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Nutrition Basics

Parrots

About that Diet...
There is quite a bit of disagreement regarding the best diets to feed our birds. Pellets? Seed? Both? Neither?
The answer isn't as simple and straight forward as buying a full diet off the shelf. Each bird has its own unique dietary needs, and every species is different from the other. A diet good for one species of macaw isn't neccesarily right for another. What's good for cockatiels may not be right for your Umbrella Cockatoo. What you feed your eclectus may not be the best choice for your African Grey. It's important to remember that even though they are all parrots, they are different species of parrots. This is oppossed to the different breeds you see with dogs.

Sudden diet changes are not recommended, and it's important that you monitor your birds intake (and output) of food on a daily basis.

Whatever base diet you choose (pellets or seed), fresh vegetables and fruits are absolutely vital for your birds long term good health. A little bit of broccoli here and there, while better than nothing, probably isn't enough.

Many birds may not have learned that fruits and veggies are good to eat, so persuading them can sometimes be a challenge. It's important that you take up the challenge and ensure that your bird is eating produce daily. To that end, we are including a link to Shauna's Mash Recipe which has shown great success with literally hundreds of birds all over the country. Try it: Chop your veggies, fruits and other fresh foods into a mash, and let us know how it goes! (Remember to take before and after photos! You'll likely see a difference in feather quality after feeding this nutritious meal over a period of time.) Shauna's Mash Recipe.pdf

Be sure to ask us about your bird's unique nutrition needs, espeically if they have kidney or liver issues. Though the answer may not be simple, we are happy to help take the mystery out of providing a good diet for your bird.
Other recipes can be found here: http://www.holisticbird.org/pages/drecipes.htm

Chickens

Look for information regarding chicken diets in September

Friday, September 05, 2008

This Month...

Safe House and Outdoor Plants
Note: Nothing is safe if toxic chemicals or insecticides have been sprayed on them. Before installing them in any cage, scrub all branches with a non-toxic disinfectant (such as diluted chlorine bleach) then rinse and dry well.

Acacia                  Aloe                       African Violet             Baby's Tears         Bamboo         Begonia         Bougainvillea     Chickweed         Christmas Cactus         Cissus/Kangaroo Vine         Coffee         Coleus         Corn Plant
Crabapple         Dandelion         Dogwood         Donkey Tail         Dracaena Varieties
Ferns (asparagus, birdnest, boston, maidenhair)               Figs (creeping, rubber, fiddle leaf)
Figs (laurel leaf)         Gardenia         Grape Ivy         Hen's and Chickens         Herbs (ex oregano, rosemary, thyme)
Jade Plant         Kalanchoe         Marigold         Monkey Plant         Mother-in-Law's Tongue         Nasturtium
Natal Plum         Pepperomia         Petunia         Pittosporum         Prayer Plant         Purple Passion/Velvet Nettle
Schefflera (Umbrella) Sensitive Plant         Spider Plant         Swedish Ivy         Thistle         Wandering Jew
White Clover         Zebra Plant

Trees and Bushes         Source: Gillian Willis

Apple         Arbutus         Ash         Aspen         Beech         Birch         Citrus (any)         Cottonwood         Crabapple
Dogwood         Elm         Eucalyptus         Fir         Guava         Hawthorn         Larch         Madrona         Magnolia
Manzanita         Norfolk Island Pine         Nuts (except chestnut and oak)         Palms (areca, date, fan, lady, parlour)
Palms (howeia, kentia, phoenix, sago)         Pear         Pine            Poplar         Sequoia (Redwood)         Willow

Myths: Apple Seeds
Apple belongs to the Malus species. Apple SEEDS contain cyanogenic glycosides which release cyanide when ingested. It is not necessary to core apples before giving them to your birds. The small amount of cyanide that
would be released from ingesting a few seeds is very unlikely to cause cyanide toxicity in birds. If they were to ingest a large number, cyanide poisoning could occur. All other parts of the apple including the wood, is nontoxic. Apple branches are safe to use as natural wood perches.

All parts of plants/trees belonging to the Prunus species, with the EXCEPTION of the fruit itself, contain cyanogenic glycosides. This includes apricot, peach, nectarine, plum and cherry. The kernels inside these fruits should not be fed to birds, nor the wood used for perches.

Information source:
The Gabriel Foundation
1025 Acoma Street · Denver, Colorado 80204
www.thegabrielfoundation.org · Email: gabriel@thegabrielfoundation.org
T: 303.629.5900 x 214 · F: 303.629.5901
FEIN: 8.1396085

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