training, how often and how long?

[Sasha2]

Last night I was on this site called holisticbird. Really good site.I just worry that I can stick to such a big order. I mean Im no spring chicken, I have bad days and throwing pellets and seed mix in a cage is easy.
I am very rural so I have to generally order everything. We dont even have a Walmart.
So I can probably order the kashi 7 grain but do you cook it or give it as is?
My guys hate warm or gooey foods(Ive tried some of those cooked bird foods).

[Wolf]

I live in the very northwestern portion of North Carolina in the Blue Ridge mountains. I have lived all over this great land from California to Arizona, from Washington state to Florida and many places in between and you really can't get much more rural than where I live now. and at 60 years of age with severe and chronic back pain I don't much feel like a spring chicken either.
If you have to order your birds food then you might want to check out WindyCity Parrots.com , I order two different foods from them because I have parrots ranging in size from a parrotlet to an Amazon. The first one that I order is Tops Napoleon's seed mix, it is for birds from cockatiel to parrotlet in size and I order Tops All in one seed mix, for the larger birds. The Napoleon's Seed Mix contains Oat groats, millet, flax seed, buckwheat and white sesame seeds. The All in one seed mix contains barley, rye berries, Spelt, Kamut, buckwheat, millet and pumpkin seeds. That is all that is in them and the are meant to be fed either dry or soaked. There is not much difference in the size of most of the seeds in them but I mix them together to give a slightly larger variety. These are all low fat, low protein ingredients which are totally organic and of human grade, not feed grade. I think that they would satisfy the whole grain requirements on your birds.
I do cook for my birds and the key to that is to not overcook the whole grains, Beans and legumes, I fully cook and mix with the cooked whole grains and mix them together, 25% beans and legumes and 75% whole grains and then I mix that 50/50 with mixed veggies.
As I said previously there are no experts here or any where really and this holds true no matter what aspect of parrots you are speaking of, we are all still learning all about these remarkable beings. I am still working on many aspects of my parrots nutritional needs and will probably continue to do so as I learn more. Currently I am feeding the cooked mixture of food and top dress this mixture with the tops seed mixes that I just told you of. This along with some leafy greens and a piece of fruit make up their breakfast and lass them all day. I then feed a high quality seed mix that has dried veggies, fruit and some nuts along with seeds this is for their dinner and is removed after they go to sleep.
Yes it is easier to buy foods that you can just toss in their bowls and run, but just like with us that is not the most healthy way to eat. Tops also makes a pellet that is all organic and is free of soy products, It is a bit pricey, but it is the only pellet that I would use if I were to feed pellets to my birds. If you are wanting the convenience of what you are accustomed to then I would feed the tops seed mixes that I get from Windy City, either soaked or dry, for breakfast along with their salad and then feed tops pellets for dinner. That would still be a much healthier diet than the current one and still have the convenience that you have now. Also my birds don't mind their food being a little warm but they don't like gooey either.

[Pajarita]

Ditto on the gooey. My birds do not like anything mushy but they do love their gloop.

Yes, you can cook the Kashi 7 whole grains pilaf according to the instructions (it's actually quick and easy because you can do them in the microwave) and mix it with cooked vegetables and some beans and seeds. I use corn, peas and carrots, chopped green beans, white hominy, sweet potatoes (I bake them in the Potato Express in the microwave and peel them when they are cool), chopped broccoli and butternut cubes (all the veggies but the sweet potatoes come from the frozen section of the supermarket). A bit of flax seed, a bit of sesame seed and you got yourself a pretty good gloop! Try getting your birds used to the white beans instead of the black ones but, if you can't, see if you can order black lentils online, my birds LOVE them.

[Sasha2]

We live in rural kansas. Probably not as rural as some but still not easy to get what I need right away.
I found some organic sprouted grain and seed bread in the freezer section at the store.But no Kashi. I did buy some 5 grain hot cereal mix (bobs red mill) I thought I could mix it in birdie bread.

