Table of Contents
Revised August 6, 2023
The best diet for a parrot may be more than what you originally thought. Offering an all seed diet may be easy and cheap, but it could be seriously harming your parrot's health.
Find out how offering your parrot a healthy diet can promote a healthy lifestyle for your pet parrot.
Wanna Know Why Your Parrot is Sick?
Many parrot owners just assume that feeding seeds exclusively to their birds will automatically ensure a long and healthy life.
This couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, giving your bird an all-seed diet could spell disaster.
In the wild, most of our pet birds would eat a much wider variety of foods than seeds alone. A bird diet of mostly seeds can cause serious health problems down the road.
Some of the common illnesses that parrots on an all seed diet face include:
- Obesity
- Hepatic lipidosis (fatty liver disease)
- Atherosclerosis (cholesterol deposits in arteries)
- Stroke, and heart disease.
Bird Seeds Often Contain Pesticides & Fungicides
Bird seeds may be dangerous for birds for another reason.
That's because they are treated with pesticides and fungicides. These chemicals are sprayed on the seeds during the growth process to prevent them from being damaged by insects, mold, and fungus, but the spray coats the hull with potentially toxic chemicals that birds ingest.
What Seeds Should Birds Not Eat?
Feeding your pet bird a diet primarily based on bird seed may not be the best choice, and here are three simple reasons why you might want to rethink their menu.
Firstly, it may be surprising to discover that bird seeds often fall short in providing essential nutrients for your bird's health. What's even more unexpected is that some seed manufacturers try to make them seem nutritious by coating them with synthetic vitamins.
But here's the catch – when your bird cracks open these seeds, the vitamin-coated hull falls to the cage floor, leaving behind a fatty seed with limited nutritional value. It's like your bird is missing out on the nutrients they need for a healthy life.
Secondly, a seed-heavy bird diet may result in your bird packing on extra pounds, which could hamper their energy levels. To top it off, store-bought seed mixes may not be very stimulating for your cherished bird, and we all wish for our feathered companions to stay joyful and energetic, don't we?
Check out the Bird Food Pyramid below, and you'll notice that seeds play a minor role in a nutritious parrot diet. The true star of the show is the pellets, joined by a mix of veggies, fruits, sprouts, and grains. It's like a smorgasbord for your feathered friend, and we all know diversity is what adds that extra flavor to life for our cherished pet birds! 🐦🌽🍏
Infographic by Diane Burroughs, LCSW
Here's a thorough post on how to go about converting your parrot to a pelleted diet. With patience and persistence, your bird will begin enjoying a healthy diet rich of nutritional pellets, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains that can help to reduce the risk of heart disease.
Does that mean that I should never feed my bird seeds?
No! This doesn't mean that you must avoid seeds at all costs. Avian veterinarians and pet bird nutritionists will tell you that seeds should be regarded as a supplemental food, or even an occasional treat, rather than an essential part of your bird’s diet. Seeds are great for training purposes.
Healthy bird seeds include raw sprouting bird seeds like daikon, radish seed, adjuki beans, mung beans, buckwheat, flaxseed, chia, black sunflower seeds, red lentils, green lentils, fenugreek, pumpkin seed, sesame seed, mustard seed, red clover seed.
Traditional bird seed diets include fatty seeds like red and white millet, canary grass seed, safflower seed, and sunflower. Do you notice the difference?
So, now, let's dive into the problems with an all seed diet.
Three Problems with an All Seed Bird Diet
1. Seeds are high in fat
Essential fatty acids are is a necessary nutrient in small quantities, but seeds have more fat than most birds need. And, the fats may not be the "essential" kind.
Even if your bird gets plenty of exercise outside of its cage it’s still important to be mindful of fat intake. Seed-only diets tend to be very high in fat, which can lead to obesity and fatty liver disease over time.
But, worse, it may also cause gall bladder problems or pancreatitis. A high-fat diet can lead to fatty liver disease (steatosis), which is most often associated with an increased risk of developing hepatic lipidosis (fatty liver) and secondary complications such as hypocalcemia, ascites, and hepatic encephalopathy. All of these disorders can ultimately result in fatality if not treated appropriately; however, if caught early enough there are many treatment options available.
Its better to stick with limited plant-derived forms of essential fatty acids like Red Palm Oil or Coconut Oil.
2. Lack of variety can cause selective feeding
When it comes to feeding your parrot, a lack of variety can cause selective feeding. In other words, you run the risk of your bird eating only one or two foods in larger quantities than others. This not only disrupts your pet’s nutritional needs, but also hinders growth and promotes excessive weight gain.
Fortunately, there are some simple steps you can take to ensure that your bird receives proper nutrition from an assortment of foods.
For most pet birds, it’s best to feed a variety of foods rather than just one or two types. With a little planning and thoughtfulness, you can easily create balanced diets in which birds receive a combination of different nutrients from fresh whole food sources.
