Is seed really bad for birds, parakeeets and cockatiels to be specific?

Question

I've heard that pellets are better than seeds because seeds are high in fat and have no vitamins. I get vitamin fortified seed with things like dried vegetables and fruits, nuts, cracker-like things, etc. My birds also love crackers, lean turkey and chicken (I know, weird), and vegetables like broccoli and carrots. Should I convert them to pellets or are they fine? Please explain!

Answer 1

Nope, it's not bad for birds! What's bad for birds is eating ONLY seeds. But the same can be said for birds that eat ONLY pellets. Having no variety in the diet is the killer, not one specific food.

This is especially true for budgies and cockatiels. They eat a lot of seed in the wild and taking that out of their diet is unfair.

Also, pellets can be very unbalanced in the nutrients they provide. They are man made and often are made badly. Feeding mainly pellets can give your birds overloads of one particularly type of nutrient, very bad for their health. They are also very highly processed so contain preservatives and other chemicals. The packet might say they don’t, but it can be hidden very well (think of all the stuff they hide in processed human food and still call it natural)

You can tell if the seed you are feeding is good by trying to sprout it. If it doesn’t sprout it’s dead seed and has not nutritional value. Have a search on the net for some sprouting or seed testing instructions and give it a go. If your seed doesn’t make the mark change varieties and test until you find a good one!

The sprouted seeds (as long as you do it cleanly and hygienically) are also a great thing to feed your birds as sprouted seeds are at their highest nutritional value.

However when you feed a seed diet (same as if you feed pellets) you must add variety to the diet. What you are feeding your birds sounds really good!

The vitamin fortified seed doesn’t have much affect but the crackers, turkey and chicken and veggies are really good for them! Try introducing a few more types of veggies, sprouts and maybe evens some fruits (although as more of a treat because it has a lot of sugar and less other good stuff then veggies)

If you want to try adding a small amount of pellets to their diet (less then 10%) then go for it. However they might not eat it, because pellets are notoriously not tasty and don't have the fun factor of the other foods. But if you can get them to eat it a SAMLL amount of pellets can be good.

But really, your birds seem to be on a great diet and I'd say stick to what you know is working.

Good luck!

Answer 2

I have hand raised parrots for about 6 years and I use to think pellets were too expensive. I sat down and did the numbers for the cost of parrot seed versus the cost and health factors of pellets. Take into consideration a seed diet, most say they have added vitamins. Sure, on the hull of the seed that the bird cracks and discards and receives no nutrition from. A pellet has the same nutritional ingredients through each pellet. The seed being fed is hard to see how much they eat, so you end up throwing the entire dish out and feed more. With pellets, you see exactly what they ate. I personally feed only Dr. D's pellets and you can read info as well on their website http://www.avi-sci.com/article.htm. Save the fruits, veggies and nuts for special treats...

Answer 3

Pellets are, in general, better than seeds. However, seeds are an essential part of many parrot diets and especially with Australian birds such as cockatiels and budgies, they NEED seed as a part of their diet. I suggest adding pellets to their diet, but never eliminate seed totally. A healthy diet for both birds would be about 10% seed, 10% fresh fruits, vegetables, grains, and pastas (no avocado, apple seeds, fruit seeds and pits, tomato leaves, mushrooms, onions, chocolate, caffeinated, carbonated, sugary, or salty things), and 80% pellets. Some great brands of pellets that are well researched, known, and trusted are Roudybush, Harrison's, and Zupreem (I love feeding Avian Entrees because it also has dried fruits and veggies that my birds love - but they have a large variety of flavours to please your birds). Seed, when the only thing fed, leads to malnutrition and obesity (obviously if someone's never taken their bird to the vet, they don't KNOW a fat bird from a thin bird because birds of this size are, like, 40 to 80 grams).

Crackers are good as long as they're unsalted, and meat, as odd as it sounds, is a great source of protein for birds. The vegetables are obviously great for them; make sure they're washed well and/or grown organically for the lowest chance of pesticides. Broccoli is great for calcium, as are other dark leafy greens. I find romaine lettuce and rappini are favourites in my home, along with broccoli.

If you're a bit unsure about the entire thing and the diet you should change your individual birds over to, have them see an avian vet ( http://aav.org/vet-lookup ) and see what they say about each bird, and ask for a diet suggestion.

Answer 4

The reason why I don't feed my birds seed except as a treat is because 1) they're a fatty diet and 2) seeds get gummy and gross. The bottom ones never seem to get eaten completely so they accumulate.

Pellets seem to get eaten more completely because they're not oily. For parakeets and cockatiels get the ones that are about the size of BBs. Plus, I give veggies and fruit in a clean container that goes pulled out and into the dishwasher the next day.

My birds like chicken too. And Cheezits. They like those so much they've learned to recognize the crumple of the bag and get excited when they hear it.

Try holding fried shrimp tails for your bird after you've bitten off the shrimp. My birds like the little bit of shrimp that's still attached to the tail.

Answer 5

As long as you're not giving them nothing BUT seeds. An all-pellet diet is almost as bad. Give them a variety -- I've got three birds and they get a good seed mix, pellets, fresh fruits and vegetables. They also like turkey and chicken bones (from fully cooked chicken).

Answer 6

Well, I certainly wouldn't recommend it, but I have known more than one Cockatoo that is well into it's 80's and has only ever been fed a sunflower seed diet. Seeds are really not much more natural than pellets, but I find that a diet that consists of seeds, sprouted seeds, and fresh fruit and veggies keeps a bird healthy and happy.

Answer 7

Birds on a seed only diet will develop fatty liver disease. I was on the seed and human food bandwagon until one of my cockatiels started showing symptoms of fatty liver disease. I switched to a mainly pellet diet after that on my vet's reccomendation.

They reccomend 80% healthy pellets, 15% fresh and human food, 5% seeds and treats. I was told that Harrisons, being all organic is best, and then Roudybush. My birds don't like Harrisons, so I feed Roudybush, which they love. They do get human and fresh foods daily, and then seeds and other less healthy things as treats only, not as their main diet.

Answer 8

I've had parakeets for over 10 years and they are healthy, active, happy, with bright eyes and feathers. They eat primarily a seed diet. I get the nutra-parakeet, which contains pellets, but at the end of the day, the pellets remain in the seed cup and the seeds are eaten. I've tried a variety of pellets over the years; none of my budgies liked or needed them.

You can supplement your budgies' diet with fresh fruits and veggies. Mine love a wet romaine lettuce leaf placed on top of the cage. They like thawed frozen corn or corn on the cob. They like broccoli, apples, carrots, strawberries, peaches. They LOVE whole wheat pasta with tomato sauce, cooked chicken, cooked eggs, rice, and almost anything we're eating. No chocolate or avocados for them. Introduce new foods slowly, eat those foods in front of them, and they'll give them a try.

Answer 9

I would not convert them to pellets. I think a good varied diet, which it sounds like you are feeding, is more interesting to the bird and healthier in the long run. Would you like to live on pellets, even if they were nutritionally complete? I think the idea that seeds do not contain vitamins was started by the manufacturer of pellets.

Answer 10

It is not that seeds are bad, it is just they do not have everything a bird needs nutrition wise. Seeds and pellets are an important part of your birds diet; just like fruits and vegetables.

To answer your question no, seeds are good for your bird. There are just other things that should be in his or her diet as well.
Be careful not to change their diet to suddenly, do it gradually.