hey you guys shes just had her 5th egg this morning . but just a quick question we have just had a couple of giant sunflowers grow in the garden and 1 of them has just died is it ok to put the head of the sunflower in for the birds theres no petals on it just the seeds and the head and we also give our kikes broccoli they go mad 4 the stuff THANKYOU
Dried Fruit Mix that you soak in water to soften
Chopped celery stalks
Apples (without the seeds)
Chilli peppers (the male loves these, just eats the seeds and leaves the flesh!)
Normal parrot mix seed (sunflower, etc)
Fruit cocktail mix seed
Chopped cooked carrot, peas, sweetcorn
Very small pieces of cheese (the female eats this mostly)
Cooked minced beef (only about once a week)
Obviously we dont feed them this all the time every day, we alternate the servings but they always have the parrot mix seed.
Apple and Pear seeds contain very small traces of arsenic.
Some believe in enough quantity to cause harm in birds.
Personally I don't believe so...I have never heard of anyone loosing or having a sick bird because of the occasional seed.
I think if one was to feed a heap of them then maybe.
If I'm feeding many apples into a flight with 5 or 10 birds I will remove seeds.
My reasoning is that the dominate male could 'hog' ALL the seeds.
Latter is Just a personal theory. _________________ My Spelling is Not Incorrect...It's 'Creative'
Dried Fruit Mix that you soak in water to soften
Chopped celery stalks
Apples (without the seeds)
Chilli peppers (the male loves these, just eats the seeds and leaves the flesh!)
Normal parrot mix seed (sunflower, etc)
Fruit cocktail mix seed
Chopped cooked carrot, peas, sweetcorn
Very small pieces of cheese (the female eats this mostly)
Cooked minced beef (only about once a week)
Obviously we dont feed them this all the time every day, we alternate the servings but they always have the parrot mix seed.
Good we have diecussion on what to feed Kakatiki...
I started along those lines...but Im lazy, and bit of a scrooge.
That is why I decided to give our birds a huge variety, all the time, and unprocessed food is cheaper. I have noticed not to many parrots cooking a round a camp fire, they eat it straight. In the wild they have an aboundent variety all the time, so eat whatthey need at that time, and if its seasonal, evolution and the balance of nature provide, what is needed at the time.
Another consideration its that we cannot provide what they would have in the wild, or enough of it..An example, NZ manuka/kanuka shoots , flowers and seed. I am fortunate to have planted out our gardens about 14 yrs ago with many NZ Natuve trees and plants that native birds eat.
Hebes, manuka, karaka, puriiri, silver ferns, NZ spinage. These need triming so they get them in flower....But it not enough volume or variety.
So to fix variety, we grow Silver beet, Nastersians, puha, dandlion, apples, grapes, oranges, fejo, plums, Grape fruit, loquats, fushia berries, rose hips, olives. One may notice that these all fruit at different parts of the year, other grow almost all year round.
Still not enough variety, a stick of celery, couple small packets of different sprouts, a couple capsicum, bag of frozen beans, peas, sweetcorn in the shoping each week, then chop up 2 1/2 to 3 days worth along with with a big hand full of leaf material is growing wild in the garden at the time.
About 2 kg for about 35 to 30 Kakariki.
By watching what is left over AND what is not left over, one can then roughly adjust the mix balance and the amount fed. This changes as the seasons change. Fruit, what is in season off the trees, and trimings (and what is in the fruit bowl that is out of season) gets given to them. Nothing dryed preserved or stuff that is "value added" (usually all the godness processed out of it) put in a vaccuum packed , hermtically sealed with a quick seal, 10 colour printed plastic bag.....inside a pretty liittle box. "value added" yep. Oh if they make it for birds, and sell thru a pet outlet they can double the price.
Yep Im a scrooge and I have seen the change in the activity, personality and colours of our birds.
Im lazy, no soaking, straining, picking up leftovers, no bowls to wash...just the sealed bowl (the 3 days supply is kept in (fridge)) Carving knife and chopping board.
Im going to do what Kakariki does for calcium/minerals...the pidgen calcuim power. Got to get another 150kg seed next week and I have seen it on the self in big bags. _________________ My Spelling is Not Incorrect...It's 'Creative'
Unclechicken mentioned feeding cheese to his birds. I have always been under the impression that feeding cheese can be harmfull as birds can be lactose intollerant and will also struggle to digest cheese and this could cause an impacted crop.
We grow sunflowers each year (sometimes the plants reach 2 metres in height) for our birds. I pull the plant out roots and all and put the whole thing in the aviary with the flower (pull out just before the leaves start dying) and the birds love it.
My Cuckatoo ate heaps of it, enjoyed milk, tea coffee, the odd beer, even chocolate plus other no-no s, never was a problem. Teflon killed him.
I know of a couple very respected breeders who have used cheese for protien for yrs.
They feed cheese because they feel cooked meat, chicken bones are a bactrial health risk. I think they could be right if left overs are not cleaned up.
I have never had a problem with meat/bones, in saying that, our birds have grown up with them, been parent fed, so may very well devalope a natural resistance. _________________ My Spelling is Not Incorrect...It's 'Creative'
I have read that you should give parrots cheese....so i have tryed it and toby never touched it and ofcourse the tiel wouldnt so........I stopped trying.........I then heard that you shouldnt give them cheese or dairy for the reasons allen gave.............I also read the other day and I thought you guys might be interested ....that you shouldnt give parrots spinach as it has high levels of nitrate I think somthing like that..............Really with all the shoulds and shouldnts its just getting insane now............I think if it good for us then within reason its good for the bird..............but who knows after all everything I read tells me seed is like macdonalds for birds and they will die on a seed diet (who told the wild birds)
A while back I was wondering If our birds where getting an extra feed by someone in the household...didnt think much of it , because there didnt seem to be extra left overs in the flights.
Then found my 16 yr old son making sandwiches after school _________________ My Spelling is Not Incorrect...It's 'Creative'
When I said I give them cheese, I didnt mean lots and lots of cheese, when I am grating cheese for myself, i put about 10 grated pieces in for them.
They seem to like it too, especially the female kaki.
I try to make meal times for them more exciting too, I made a scratchbox from cardboard for when there flying out of the cage (about 50cm x 50cm) and put torn up paper towels, twigs, seed etc into it, they love scratching about in there looking for food.
Posted: Sat Apr 22, 2006 9:41 am Post subject: IS THERE ANYTHING THAT YOU SHOULDN'T FEED A KAKARIKI?
Hello. I am new to all this but i have learned alot all ready from reading all your discutions. I have obtained two kakarikis from a pet shop yesturday (a very long story) and i am a little stuck, as the girl didnt give me much info on them. My main worry at the moment is diet. Is there anything that they shouldn't eat at all that would harm them! Upto now they seem really happy and content. The cage i bought was the biggest in the shop (meant for a parrot i think) but i do intend to allow them to fly about when i think the time is right. I think that one is male and one is female but i have no names yet.. Any ideas?
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