3. Seeds are void of essential vitamins
Pellets are not just more convenient, they’re nutritionally superior. Parrot pellet diets typically contain vitamins and minerals in precise ratios that help to maintain a bird’s optimal health.
Feeding parrots an all-seed diet is like feeding your child a bag of potato chips for breakfast. Sure, they may keep your kid alive, but they won’t help ensure their long-term good health. The bottom line: If you want your pet bird to live long and healthy life, pellets coupled with a rich variety of raw, plant-based foods is way better than traditional bird seed diets.
Choose an organic, premium pellet diet for best results. The type of diet you feed your pet bird can have a big impact on his health; choose a diet that fits within your budget and is made from ingredients that are high-quality and nutritious. Organic diets also tend to contain fewer artificial preservatives, colors, and flavors; these chemicals may be harmful birds.
Three well-respected bird pellets include Harrison's, Roudybush, and TOPS. These diets come in a variety of formulas; choose one that matches your parrot’s species and life stage. You may also want to talk to an avian veterinarian about which diet is best for your bird’s specific health needs.
Choose a pellet made from whole ingredients:
Pellets made only from ground seeds or cornmeal are generally inferior to those containing whole ingredients—such as seeds and other items harvested from plants—because they don't provide enough nutrients.
Whole-ingredient pellets can usually be identified by labels that state whole foods on their packaging. The above commercial bird food manufacturers use whole ingredients when making their products because research has shown that it’s better for your pet bird.
But what's even more important is how you make it. Cooking depletes nutrients that are important for your bird's health. This is especially true of water-soluble vitamins like B and C vitamins. A cold-pressed manufacturing process used by TOPS may retain these important vitamins.
What's better than pellets?
While pellets are formulated to contain most of a bird’s nutritional needs your bird also needs fiber and nutrients found in fresh vegetables, fruits, herbs, and the like.
In their natural habitat, birds eat a rich range of plant-based foods that are jam-packed with important vitamins and minerals like calcium, iron and zinc.
Because of the limitations in pellet formulation, these essential nutrients can be left out, cooked out, or hard to come by. This means our avian friends may need more than just a few veggies once in awhile! When it comes to feeding your feathered friend, variety really is key!
Feed your bird a rich, fresh, plant-based diet every day with veggies, fruits, herbs, grains, seeds, nuts, flowers and plant-based oils in addition to pellets.
How to get your bird to eat a better diet
Has your bird been a picky eater who's gotten addicted to seeds? Want to start him on a healthier diet but don't know how to get him interested in it? Try these tips and tricks.
Fortunately, there are several ways to begin to wean a bird off of seeds and onto healthier foods. Start by preparing his new diet foods in fun, interesting ways to create curiosity. For instance, you can take your bird's diet to the next level with this video where I discuss 9 ways to get your bird to eat more veggies. One of my favorite ways to get a bird to eat healthier is is to model what to eat like their mom and dad would have done in the wild. Eat veggies and plant-based foods right in front of your bird but refuse to share until your bird is begging you for a bite!
The most important thing is to be patient and just keep trying. Your bird's taste buds can change in as little as a few weeks, so it will just take time for your bird to get used to his new healthy diet. Be persistent!
In conclusion, a bird can quickly and easily learn to eat a healthy diet when taught the right way. Feeding your bird a healthy diet doesn't have to take a long time and changing their diet can be a quick and relatively painless process when you know how to do it. Be sure to grab a copy of my diet conversion book right now.
Related Blog Posts
9 Healthy Treats That Your Bird Will Go Nuts Over
Everything You Need To Know About Bird Calcium
References:
https://www.merckvetmanual.com/exotic-and-laboratory-animals/pet-birds/nutritional-diseases-of-pet-birds
https://www.petmd.com/bird/conditions/digestive/c_bd_Acute_Hypocalcemia
https://theparrotsocietyuk.org/site/index.php/parrot-information/veterinary-advice/hypocalcaemia/
Budai, K. and Pao, S. A Parrot Fine Cuisine Cookbook And Nutritional Guide. Quietlight Productions. North Palm Springs, CA. 2018.
Budai, K. A Parrot's Healthy Dining. Go Raw! K &S Natural Company, Ltd. UK. 2020.
Diane Burroughs, LCSW is a licensed psychotherapist trained in ABA therapy techniques. She specializes in avian anxiety disorders and is certified in Nutrition For Mental Health. Diane has written a number of bird behavior books and she offers behavior consultations. She's developed a range of UnRuffledRx Science-backed Parrot Wellness Supplies.
Diane's products have been featured in the Journal of Avian Medicine and Surgery and at Exoticscon, a conference for exotic pet veterinarians. Her bird collars & supplements are stocked in avian vet clinics and bird stores throughout the US. With over 30 years in the field of behavior, Diane has created thousands of successful individualized behavior plans that help pets thrive.
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