Common Sense Nutrition

All of us want to do the very best that we can for our birds to ensure them a long, healthy, and happy life. In the area of nutrition there are two fundamental problems:

• conflicting information and a constant stream of misinformation

• trying to find the time to prepare healthy foods and feed them in a timely and safe manner.

We don’t pretend to have all of the answers, but we are here to guide you to a natural, commonsense, and streamlined approach to nutrition.

Voodoo nutrition

We need to avoid food fads for birds just as we do for ourselves. Too many of the so-called health stories on TV (CNN and Fox News are good examples) appear on slow news days. They offer conflicting opinions that are not well researched or scientific. Avian nutrition suffers from the same sound-bite mentality. Wherever you look you’ll see examples:

• Some breeders claim that their Eclectus are healthier because all they eat are dried sunflower seeds—WOW! I recently read this on an Eclectus listserv. (You have to wonder what kind of research they did to reach this startling conclusion.)

• All the hype about Omega-3 fatty acids may be right. Neuropsychopharmacologists (now there’s a career!) have studies that show many behavioral and learning problems in children diminish and sometimes disappear if fatty acid supplements are included in their diet. The same may be true for our birds.

• One popular consultant in avian nutrition advises that pellets be excluded from our birds’ diets. There are some interesting arguments but not a lot of research to back up this advice. Anyway, the idea makes sense only if you have a lot of time to spend preparing food. If you simply don’t have the time to feed wet food on a particular day, pellets are a far better choice than seed. If you have a hectic schedule—and who dens’t—wonderful products like Beak Appétit provide optimal nutrition in minimal time.

Sensible nutrition—easily!

This is why we wean our babies onto all of the healthy alternatives. We feel that they will thrive in modern homes, even with most of us living at a fast pace.

The true key to healthy parrots is food variety. We aren't advocating all-encompassing feeding guidelines because our birds come from all parts of the world; we can’t emulate or provide all of the choices they would have in the wild.

However, we firmly believe that most avian diets are missing vital nutrients that our birds would obtain if they lived in the wild. That’s why variety, diet diversification, or whatever you want to call it, is so important. By offering everything safe that we can think of we’re more likely to supply all that is needed. It’s only common sense!

What does our Parrot Food Pyramid look like? The foundation is fresh, sprouted seeds, then a multitude of healthy organic vegetables—some steamed to release beta-carotene, a precursor to vitamin A and an absolute must for parrots. Then pellets, fruits, and a small amount of dried seed.

Natural” does not equal “harmless”

Just because a product is “natural” doesn't mean that it is safe. A contaminated shipment of tryptophan killed people. Foods fertilized in manure are “natural” but are easily infected with deadly E. coli. Zinc can be toxic to our birds, but it is also needed in minute quantities for survival.

Herbs have a chemical basis and some of those chemicals are toxic. Some herbs can be beneficial in a narrow dosage range and deadly otherwise. You have to do your research.

Don’t rush down to the health food store and buy Echinacea, Pau d’Arco, comfrey, borage, or kava kava for your bird. Ask us if you have questions about these substances.

Stuff your bird really needs

Vitamin A is absolutely critical for the health and well-being of your bird. It helps maintain a healthy immune system but also aids in emotional health, eyesight, feathering, and body functions. According to the American Veterinary Association your parrot needs a minimum of 8,000 IU of vitamin A every day—more than the minimum daily requirement for a human. The number one problem that vets see in pet birds is vitamin A deficiency.

Calcium grows healthy bones and many other body parts, but it can’t do the job without vitamin D3 and sunlight.

Protein in vegetable form is essential for all body functions.

Good nutrition in a hurry

You can provide optimal nutrition for your parrot without sacrificing precious hours in preparation.

Learn to sprout. It takes perhaps two minutes a day to provide excellent nutrition in a way that birds love. (You can also buy sprouts from us—see page 6.) For safety’s sake, don’t forget a few drops of grapefruit seed extract (GSE) in the soak for the seeds. Some people say it’s OK to use bleach, but don’t believe them—chlorine is deadly in even the smallest doses. Also make sure that the sprouts never touch metal, because metal acts as a catalyst and will oxidize the seeds.

• Investigate birdy breads. Make your own or try our King Tut’s loaves.

• Lightly steam or cook vegetables with a high vitamin A content.

• Try soak and cook mixes, Beak Appétit, and Crazy Corn.

• Make a layered vegetable and fruit salad. Add citrus as a natural preservative.

Smart shopping for seed mixes

Packaged mixes are marketed to appeal to you—if your bird had the purchasing power, you’d be preparing fresh foods like sprouts! That’s why it’s good to remember the following:

• Beware of green or pink rubbery fruits in mixes. These mixes are outrageously expensive and easily turn rancid and buggy. Too much moisture in the mix is what turns the seeds.

• Avoid the new mixes with heavily-sugared fruits that look like candy. Fungi and mold thrive on simple sugars, and there’s a lot of sugar in these mixes. Remember, feeding heavily-sweetened products to your bird can create the right environment for a nasty illness such as Candida and Aspergillosis—especially in a bird with a compromised immune system.

• Look for a preponderance of orange-colored food—not just the occasional big chunk and fruit piece. The best ingredients for your bird include dried sweet potato, carrots and papaya, which are all very good sources of vitamin A. We use them in all of our New Millennium mixes (which, by the way, are very low in moisture content).

• Examine the nuts. Don’t buy mixes that contain nuts in the shell unless they are raw, unsalted pistachios or raw, natural, shelled almonds. Walnuts and other big nuts create problems—one bad walnut can contaminate hundreds of pounds of mix! Soak and scrub your nuts before you feed them, and serve them separately.

Now you know why we use a lot of shelled (shells removed) nuts in our mixes and sell them separately on the shelf. Contamination is also why we do not sell peanuts in the shell or add them to any of our seed mixes—aflatoxins are deadly to birds, other animals, and humans.

This is also why we are so concerned about genetic engineering of foods. Peanut genes are being used in bioengineered foods and, as anyone with a peanut allergy knows, the reaction can be deadly.

Know your food sources

Concentrate on fresh, certified organic foods, but remember the rule: everything in moderation and concentrate on variety. We stress organic because of repeated warnings for years about the overuse of pesticides here and in other countries. Studies indicate higher concentrations of pesticides in some U.S.–grown vegetables than amounts obtained in imports. Keep an open mind and use common sense.

A final word

Nothing is original. We have all learned and copied nutrition information from the best. Real bird people don’t mind having their diets and philosophies parroted (not pirated) by others.

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