converting into a helthy diet from seed.

[evaleen]

dose anyone have any tips on how to convert a full seed diet into a healthy diet of fruit, veggies and grains?

my moustache parakeet has no idea what so ever that the leafy vegetables that i provide are for him to EAT, and NOT to be played with.
he happily spends hours shredding cabbage leaves that i hang onto the bars in to pieces- small as rice grains!!! bt he dosnt EAT them. dosnt INGESTS them.
he treats them like green paper.

while chewing out the cabbage, sometimes the juices flow into his mouth. he then licks his tounge around to swallow it. but thats it. he again starts shredding. he dosnt eat it.
how do i get him to eat these? he dosnt even touch millet!
he's been on a seed diet since birth. so he dosnt know theses are edible. but if this continues, he may die within 2years... i'm really worried...

[brfussne]

Have you tried eating the veggies & greens in front of him to encourage him to try them?

[GlassOnion]

Continue to let him play with hunks of vegetables, he still gets some nutrients out of the juices and there's a very good chance that he will start ingesting them.

Also, soak the bird seed overnight and sprout them very slightly before serving. Sprouts are packed with phytonutrients and much lower in fat than dry seed.
http://www.ehow.com/how_4443932_sprout-bird-seeds.html

[evaleen]

thanks!

as for demonstrating, i'v been munching on raw vegetable, and vegetable leaves like a goat...
(trust me, it is SO hard to control the expressions... they are so BITTER...
the thigs we do for our kids....)

all i get are stares like i'm some freak, then i get ignored and my munching becomes background music to him.
(now i know how my mom felt when she tried making me have them... )
(she had it easier. she could always stuff it in my mouth with a threat...)

can u sprout hulled rice seeds? cuz apparently thats the only thing he seems to eat.

[Shelby]

The veggies don't have to be raw. You can try cooking it to see if he likes it better. Also, some birds really like mashed sweet potato. I think you can sprout whatever seed mix you are already using.