Hello there! New member :) Have a few questions!!

[CharliesMomma]

Hi! My name is Jessica I am going through an adoption process for a 13 year old Military Macaw, Charlie. I am bringing her home after a couple more visits within the next 2 weeks. I have been doing TONS of reading but came here to see if I can get some things clarified that I wasn't sure about!

First off, I'm trying to research what my meals should be like for Charlie. I have read that I need a Vitamin A rich diet, lots of Beta Carotene & Calcium. I want to feed sprouted seeds also. My question is what does a breakfast & dinner consist of? Meaning, What percentage of protein and such per meal? I plan to offer tons of fresh fruit & veg. I've read it's good to feed soaked & cooked beans. I have Harrison's Pellet food to mix in with the "live" foods. Also... How much is too much? I'm just trying to figure out a menu for the week (I'm very ocd, things need to be charted for me to be comfortable!) And I want a very varied diet but I do not want to overfeed my Charlie, nor do I want her to go hungry!

[pennyandrocky]

I give my birds pellets first thing in the morning a few times a week they'll get scrambled eggs with the shell finely ground for calcium. I make them oatmeal, on the stove not microwave instant, with fresh fruit mixed in. then for dinner they either have the same as us or chop.

[Pajarita]

Well, it's not recommended that you free-feed anything. It is, of course, the easiest way of feeding a bird but it's very unnatural and it leads to excess of certain nutrients, lack of others, and obesity. I also do not think that pellets are the healthiest option (too dry, too processed, not human-grade materials, lab-made vitamins and vitamins that should never be consumed in their final form, unknown nutrition -they all tell you not less than or not greater than but never a single value so, in reality, you don't know what the heck you're feeding them)

I feed gloop and raw produce for breakfast and the higher protein for dinner (seed mix with roasted nuts). Gloop is a dish made out of cooked whole grains, beans (you should NEVER just soak a bean, it needs to be thoroughly cooked) mixed with cooked vegetables (peas, carrots, corn, sweet potato, mote, green beans and broccoli). The raw produce consists of a different fruit, veggie and leafy green or cruciform every day (the larger the variety you can get them to eat, the healthier the bird will be).

Now, the bird that you are adopting is already set in his ways and will want what he is used to eating - which is fine for the transition period when he is getting used to you, his new home, his new schedule, etc but, as time goes by and he feels more comfortable, you should start switching him to a healthier diet so, the first thing you need to do is decide which way you want to go:
- pellets
- seeds/nuts
- gloop (some people call it goop - the raw version is called chop or mash)

[CharliesMomma]

Thank you both for the responses!

Just realized I posted this in the wrong subforum :/

Perhaps I didn't clarify my intentions, I didnt mean to make it sound as if I was planning to free feed, when I said offer tons of fresh food, I meant a varied diet. I plan on 2 square meals a day, with treats sporadically through the day, especially while we build trust. I have been looking into the Circus Diet, something I came across online that uses a cooked mash I was just trying to find out what percentage of the meal is protein, and so on. The "All About Me" package on Charlie says she already appreciates all kinds of foods such as citrus fruits, melon & scrambled eggs

Thanks for all the input!