ParrotsForLife wrote:Wolf wrote:Seeds are high in protein and lacking in many nutrients such as essential fatty acids regardless of when they are fed, The nutritional values of a food does not change based on when it is fed.
Seeds are high in Protein haha thats funny because seeds are actually too LOW in protein sometimes I wonder where you get your information from.
Again, you are stating your opinion without doing enough scientific research as basis for your arguments. When it comes to a pet parrot diet (notice that I say 'pet' and not just 'bird' which would include the wild ones -because although seeds are part of the natural diet of parrots, the reason for this qualification will become obvious as you keep on reading), seeds are high in protein and fat because, in nature, there aren't that many vegetable sources of high protein EXCEPT seeds, nuts and pulses (but pulses are not the natural food of ANY parrot so, although we can use them as part of their diet in captivity, we can't really use them in the argument). When we say that a bird is a granivore or a seed eater, we mean a bird that would go to ground to eat the seeds of grasses. These seeds are very small, relatively low in protein and not so easy to get a whole lot of them, especially when you are talking about a big flock of birds that would share a source. It's also dangerous for prey birds to go to ground for long periods of time to eat them (the predators can catch them) so, as time went by, nature made it so they end up eating just the right amount they need and not too much or too little. When you fill up a bowl with seeds (or pellets for that matter) in the morning for a captive bird, you are giving the bird way too much protein. Why? Because:
a) this is a bird that is not flying around so it doesn't need that much protein.
b) this is a bird that is not worried about predators so he can eat and eat and eat for as long as he wants as the bowl filled up with seeds is right there in front of him.
c) this is a bird that doesn't have to share with anybody else so, again, he can eat and eat and eat and there will always be more.
d) this is a bird that will fill his crop more than once during the day with seeds whereas, if you feed the high protein at night, the bird will fill his crop with high protein just once (much more similar to what nature intended for it to eat in the wild). Crops empty in one to two hours and, as birds are 'programmed' by nature to gorge on high protein, they will fill their crop more than once during the day (remember, in the wild, it's not that easy to find abundant sources and, as it's needed for life, growth and breeding, nature made it so, when they find it, they eat until they can't eat no more).
e) this is a bird that will not eat enough produce and might end up with vitamin deficiencies. Because, as it's programmed to eat high protein when found, it will always prefer to eat more seeds and less produce.
These are the reasons why, although seeds are fine for parrots, one needs to be very careful as to the type of mix (some mixes been higher in protein than others), how much and when the seeds are fed. The solution we have found (and we are always willing to hear suggestions that might improve our husbandry so, if anybody has one, please feel free to share it) is to feed them the seeds in the evening for their dinner because, this way, we are providing -as close as we can figure out- the right amount of protein and fat as well as ensuring the parrot eats enough produce for their nutritional needs.
