Sunflower seed shells - concerned

[aquagreen]

Hey guys,

So, I just fed my senegal some sunflower seeds (a very rare treat), and she ate two or possibly three shells. Will this hurt her? How worried should I be?

[Wolf]

It sounds like she may not be accustomed to sunflower seeds in the shell or perhaps these might have some salt on them? That is more of a question than any type of explanation. Although they should not eat the sunflower shells they are fairly easily broken down if there is not two many. If she shows no signs of trouble during the next couple of days then she should have gotten then through her system. So I would just keep an eye on her for the next couple of days, but I would not be overly concerned either.

[aquagreen]

She just hasn't been fed many seeds in quite a while. She's on a mostly pelleted diet (with veggies and fruit too of course). My guess is she got overzealous. There was no salt on these--I bought them specifically from a source that sells for parrots.

Thanks for your answer. I'm so worried what I'll do if she seems unwell (exotic vets being hard to find as it is, and mine not being open on Sundays).

[Wolf]

I hear you. My vet for the birds is over 100 miles away and that means that on a good day it is still going to take me 2 hours just to get there and that is the closest vet to me that does birds. Parrots chew on wood a whole lot, some more than others but they all chew on woody substances and it would be unusual for their system to not be able to handle at least a small amount of these things and that would include seed coverings as well at least in my mind. It is usually not an issue unless they consume too much or if they do it on a regular basis causing a build up.

[aquagreen]

Thanks, Wolf--you're right. That does make me feel a bit better.

I'll keep a close eye on her. She won't mind. She's such a ham.

[Pajarita]

Awww, poor little thing, she was so eager for them that she ate shells and all. Have you considered feeding her seeds and nuts instead of pellets?

[Bird woman]

OMG. Paj , your going to take the lid off that can of worms . Nuts Verse pellets verses fresh Organic verses no grain verses whole grain verses raw etc.etc.etc. Sometimes I get so overwhelmed with the diet thing , just about the time I think I've got a handle on it and get pretty dam proud of myself with my birds I read something else that tells me I'm doing it all wrong. Leave it in the cage ,don't leave it in the cage , give nuts as treat only , don't give nuts at all ???? I honestly think as long as we learn what our birds nutritional needs ( species specific ) are and do the very best we can ( it's all good). OH and 2 the discussion on bacteria and food borne illness , contamination etc. Those rules do apply to parrot food . protein foods and this includes beans of any kind ( cooked not raw ) is subject to a 4 hour rule , don't re-refrigerate, throw away it's a little like playing Russian roulette . Either the right organisms are there for the breeding or there not. The food we get now days other than what we grow is almost a given there is listeria , E-Coli , or other nasty hitch-hikers waiting for just the right condition to rear there ugly little heads. And this I know a lot about , I own a restaurant , ! And some of us do follow the rules and MORE! One of my cockatoos is always chewing on fresh branches and twigs and swallowing them I sure hope it's not a problem I kinda assumed they were suppose too. BW.

[Wolf]

Yes, the diet thing will make you nuts if you are not already there. I do not like pellets and so my birds get seeds as part of their diet. One of the things that I have noticed is that they actually seem to enjoy shelling them and I have tried giving them shelled nuts and sunflower seeds as a treat, but you know they would peel their water if they could just figure out how to do it. I started out with giving them pellets but then I really did not like all of the things in them and going to seeds was the only way that I could find to control the preservatives and other things that I did not want to feed my birds.

I try to share my thoughts on pellets and why I don't care for them, but I also try to let the birds owner make up their own mind as to whether to use them or not. I still look at them to see what they are putting in them as it is an option if I needed to .

Mostly as long as it is safe for them to eat and it is something that I would eat, I will let them have some of it as well.

The bacteria issue in the food is one that I am a little lax on as I do want them to have a strong immune system so I don't get too bothered if I can't change the food within the four hour time frame and often have gone for 5 hours, especially on the days that I have to go to the doctor's or go to town to go shopping, but then I change the food out shortly after I get back home. I know that I have eaten food that has been out too long on many occasions and have known people who did it all the time on a regular basis without getting sick from it. I have also seen those finally get a case of food poisoning from doing it too and it only takes once. It is better to try to remain within the time frame that we know is the safest, but sometimes we may end up going over a little but really should not do it on a regular basis. And I admit that I push it a bit more than I should and that is probably due more to my own eating habits than for any other reason, something that I am working on changing in my own life and as a result in their feeding as well.

[Pajarita]

Well, let me tell you, Birdwoman, that, although I do obsess over their getting organic what needs to be organic and a large variety of produce (mixing colors on a daily basis) as well as the actual time of the day they eat (I actually get up before 5 am when the days are long and it's NOT because I like it!), I am very relaxed about the food staying out all day. I've been doing it for over 20 years and I have not had a single one come down with food poisoning (and I had over 240 birds at the rescue for years). As a matter of fact, I can count with the fingers of one hand the birds that have gotten a bacterial infection while under my care and I've never had a single one come down with a fungal - and I'll tell you something else, I am convinced it's the fact that I am not obsessive over germs that made their immune system strong!

As to pellets, I do think it's the easiest way of feeding them but that's about the best I can say good about them.

[Bird woman]

I'll agree with you 100% on the building strong amune systems , we live in a world full of antibacterial everything and antibiotic in everything we consume. I too let the birds be around fruits and veggies left out , especially in the outdoor aviarys for longer periods of time but unless I grow it myself I don't. I'm probably a little neurotic about this because I am in the food industry and have been for a lot of years and have seen first hand where this food industry is headed . ( and it's not good) ! There is so much in genetics , pesticides and in just the sienctific and mass production of our crops now ,that is different from years ago. I have never in my life seen so many recalls and outbreaks in the food industry as I've seen in the last 10 years. I think if people were to go to these factory's and or grainerys where the products are manufactured for the birds as well as people and see the amount of rats and feces that's around and what safe amount is actually allowed by law ( so many parts per million) they would never eat or feed it to there family or parrots again. I'm kind of a old hippy country girl and grow a lot of stuff .old school ways. I believe in playin in the dirt , drinking from the creek and just plane old soap and water. My avain DR. Still to this day and I've been using him for 16 years now beats it into me about Harrison's being the biggest part of there diet with veggies and a little fruit ,he is adament about throwing all nuts of any kind away. I should get a hyacinth and see what he has to say about the nuts and seeds . I let the birds play and forage on the lawns everyday , eat the clover and dandelions , hang out and munch on the trees I planted for them and all this, he says is a big NO NO !! He's still a great doc. Even though we have a different opinion on the food . And letting the birds be birds . And I get up at 3:00 am we'll have coffee internet style sometime. I'm not a germ germafob . I just know what's on my happy little acres and what learks beyond my walls Did you catch the last part of my post about one of my mollucans also seeming to want to swallow stuff , I'm not to concerned about the branches and bark but I've pulled pieces of string out of her mouth from cloth perches and other misalanious stuff that she was rolling around with her toungh and acting like she wants to swallow it. It could be her trying to swallow it when she gets busted and she knows I'm going to take it out of her mouth. Well any way it concerns me and I would like info on subject before she goes in for her blood work so I can be armed with info. As I said my vet is pretty set in his ways about the care of birds , and going there without info is like going to a gun fight and forgetting to bring the bullets .!!! B.W.