I can't believe the amount of people that feed only seed and water to their birds? whats wrong with people?

Question

If you are a bird owner, you must feed your birds more than just bloody seed!
I work in a pet shop, and come across this every day.
Small/large parrots need fruits and vegies breads, grains etc. Nectar feeders,Lorikeets etc need wet and dry food fruits vegies breads.
People need to do research before they want a bird
Our birds in our shop are given the highest of care, food wise and hygiene. They have fresh branches in their cages, newspaper on the cage floors with hay over it, fruits and vegetables, millet sprays, native flowers for nectar feeders, date scones, cor on cob to name a few. Come on people, how would u like to eat a dry weet bix every day and water for sometimes beiong 25 years, no wonder our birds are dying off like flys.
and yes i do have birds at home 2 lorikeets and 2 lovebirds inside and 2 12 foot aviaries outside its more of a 5 star hotel, they have their own vegi garden.

Ive been reading all your replies and i agree about the pet shops playing a huge part in advising people of correct nutrition, time out of cages etc.
I make sure we have information booklets given to people on how to care for their new bird whether that be a finch, cockatiel lovebird, cockatoo etc. If people dont know and if they dont take the time to research, thats where the problem starts.
Birds mean everything to me, and if you take the time to educate people, hopefully they will listen. Its not about making the sale, it s about making sure the bird is happy.

Answer 1

I used to work in a petstore and when we sold a pet we tried to direct the new owner toward the proper tools and food but a lot of people just don't care. I can remember going into the back room and crying when my friend sold a pair of chattering lories to someone who didn't speak English and the translator was more interested in what snakes we had for sale than explaining how to care for these special birds.
It sounds like you work in a good store and the animals are well cared for. It's heartbreaking to see how people treat animals they pay hundreds of dollars for. I have four lories and I know firsthand how much care they take--I've had one of them for 18 years.
The worse is people who buy birds to match their furniture. I stopped working in the pet business because I couldn't bear to sell animals of ANY kind to someone who wasn't buying them out of love and a desire for companionship--so many people think a macaw is "cool" and have no true idea what they are getting into--noise, mess, destructiveness! My red lory chewed off half a windowsill when we weren't watching her and she had a tiny beak compared to a macaw (and she LOVED bitter apple--she would lick it off).
My lories (a rainbow, a red-rainbow hybrid and 2 perfects) get 2 kinds of pellets (one parrot type, one lory type, soaked in hot water with honey), fresh fruit, crackers, & lory powder. They have swings, toys, real branches, rope branches, happy huts & nesting boxes. They live in big (18 sq feet) cages in their own room with windows on 3 sides, get excellent vet care from a certified avian vet and generally are spoiled rotten.

Answer 2

You have to realize that research on bird nutrition and care is decades behind that of dogs cats and even hamsters. Plus birds have only become popular as pets in the past 10 years or so. There's much incorrect information out there even in the best of books and it's going to take a while to weed out the bad news from the good. I admit, some people are just too dang lazy to give their pets the right care, but there are those out there who would care for their birds properly if they had the right information. Then there's those birds who refuse to eat anything but seed. I know someone who has a bird like that. She's managed to get some fruits and veggies into him since she's brought him home.

We need more people spreading correct information out there. That's why I try to get new bird owners to join my local parrot club. If it wasn't for them, I wouldn't be breeding birds and I wouldn't have the wealth of information I have under my belt.

Answer 3

That is why many people shouldnt own birds, they do not educate themselves first before jumping into getting a pet bird. Not all people know that birds need the same basic food groups as people require. Now of course a bird will eat bird seed all day because if you are hungry enough you would eat it too, but it doesn't mean it is good for you.
We educate people about proper bird care and diets, we have even talked people out of buying a bird for a pet because we believed that after talking with them that a bird is not the right type of pet for their lifestyles.
We get too many birds at our rescue that people just didnt know what was invold in caring for a bird. Some people get bored caring for them and then just stop, they either let them lose outside where the bird will most likley die, or give away the bird.
Very sad stories with many birds we have taken in.

Sapphyre
Certified Avian Specialist
http://www.borrowed-rainbow.com
join our group http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BorrowedRainbowAviary/

Answer 4

People just don't realise that birds need a lot more than seed. A lot of it is the pet shop's fault. People go in to buy their bird and the pet shop owner sells it without any information whatsoever. Not every pet shop is like the one where you work unfortunately. I've seen it where I live, believe me. Most of the pet shops where I work give seed only to the birds. They sell the birds to people and then get the follow up business of birdseed. A lot of them realise that the birds need more but then they wouldn't be getting the business, would they? I think pet shops should be obliged to give a booklet/leaflet with every bird sold, explaining the birds requirements, diet etc.

