Introduction & requesting advice

[Pajarita]

I use less pulses than Wolf (about 1/4 of the amount of grains) and I end up with 50% veggies, 50% grains and pulses. I also do not add the frozen veggies to the hot grain/pulses mix. I actually wait for it to cool and then add them so as to not thaw in any way the frozen veggies (this is because frozen veggies retain nutritional values much better than fresh or thawed ones).

I use kamut, half wheat/half teff, oat groats and hulled barley, red and/or black rice (much more nutritious than brown rice and much less arsenic in them), black lentils (my birds prefer them but regular lentils are fine, too) and small white beans (which are, actually, small navy beans). I don't cook the beans, I buy them in cans and rinse them under warm water very thoroughly. Then I add (all frozen except for the ones noted): chopped broccoli, corn, peas and carrots, chopped green beans, butternut squash, chopped artichoke hearts, chopped curly blue kale (but a small box for a huge batch as I don't want them to eat a lot of it regularly) white hominy (can and very thoroughly rinsed) and sweet potatoes in chunks (baked in the oven in winter and in the microwave in the summer).
This becomes the basic recipe which is split into daily portions and put into freezer baggies.

[Wolf]

Since the vegetables are frozen when I add them, everything is cooled down to almost room temperature by the time that I have them mixed in thoroughly.

[Pajarita]

Yes, I understand but the reason for my not adding them while the grains/pulses are hot is that I don't want to thaw the veggies at all. I want them to remain completely frozen until they are thawed in the fridge before consumption.

[Wolf]

Me too, The difference is that I usually make a new batch in the early morning and give some to my birds right away. Put a 3 day supply in the refrigerator and then freeze the rest. So the real difference is in the timing of when we make this food. But I will consider changing the way that I do this to making it a day or two in advance.

[Pajarita]

Ahhh, you make much smaler batches than I do. Mine last, on average, 12 days - that's why I keep everything frozen while I am making it.

[Wolf]

I only have 7 birds of which 4 are small, so I do make much smaller batches and they still last me about two weeks.

[Pajarita]

Ah, I misunderstood, I thought you made 3 day batches and kept it in the fridge but I got it now: you keep three days when you first make the batch and freeze the rest. I don't keep any in the fridge - well, I do but it's the ones that are thawing.

[Barbara]

Thank you so very much, Wolf and Pajarita. I made my first batch of gloop and the female loves it. I can't believe how much she ate of it. Even the picky male went down and tasted and I have high hopes that he will decide it's really delicious too. I'm excited to see them eat so well, and I have to admit that their cages look more like a buffet now.

I have another question please. I read somewhere else on this forum that I can't find again - that it is a no-no to pet a bird on it's back, that it could cause psychological damage. I had no idea. Are there any other no-no's that I should know about? My little female loves to be cuddled and scratched. She'll fluff all her feathers so I can scratch her neck, cheeks, ears, head, and under her chin and sometimes under her wings. Please advise.

Thank you again for your wonderful advice and recipes.

[Wolf]

You got it, I don't have a large freezer so most of the time I have more room in the refrigerator than in the freezer. I also keep a covered bowl of cut up veggies in the fridge as well as one of fruit and I always add some of these to the gloop when I serve it. This helps me to only have to cut things up for the little birds every morning instead of two different sizes every morning.

[Wolf]

I realize how hard it is, especially when the bird is as small as a parrotlet, but the only place that a parrot should be scratched and petted is on their heads, beaks, necks and feet. It is not because it causes psychological damage, it is because a parrots whole body is one large erogenous zone. When you pet your bird other than where already mentioned, it is like doing foreplay with your partner, and then stopping without the finishing of the sexual act. This does lead to a stressed state as there is no release for the pent up sexual energies. It also increases the level of hormones without dissipating them and that can lead to an increase in aggressiveness in your bird.