I made them some pasta(rotini veggie) and sweet potatoes, broccoli, peas and corn for breakfast and all they did was pick out the seeds I sprinkled on it.
I dont understand the aversion to cooked foods because my greencheek will cooked stuff out of my plate.She is the better eater though, not nearly as picky as the Sun.

I usually order from Dr fosters and smith because they have free shipping with 50 or more. I do want to stop feeding them soy and its in both Zupreem and Roudybush pellets. I will check out Windy City parrots, thanks so much.

[Wolf]

I have used fosters and smith for years especially for my dogs and cats and some things for my birds too. I spent many years just north of you when I was much younger as I was living mostly in the sandhills area of Nebraska, mostly in brown and rock counties and have made many trips down into Kansas, so I am familiar with the general area.
Windy City also offers $49 free shipping, so no change there.
The difference is in the fact that you are eating the things on your plate, so they want to share that with you. For parrots eating is a social event as well as a bonding activity, this is a thing that I frequently take advantage of when it come to introducing new foods to my birds.
I am happy to help in any way that I can.

[Pajarita]

You need to start with things that resemble the same stuff they are used to eating and slowly and gradually switch them over to something else.

For example, Pretty Boy (sun conure I am taking care of until his owner is better) was used to eating nothing but Zupreem fruity pellets all day long (nothing else!) so, although I started him on gloop, I bought organic, freeze-dried fruits in Whole Foods (strawberries, apples, etc), chopped into little pieces and mixed them with the gloop because I figured that the bright colors and the crunchiness resembled these pellets look and texture and would make it easier for him to accept gloop as food. He picked him up 12/30 and he is already eating his gloop - not everything in it but enough so that I know that he now KNOWS this is food (see the picture of him with his butt up in the air and his head buried in his gloop bowl under the Posting 'Pretty Boy'). So, if he is used to eating beige pellets, use just whole grains cooked al dente to start him on - if he is used to eating fruity pellets, get him used to seeds (easy!) and then give him gloop with colorful, crunchy (but healthy) stuff with a sprinkling of seeds mixed in. See what I mean?

[Sasha2]

When I got her(sun conure) two years ago she was eating only peanuts and walmart seed mix and then picking out only the sunflower and safflower seeds, they also fed her bread.

BTW I used my greencheek as a training tool today. I made sure that I was right next to the sun conure and made a huge deal out of letting greenie drink some coconut water out of a tablespoon.My Sun actually loved it, the fact she drank out of a scary tablespoon is outstanding.Im impressed


So now she eats roudybush(but since I put it in a separate dish she wont touch them now).She wont touch zupreem which is fine but all my greencheek will eat as far as pellets.

Anyway I made some chop today. Not sure if anyone will touch it but I made so much I can keep trying it for a few months
Im also sprouting some lentils(My greencheek loves lentils) and quinoa, alfalfa seeds.
I did order some soak and sprout, dont know how that works yet but excited to try it.

I think I need to start eating like a parrot, id probably live forever.

[Wolf]

Sounds like you are enjoying yourself and that you are starting to make progress again with your Sun conure and that is wonderful news. Yay!!
I am surprised that you made so much of the chop but it could take a while for your birds to start eating it as well as they should. Sometimes, when you change the texture or manner in which you present a food to a parrot the don't recognize it as food for a while. I would top dress the chop with their seed mix until they start eating it. Another thing you can do is to sit down with them at breakfast with some of the chop in a dish and either eat some of it or make it look like you are eating it. Eating together is a social activity as well as a bonding behavior for parrots so if they see that you are eating something then they will want to try some of it. I hope that this will help out some.

[Pajarita]

People also 'trick' them into eating healthy stuff by making a 'taco' (wrapped up in a tortilla) or a 'cone' (they fill up the little icecream cones you can get in the supermarket) out of it but I don't know how successful it is as I've never tried it. Never had any need for it, I've always switched them to gloop in a few days. It might take longer for them not to pick and choose only certain items out of it but they all start eating it in days.