The nutrition your Parrot needs
Bucktons, committed to cleanliness, consistency and quality.
Water
It may sound obvious, but fresh, clean water should be provided on a daily basis. Water bottle feeders are useful as they are less likely to be used by the bird for bathing and it is easier to observe how much the bird is drinking. They are also less likely to become contaminated with faeces.
To reduce the risk of faecal contamination, place the water drinker high in the cage.
Parrots are very messy eaters and will often drop their food into the water to soften it, or maybe just for fun.
Food
The foods birds eat in the wild are dependent upon the season and their availability. Naturally it is therefore highly varied, both over the year, but even throughout each day. It is therefore essential to ensure that there is equal variety in your pet birds’ diets.
Birds have a poor sense of smell and few taste buds. Their food selection depends more on texture, shape, size and colour. Often they will reject novel foods until they have recognised it as being a food. For that reason when changing your bird’s’ diet, always do it slowly, as abrupt diet changes can lead to starvation. However they are inquisitive and so it is possible to vary their diets successfully.
In the wild feeding takes up a large part of a bird’s day. Finding new food sources acts both as physical and mental stimulation, so it is a good idea to try to mimic this in captivity. Providing a variety of foods, fed in a variety of different ways, all helps keep your bird happy and healthy.
Although birds do have high metabolic rates and so need a diet high in calories, the average pet parrot does not do much exercise and so their requirements are much less than you might think. It is important to portion control the amount of food, especially seeds and nuts that you feed your bird, to ensure that it does not get fat and develop other problems such as fatty liver disease.
To reduce the risk of faecal contamination, place the food containers above floor level and never under a perch. A food container with a larger surface area, allows for easier selection of different food items.
Feed your bird twice a day. Whilst they will pick through their food throughout the day, they will tend to eat their favourite foods first, such as sunflower seeds, but then eat the healthier balanced other parts later. Try offering them a mix of fruit and vegetables for breakfast, then remove this at tea time offering them a mix of seeds and nuts.
Fruit and Vegetables
Fruit and vegetables act as a good source of both vitamins and minerals for your bird as well as providing both emotional and mental enrichment. They should always be part of your birds’ diet. For the smaller pet birds, fruit should be offered in very small quantities. Try hanging leaves of Romaine lettuce, or other vegetables, from the roof of the aviary for them to try.
Banana should only ever be fed in very small quantities if at all, as it is high in phosphorous and very low in calcium. Birds can become very addicted to bananas and it can lead to metabolic bone disease.
GOOD FRUITS AND VEGETABLES INCLUDE;Apples, Apricots, Blackberries, Cherries, Grapefruit, Kiwi, Melon, Mangoes, Oranges, Pineapples, Pears, Papaya (peeled), Plums, Pomegranates, Tomatoes, Strawberries and Satsumas.
Cabbage, Celery, Carrots, Green Beans, Cucumber, Corn on the Cob, Turnips, Peas in the Pod, Water Cress, Brussel Sprouts, Kale, Broccoli, Spinach and Cauliflower.DRIED FRUIT CAN ALSO BE GIVEN, TRY;
Sultanas, Raisins, Papaya, Coconut, Apricots or Bananas.NEVER give Avocado to your bird as it is poisonous.
Grit
Most seed eating birds require grit. This is to help break down the seed in the gizzard.
« Back to Bucktons wild bird care