Birds

Feeding your bird

Too many birds get only seed to eat. This leads to many health problems in birds, just as would develop in a growing child would if they ate only bread!
There are a range of excellent quality diets designed especially for the type and age of your bird, in pellet form.

However, we also recommend that you supplement your bird with:

• Fresh fruit and veggies
• Peas and beans (cooked)
• Sprouted seed
• Naturally growing grasses and plants
• Vitamin and mineral supplements
• Grit

Fresh water must be available at all times. Many birds enjoy a bath as well as a drink. This contaminates the water with seed and urine/faeces. Keep a few water containers for your bird: a larger, shallow one for bathing and a few smaller ones for drinking. These should still be changed daily to prevent illness.

What if my bird won’t eat her food?

This may be due to illness, anxiety/fear or unfamiliarity with the food.

Firstly, ensure your bird is in good health and kept in a safe environment.
Some birds are raised on seed only diets. They may not recognise pellets as food. If this is the case, you will need time and patience to help your bird make good food choices.

To encourage acceptance of your bird’s food:

• Change your bird’s food at least twice daily
• Add some pellets in with a seed mix – both crushed and whole
• Hand feed your bird its pelleted food
• Mix pellets with other favoured food items
• Persist with a good quality food over the long term, but keep offering a little seed During this time to ensure your bird eats something