i am taking my friends parrot because she dont take care of it. hes a small bird i dont know what kind of parrot he is. i know there are some things you cant feed them such as avacados. what are other foods you shouldnt give them and what foods do you recommend giving them besides their regular seed.
2006-09-22 05:18:03 · 8 answers · asked by kristina n 2 in Pets ➔ Birds
NO avacados, no onion, no chocolate. EVER
Parrots are SUPER. There are lots of good sites and boards. I belong to an african grey board. There are also boards like www.parrottalk.com and www.cheepparrottoysntips.com which I LOVE because you can make your bird toys!
Give the bird whatever she gives him now, then slowly adjust to a pellet and seed diet. Go to petsmart and look for a pellet food. We humans want to buy the prettiest food, but a bird should not live on just seeds.
You can also feed him all the human food you eat! Make him a perch (from pvc pipes and cover his stand part in VETWRAP from petsmart) and let him sit near the table. Make yummy noises! Feed him what you are eating. Also, they LOVE hot dried peppers and whole nuts. My grey and macaw can hold one with their feet and just eat!
I'm so jealous, I would love another bird!!
2006-09-22 05:24:56 · answer #1 · answered by WriterMom 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
There are a number of good sources of info on this...check the one below.
When we counsel people on diet, I tell people that birds have the exact same nutritional requirements that humans to. If you eat a diet of all nuts and sunflower seeds, how long do you think you will live? Then WHY would you expect your bird to live long on the same diet?
No more then 20% of a diet should be seeds. We recommend only a tiny amount of seed be placed in the cage in the evening as a snack. During the day have a pelleted diet, and offer fruits and vegetables all of the time.
If your bird is getting a proper diet, there is no need for vitamin additives. If they must be given, do NOT add them to water. Not only does it lower the potency, but it feeds bacteria in the water. After a couple of hours you need to toss the water (and all those expensive vitamins). And if you sprinkle powdered vitamins over seed, all that happens is the vitamins sift through to the bottom and are not eaten.
What we do is make a mix of powdered vitamins with hand feeding formula, and sprinkle it over their favorate foods, like popcorn, corn-on-the-cob, toast, or whatever you know they will eat. With out large parrots, we inject them into grapes or orange pieces.
Do not be afraid to offer your birds human foods. There is nothing wrong with meat or chicken. Milk can be given in very small quantities (cheese is better). My African Grey will kill for a slice of pizza.
For birds not yet used to human foods, try this. Get a bag of frozen mixed vegi's from the store. Place a small amount into a strainer and run hot water over it for a minute. Then put it in their case. Remove it after a couple of hours, as any moist food will turn bad rather quickly. You wouldn't eat food that has been sitting out 2 hours, would you?
Hope this gives you a start.
Studly
Certified Avian Specialist
www.borrowed-rainbow.com
2006-09-23 12:58:52 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The Internet can give you a list of poisonous plants, which is always nice to know, but the foods are chocolate, Booze, avocado, and candy.
2006-09-23 03:16:57 · answer #3 · answered by cantrellpets 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
My cockatiel can not eat avocados, (toxic) please research to see what kind of bird he is! For now canned corn, peas, pasta, peppers, red,green and yellow. Mine loves apples also, Plus his seed until you find out what kind he is and look up his natural diet.
2006-09-22 05:26:59 · answer #4 · answered by lin 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
check in the bird books
2006-09-25 19:53:06 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
unsalted peanuts are parrot favorites.
my parrot also likes mango, and corn flakes.
2006-09-22 05:27:48 · answer #6 · answered by radleyfain 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
cuttle fish
2006-09-22 13:29:30 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
How to Feed a Parrot
Polly needs more than just crackers to meet her nutritional requirements. Be creative in the menu you offer and follow these basic rules.
Steps:
1. Feed your parrot a balanced diet of fruit, vegetables, cooked meats and grains. Go ahead and share whatever healthful food you're eating with your parrot.
2. Determine the proper amount by feeding your parrot small portions of several foods. If there's food left over, decrease the amount the next time. Continue doing so until your parrot eats all of the food. Remember this portion size.
