CzechMate Kennels: What To Feed a Parrot

Molly in the Fridge

There is many ideas on how to feed a parrot, but most people agree that a good base is a pelleted diet. Again there is many numbers and graphs and common sense is sometimes missing. Not all parrots require the same food on the other hand. Larger birds like Macaws for example require more nuts and seeds in their diet simply because they are over all bigger and they need more energy to keep them happy. This really doesn't have all that much to do with the taste as it has with the nutritional value of the nuts and the fat which is in them. Our parrots most days get fresh vegetables in the morning and pellets later during the day. Nuts and seeds we use only for training as their reward or for fun hidden in their foraging toys, but remember most days I train twice a day and many times when I go by the cage i ask for a little trick and I reward those with a nut as well, so at the end of the day I actually have to make sure I dont give them too much nuts and they will not want to eat the veggies and pellets, so use judgement and soon you will figure out how much to feed.

Which pellets?

Well to tell you the truth, most pellets have basically the same ingredients. They have soya, corn and some wheat usually as the main 3 ingredients, which is about 98% percent of the whole pellet. So I dont think of them as some magical space food, but more as a convenient less messy way of feeding with less waste. Very often I hear "pellets have all the nutrients parrot needs", sure, we know birds that have been only on pelleted diet for many years, but you can see the difference in them. Not only pellets must be very boring for them to eat, they are also very dry and as I mentioned they are basically corn with soya, so why dont you just feed them corn and soya then? I dont mean to bash pellets and as I said, we feed them daily, but keep this in mind. Currently we have 2 different kinds of pellets, Tropican Lifetime Pellets and Locally made Pellets here in Canada by a breeder we know. Tropican is extruded and the other is only pressed. I probably prefer pressed versions a bit more because they are not baked so the nutrients stay fresher, most commercial pellets are baked. The different colors in them are only food coloring most of the time.

Tropican Pellets

Size of pellets?

I like the smaller size even for our Macaws, because if I feed them the large ones they seem to crack them and play with them just as much as eat them and waste so much.

Why do we feed 2 different kinds?

Mostly because we got them :) Again they are basically the same inside, but it is not a bad idea to feed 2 different kinds in case your local store runs out of them for a while, then your birds are still used to the second ones.

Introducing new pellets or switching to pellets?

We never had much trouble with it at all. Good way is to mix the new batch with the old and gradually add more and more of new ones and less and less of the old ones. (never mind no percentage and graphs again :) I read about people soaking them and pouring juice on them and all kinds of things. I have never had to go to such an ordeal, our birds seem to eat what we offer them usually. Again I think its mostly the bird training you, if he doesnt dive in the new pellets and eat them right then, then maybe people feel sorry and start mixing and soaking and pretty soon the bird will think "why would I eat the dry ones if mommy will soak them in an orange juice in couple hours?" ;-) Remember most problems are with pet birds being obese, not underweight and if you came this far to educate your self about their food then I dont think your bird will starve, sometimes its good for them to be without food for a bit, they dont have a free buffet in the wild either and that makes their life so much more fun and something to look for.

What vegetables and fruit do we feed?

Again I dont really go out of the way to buy special veggies and exotic fruits, most we have at home for us anyways. As I say on this video, someone said it costs him $250 a month to feed 1 Macaw! Well I dont know, but there is something wrong with that picture in my head. For breakfast they most often get things like crab apples or apples, carrots, jelapeno peppers, green beans, peas or lentil sprouts, bananas, oranges, lemons, kiwi and so on. Sometimes we have a bit more exotic things, but this is mostly the base. Sprouts are very good for them, I have written an article just on sprouts, "Sprouting for Parrots", you can read it also. Oh and Hyacinth Macaws do not need Macadamia nuts, nor it is their natural diet. It is simply a scam. Macadamia nuts are from Australia and Hyacinth Macaws are from South America, but they do have one in common, they are both the most expensive ;-)

Complex mixes vs. keep it simple.

There is many different mixes for parrots. Some are only seed based, some have seeds, nuts and fruit etc. For sure I think they are fun for your bird to play with, but I do not use them very much because most of the time the bird will only pick the yummy sunflower seeds and peanuts and then you feel sorry for him and throw out the rest and give him new batch ;) Well then they train you, they dont get very healthy diet and I dont think they will be all that excited if you give them sunflower as reward when training since they have them all day long in front of their beaks. Other then that they usually are very overpriced and again you pay for dried up old chili peppers and old peanuts, most of the time. I like to know what I serve them and where it comes from.

Do I cook for my parrots?

Generally no. I tried few times, but I dont really see the point behind it. I would rather cook for my wife or me I guess. Our birds dont find it all that great either, maybe because they are not used to it and I think of it as a waste of time for me. If you love cooking and you want to prepare some yummy supper for your birds then why not, there is nothing wrong with it, but still remember to give them FRESH uncooked veggies. On the other hand we often offer our bird some yummy leftovers we have, like rice, pasta, potatoes, broccoli etc. Make sure its not too greasy and salty tho!

Cooked pasta with legumes and chili powder.

Vegetables vs. fruit.

While most parrots like fruit better, vegetables are far more healthier for them. Fruit is mostly sweet water, it tastes yummy, but vegetables have far more vitamins and less sugar.

What do I use for treats?

I will cover that a bit more in depth in a new article "Treats" in the Training section.