
GREEN ME
My Spy Birdhouse on my Hobbies list. A nice little home for the birbs and my kiddo can have fun watching and learning about our feathered friends too. I also have bird seed on that same list because I like to feed the little cuties.
Thanks for the contest!
Oh I have both a cat and have had a kouse and I gotta tell you the bunny is 100 times worse I guarantee lol. The mouse wasn't too bad especially since we have him dried papayas he went crazy for em. Dropped a link below incase: )
Kaytee Fiesta Healthy Toppings Papaya Bits For All Pet Birds, 2.5-Oz Bag https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002UIZ12W/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_z0WpDb7SJC8JW
I raised one indoors over the past 3 months. You need a pen area for it use some old sheets you don't mind getting ruined and just change them out daily. They are poop monsters. If you do want to keep it I recommend this food here. My female duck was just as big as all of the males at the pond I released her at.
Ah yes, okay. As far as feeding him is concerned, I feed my Luna Harrison's Bird Food. You can find it here for a decent price. They recommend feeding the kind that I linked you to for the first year of eating it. It's their High Potency mixture, and I think it just has extra nutrients and whatnot. Then they recommend you switch to this kind here. It's just the basic everyday diet. On top of the pellets, fruits and veggies and nuts are a good thing to give him. Apples, carrots, grapes, sweet potato, broccoli, any kind of hot or sweet pepper, greens like kale or collard greens, oranges, tomato, etc. Stuff like that. Lots of parrot owners will get an assortment of fruits and veggies, chop them up real small, and mix them together. They call it "chop", and both of my parrots love it. Seeds are something you probably want to give your parrot in small amounts, mostly as a treat.
As far as talking is concerned, you want to make sure you are spending plenty of time with him talking to him and interacting. The time that you spend with your parrot is very important, and should happen every day. Even if you're just holding him while watching TV and chatting with him during the commercials. They are social animals, and they crave to be interacted with.
To train him you might want to consider looking at target training. Here is a video that goes over the basics. There are lots of resources, both free and paid, that can be found on the internet. Google is a great tool to find all of this. There is also lots of information in different posts right here on /r/Parrots.
Hope that helps!
Thanks for your reply. I feed him a mix of:
Also fresh veggies and sometimes fruits/nuts.
These fellas are absolute fruit maniacs. We often catch them trying to take a bite from the fruits in our fruit basket (all bird safe for a reason!).
The majority of their diet is Featherglow, which we add some veggies and nuts to. Every now and then we also throw in some veggie pasta!
https://www.amazon.com/Volkman-Seed-Featherglow-Fancy-Simmer/dp/B0002FP40O
There are much better pellet mixes available. We use
RoudyBush Daily Maintenance Bird Food, Mini, 44-Ounce https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000O3BI90/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_iKAIDb276CJ0E
It has soy oil but not sure why that would be bad for a bird.