Best Things to add to Parrot's Diet?

[Sabrazom]

I seem to have a rather picky Amazon when it comes to Fruits and Veggies. *Dang Nab Bird Sass!*

Like any 5-2 year old child would, he refuses to eat and Veggies or Fruits, as soon as he eats it he slowly spits them out. Because of this, i sneak Chopped Romaine lettuce and Carrots in his eggs, which he surprisingly likes! But he cant eat his Vegetables like that always, and i wanted to know if they is any way i can start him to eat them?

So Far, his diet is a mix of Zupreem ML Pellets, RoudyBush Maintenance Medium Pellets *With one large pellet put it each feeding* And Harrison's Lifetime Adult Course. And for treats, 1-2 Almonds a day, and sometimes Avi-Cakes. *He doesn't really like Avi-Cakes, but he will do ANYTHING for almonds, i cant eat them near him without him flying at me to get them!*

Is the diet i'm providing for him now is fine, or is there other foods/treats i should provided so he can meet his nutritional needs?

[Michael]

If the parrot is doing a good job eating its pellets, you don't have to worry much about veggies. That's just for fun, not nutrition. The pellets provide a nutritionally balanced diet. Once on such a diet, the veggies only dilute it because they are less rich. It's just sugar, water, and cellulose with a sprinkle of vitamins at that point. That said, when you follow my complete approach to parrot keeping, it is easier to introduce foods and they are more eager to eat anything you give them.

[Pajarita]

I am sorry, Michael, but I strongly disagree. Pellets have man-made vitamins (which we now know are not metabolized and utilized by the body as efficiently as food-derived ones) and NO phytonutrients (antioxidants, enzymes, etc) whatsoever (the processing kills them). Parrots NEED the antioxidants and the enzymes, they evolved to eat a diet very rich in them so although an all pellet diet is better than an all seed diet, it's still not a good diet. Especially for amazons that are extremely prone to liver and kidney issues!

Try giving him crunchy greens (like the very heart of the Romaine, bok-choy and Swiss Chard -mine go nuts for the stalks of the red Swiss Chard), corn on the cob, baked sweet potatoes, grapes and apples to start with (they all love those) but, in order for him to start eating them, you must remove all pellets and seeds from his cage the night before and feed him the healthy food in the morning. All six of my zons came to me eating mostly seeds but they now eat a wide variety of veggies, fruits and leafy greens and the ones that had liver issues are now showing perfectly normal levels of bile acid enzymes (which means the liver is now working as it should).

[Sabrazom]

Okay, Thank you both for the advice, i'm now going to try to make it that 50% is pellets, while the other 50% is Fruits and Vegetables. And since i will be going to the Vet this weekend, i will talk to this matter with my vet.

Yet Again, thank you both! c: And i'm sure Sammy is happy also

[Pajarita]

Please take into consideration that avian vets do not study parrot nutrition in school so, unless the vet has done research on his own and has had multiple parrots for years, his opinion is the same as anybody else's.

[GreenWing]

Parrots absolutely need leafy greens, like kale. This not only provides necessary and natural nutrients but also foraging ability. Garden-grown kale (unsprayed, of course), freshly picked and eaten is the BEST.

The BEST thing to add to a parrot's diet is vitamin-A foods, and foods that can be shredded. Parrots need to forage and shred food as this provides stimulation, as well. I will also add that the very occasional garlic (I cook a little in coconut oil and add to Chance's food but I do this very sparingly) is good in preventing microbial infections. Garlic has been proven to enhance killer T-cells.

[Sabrazom]

Hm..Would there be ANY way to get him to eat Vegetables, My family has Kale so i can indeed give him that? Should i leave some all day? or eat it in front of him??

[marie83]

Hm..Would there be ANY way to get him to eat Vegetables, My family has Kale so i can indeed give him that? Should i leave some all day? or eat it in front of him??

Try both, in fact there are loads of other things you can do too like preparing it differently, hanging it up like a toy, mixing it in with stuff he does like etc.

[Pajarita]

My amazons don't really go for the leafy part of leafy greens, they prefer the crunchy stuff like the stalks of bok choy and Swiss Chard (I am a BFA female that would go straight for the stalks of the red Swiss Chard -they are mildly sweet- before anything else that might be served) as well as the very heart of the Romaine and the stalks of broccoli. Try that first and see what happens.
My zons eat broccoli and kale (either green or blue) mixed in their gloop every day but they would not touch the fresh kale.

[Sabrazom]

Hm, ill try that..