Some of it is to blame on the people themselves. I think if people buy a bird they should get further information on it even if they are not initially given it. When I bought my first birds (rosellas). I immediately bought some books from Amazon as they were unavailable where I live.

I think what you wrote is excellent though. It might make some bird owners more aware of their bird's needs. If only a few people read your note, it might save just a few bird's lives. And I must add how nice it is to hear of a pet shop who treats their birds as yours.

Answer 5

I'm so glad you brought this up! I see so many people thinking they're doing the right thing just feeding their birds on seed and water! It's hard to get them to pay attention when you suggest they feed them a more varied diet. They would be getting this in the wild!

I breed miniature turtle doves, and I also rescue any type of injured bird (or birds who have left the nest too young).

My turtle doves love boiled egg, lettuce and apple. Other birds I have had have really enjoyed spinach, pear etc...

I've never had "exotic" birds, as you have, but I'm so glad you're letting people know that birds need a VARIED DIET - as we all do!!

At the moment I have all the doves, 2 sparrows which I will be releasing to the wild soon, and an almost recovered blackie! (Who loves apple!)

Answer 6

That depends on how much you're into the bird (it's vaguely similar to a romantic relationship, you try to get to know your bird better) and where you get it from. Petsmart or other big stores probably won't care how you care for the bird, but small stores are more likely to sit down with you and make sure you've spent a few weeks with the bird in the store and know how to care for it.

Answer 7

Seed mix should be a very small part of the diet. Mine gets about 2 tablespoons a day. She has Zupreem natural and fruit blend pellets all the time. Plus, I try to give her fresh foods as often as possible. Check out the yahoo group africangreyparrotclub for more info.

Answer 8

I have only been handeling birds for about a year and a half now (so maybe I don't have the experience that most do) but I have spent so much of that time researching birds, mostly large parrots, and I have to agree with your point.

One of the biggest things I see contributing to this ongoing problem is the sellers not properly informing the buyers. I recently went to a feed store that had parrots for sale. They claimed that they did grooming. When we (my fiancee and I) asked them how they did it (because we do our own and like to see techniques from other groomers) they said they had a set of dog nail clippers and that they also trimmed beaks with them.

I was shocked and scared for the birds they had groomed. I took the time and talked to the manager, explaining the dangers of clipping beaks with nail clippers and how they could crack the beak and cause so many problems. Turns out they had bird nail clippers on the shelves and I took one of their larger parrots and showed them how to groom the bird with the proper tools.

They didn't even know what blood-feathers were! That was one of the first things I learned as a parrot owner and I have had much experience plucking bleeding stubs from my own super-anxious Umbrella cockatoo. She likely would have bleed to death a few times without the information I was given when I first got into birds.

I was lucky to go to a bird only store with knowledgeble staff and people who took the time to educate me. Not all bird owners are so lucky. I bring my birds out with me to socialize them. I always try to tell people that they eat a varied diet and need it to be healthy.

Also, a seed based diet (even if it is supplemented with fruits & veggies) isn't the healthiest thing out there either. It depends on the type of bird, but only my Macaw at home eats seed. My Umbrellas, my grey, and my lovebirds are on a pellet diet. Caged birds do not use as much energy as a wild bird does and seeds are full of fats (especially peanuts). I only give my birds seeds as a treat because they get too fat when I feed them only seed.

One food in particuler, Harrisons, is highly recommended as a healthy food for birds large and small and was created by a vet. Vets say that peanuts are too fatty for all birds except macaws, but Harrisons is made out of mostly peanuts (check the ingredient label). My grey ate only Harrisons for months and he got so overweight. We slowly transistioned him to Exact Original with a few pieces of Harrisons and he lost the weight. He is much more active and his feathers look better.

Seed is okay for many smaller birds and macaws, but for amazons, greys, cockatoos, and some larger parakeets I have found that pellet based diets, supplemented with some seeds as treats, and fruits and veggies is the healthiest way to go.

Keep informing people! It's all we can really do.

Answer 9

I completely agree with your statement and information. I got a parakeet hand book telling me feed them to not only seeds and I do give them fruits and vegies. I feed them a variety of things, but it's a little difficult for them to get used to it. Otherwise I research fruits and vegetables on google appropriate for birds to eat. At least someone agrees with me as well.

Answer 10

I hate birds