Eggs....Shells..

[Bunchy]

I have recently heard that you can feed parrots any type of cooked eggs, and you could include some peices of the shell too?? Is this true? I've not heard of this.

[Pajarita]

It depends on whose opinion you are reading... Lots of people feed eggs to their birds and there are some that still crush the eggshells and add them to their food as a source of calcium. Personally, I feed my parrots hard-boiled eggs twice a year, only during breeding season and the teeniest, tiniest bit each. I never use the eggshells and also use only eggs from organically fed vegetarian pastured hens and nothing else. Eggs are high in animal protein, fat and, worst of all, bad cholesterol which parrots digestive systems don't have a way of eliminating because, basically, bad cholesterol is not something found in their natural diet so nature didn't give them a mechanism for it. I also do not use eggshells. I use avian calcium instead because it has vit D3 and the balance of other minerals needed for effective absorption.

[liz]

They have down graded the harm in eggs. Eggs are the perfect protein food. Each egg has the protein of two ounses of meat with no waste. I used to give mine eggs when I made them for myself and always gave them egg when they had little mouths to feed. Myrtle still gets a bite now and then when she catches me with them. It is like eating chocolate near Aunt B. I do believe she can smell it.

[Pajarita]

Yes, Liz, you are correct. They are now finding out that eggs are not that bad, after all -but that's for animals that, like us, have digestive systems meant for consuming animal protein. Parrots are herbivores so they are not supposed to consume any animal protein.

[Wolf]

I don't know but that we may have to revise this thinking about parrots and animal protiens, at least in regards to insects as the source of said proteins. This is due to the sheer number of parrots that include them in their diets in their native environments. While I am sure that the number of parrots doing this has not increased, the number of them that I am reading about that include insects regularly in their diets is.

[Pajarita]

When you talk about 'animal' protein, you are talking about cows, sheep, chicken, etc. Insect meat has very little bad cholesterol in it for the simple reason that they are VERY low in fat PLUS the amino acid composition is different from 'other meats'. But, even though insects are mentioned as part of the natural diet of many parrots, it's not really a major part and all herbivores end up eating some (cows, horses, sheep, etc all eat insects, too - even us!)

See these: http://xbodyconcepts.com/insect-protein-as-good-as-soy/
http://naturallysavvy.com/eat/the-crick ... /2111.full
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/ar ... 8105001538

[Toggsy]

I feed mine hard boiled quails eggs (I keep Chinese painted quails so have access to regular fresh eggs) I just hard boil them and then blitz them in a coffee grinder shells as well my birds love it especially my budgies

[Pajarita]

Well, then I suggest you do a bit more in-depth research about parrots natural diets.

[seagoatdeb]

A lot more research does have to be done. Even cooked seeds and grains are not natural. A lot of herbavores actually eat eggs, occasionally. I watched deers robbing eggs out of a nest once. Parrots are omnivores and some are herbavores and both do sometimes eat eggs in the wild. It may be something animals do when they need extra protein. We can only do the best we can and eggs is something that is natural for a lot of herbivores and omnivores. Birds can eat worms and insects and their digestion is suited to eat eggs as well. It could even turn out one day that they find that cooked eggs are less harmfull than cooked grains for parrots. Here are some links about parrots eating eggs in he wild.

http://www.livescience.com/28071-parrots.html

http://birds.about.com/od/feeding/f/eggsasfood.htm

[Pajarita]

The first article is about parrots in general which means the entire order of psittaciformes in which there is one species that is classified as omnivore (the kea). There is a second one on which the jury is still out, the vassa, (the rest is classified as herbivores) but, of these two, the only one that is kept in captivity is the Vassa which does require a special diet (they are also vastly different in looks and behaviors from other species). It doesn't mention anything about parrots in the wild eating eggs.

The second article was written by a young woman whose only claim to scientific training is having worked as a vet technician (they don't study or even practice on birds - I know because I was going to do the two year course but decided not to as they don't 'do' birds) for three years - aside from that, she owned pet stores.

But, like I said, different people have different opinions... I go by nature and, in the wild -at least, as far as we know- parrots don't eat eggs.

There have been reports of feral colonies of lorikeets (and later scaly breasted and toos) in England eating meat from bird feeders but the scientific consensus seems to be (so far) that this is a learned aberrant behavior and that is not good for them.

See these links: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... -home.html

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-09-13/m ... dy/6764514