3. Offer your parrot a variety of small servings of different foods, not a lot of one food.
4. Keep your parrot's food fresh, as bacteria and mold can grow on food left in the cage and make her sick.
5. Give your parrot fresh water daily.
6. Feed your parrot treats like seeds and nuts sparingly since these foods have few nutrients for parrots.
7. Avoid chocolate, caffeine, alcohol, kidney beans, lima beans and avocados. These foods are dangerous for parrots.
Tips:
Wash the food and water bowls twice a day.
Warnings:
Serving your parrot a diet high in fat, calories or cholesterol is dangerous.
Overfeeding can make your parrot ill.
Underfeeding can starve your parrot. If your parrot loses weight, she's being underfed.
Parrots like to mix their food with their water. Be sure to clean all food out of the water bowl.
Tips:
Make food interesting by Charlie Gregor
Parrots love to hunt for food. Don't make meals boring for them. Pellets may be nutritionally complete, but they don't give them the fun of cracking open seeds. Stick treats inside paper cups strung on a rope. They love destroying the containers.
Don't feed grit
Grit is bad for parrots and parakeets! Birds, like chickens, need grit because they eat seeds whole, but parrots hull their seeds so they don't need grit. Grit hurts their stomachs and can make them sick if they eat a lot.
How to Entertain Your Parrot
Parrot loveParrots are sensitive, intelligent birds who need a lot of stimulation. They are "flock creatures" who enjoy doing things with you. Here are some ways to play with them.
Steps
Rotate a selection of several different toys through their cages each week. Macaws and cockatoos need two types of toys: durable puzzle-type ones to occupy their bright minds and to (mostly) withstand their chewing; and safe materials such as untreated wood and cardboard that they can rip up and destroy each day.
Take your parrot on your shoulder when you perform your "grooming activities" in the bathroom each morning. Parrots find tooth-brushing hilarious and fascinating. They will understand that your hair-combing is a form of preening. And most parrots will love showering with you, which must remind them of the ancestral rain forest. Expect much exuberant screaming and other parrot silliness to result.
Try playing "The Towel Game." Sit at a table with your parrot on the table top. Fold your arms on the table, put your head down on your arms, and drape a big fluffy bath towel over your head. Your parrot will not be able to resist running up to the edge of the towel and lifting it up with his beak so he can slip underneath to be with you.
Try playing "The Box Game." First, present your parrot with a medium-sized box with something fun inside to chew up like a big wad of newspapers. Once he's busily chewing, get an interesting-looking kitchen implement like a big, shiny ladle and gently tap with it on the side of the box. This will grab his attention. Gently tap the ladle closer and closer until you dip it briefly into view. This should get a huge reaction - possibly a full puff-out if you have a cockatoo. Repeat with different cooking utensils for maximum fun and stimulation.
The "Flapping Game" is always good for some exercise. Place your parrot on the back of your hand and gently move your hand up and down or swoop your hand in figure-eights. Your parrot will flap his wings as you move him through the air. Stop and give the poor guy a break once he starts breathing hard.
Tips
Always be sensitive to your parrot's mood. If your parrot is going through a molt and doesn't feel like playing, just sit quietly with him and talk to him.
Introduce new things cautiously. Birds see in full-color and are very affected by visual stimuli. It's not unusual for your bird to react fearfully to a new toy. Try putting the new toy or object on the floor (parrots are not as intimidated by things that are "shorter" than they are) across the room, and inch it closer day by day.
Parrots are "cavity nesters" and it's coded into their DNA to carve out burrows for themselves in hollow trees in the wild. When you catch your parrot chewing, shredding, and destroying something, always remember that he's not misbehaving. He's just being a parrot.
You'll know your parrot is enjoying himself when he bobs his head up and down, makes a lot of eye contact, and clacks his beak repeatedly!
Warnings
To avoid risk of poisoning, always make sure that the toys your parrot will be chewing on are specifically made for birds.
If you give your parrot wood, branches, or cardboard to rip up, make sure that these materials are not treated with chemicals. Wood should be restricted to pine or fruit tree woods untreated with pesticides. Consult your vet if in doubt.
2006-09-22 05:33:05 · answer #8 · answered by mysticideas 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