She graduated from the University of Glasgow in with a degree in veterinary medicine and surgery. She has worked at the same animal clinic in her hometown for over 20 years. There are 7 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page.
This article has been viewed 30, times. Feeding your African Grey Parrot a balanced diet can help keep your pet healthy for decades. Store-bought parrot pellets should account for most of the food it eats. Along with pellets, provide a small serving of fresh fruits or veggies in the mornings and evenings to prevent calcium and vitamin A deficiencies. If you need to switch your parrot to a healthier diet, make changes gradually to avoid stressing your bird.
African Grey Parrots need a balanced diet that consists of pellets, fruits, and vegetables. Feed your African Grey Parrot a couple of teaspoons of fresh food once in the morning and once in the evening, like kale, carrots, broccoli, oranges, and apples.
To learn how to transition your parrot to a new diet, read more from our Veterinary co-author! Did this summary help you? Yes No. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. By using our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Cookie Settings. Explore this Article parts. Related Articles. Article Summary. Part 1.
Feed your parrot store-bought bird pellets. Feed good quality organic parrot pellets that are free from artificial coloring, flavorings, and preservatives.
Supplement pellets with fresh fruits and vegetables. Good options include kale, carrots, mustard greens, cabbage, broccoli, oranges, apples, and seedless grapes. Avoid only feeding your parrot seeds. Stay away from harmful foods. Steer clear of avocados, milk, chocolate, raw meat, and uncooked eggs.
Chocolate contains both theobromine and caffeine which can cause vomiting and diarrhea, increase heart rate, result in hyperactivity, induce tremors and seizures, and even cause death in birds.
A dash here and a dash there. Many of us casually add this loved condiment to all sorts of foods without thinking. We also love salty chips, popcorn, pretzels, and crackers. So, the next time you want to offer your bird a salty treat, choose a bite or two of unsalted popcorn or pretzels or a low-salt cracker, instead.
We all know that consumption of high-fat foods, such as butter, oil, fatty meats, and nuts can result in build-up of cholesterol deposits in the walls of our arteries known as atherosclerosis , predisposing to heart disease and stroke. Excessive ingestion of these foods also can lead to obesity and all the health problems that accompany this condition. The same processes occur in birds, and certain bird species, such as Amazon and Quaker parrots, are prone to developing high cholesterol and triglyceride levels and subsequent coronary artery disease.
Therefore, just as we should limit consumption of high-fat foods, so should birds. Birds can have an occasional bite of lean, cooked meat, but they should not be offered heaping quantities of these fat-filled items, especially if they are small relative to the portion size. Birds love nuts, but one unsalted almond or walnut every day is plenty for a medium-sized bird such as an African gray parrot.
Larger birds that eat more fat in the wild, such as macaws, may have a few nuts a day, while smaller ones, such as cockatiels and budgies, should be offered no more than a few slivers of almond or a piece of walnut every day. Encourage your bird to be a lean mean flying machine, and limit fatty snacks. While most fruit is safe and generally healthy for birds to consume in small amounts, certain fruits containing seeds such as apples and pears and pits such as cherries, apricots, peaches, nectarines, and plums , should not be offered to birds without removing the seeds and pits first, as these seeds and pits contain small amounts of a cardiac-toxic cyanide compound.
Without the seeds and pits, these fruits are completely safe for birds to consume. The seeds from other produce such as grapes, citrus fruits, squash, pumpkins, tomatoes, melons, mango, pomegranate, and berries, all are safe for bird consumption and can be fed without worry. Many people expect that onions and garlic, like other vegetables, are healthy for birds.
However, while these spicy veggies have heart benefits in people, whether fed raw or cooked, they are toxic to many animals, including birds, cats, and dogs.
Garlic contains allicin, another chemical that can cause anemia and weakness in birds. This common artificial sweetener, found in sugarless gum and many diet foods, causes hypoglycemia, liver damage, and possible death in dogs and other animals. Birds should not be offered chewing gum, as it can stick to their feathers and skin, and overweight birds should be fed low-fat fruits and vegetables, rather than diet products, to help them lose weight.
If your bird should ingest any of these potentially toxic items, remember to contact your veterinarian immediately to see if treatment is warranted. Bird Food. Products by brand. Browse All. Products by bird size. Ferret Daily Nutrition. Small Animals. Exotic Feline. Only purchase naturally dried fruits without any sulfur dioxide, as this preservative is known to increase hyperactivity, aggressiveness, feather shredding or picking due to allergies.
Sprouted seeds are healthier as the sprouting changes and enhances the nutritional quality and value of seeds and grains. Sprouted seeds are lower in fat, as the process of sprouting utilizes the fat in the seed to start the growing process - thus reducing the fat stored in the seeds.
Soaked and germinated "oil" seeds, like niger and rape seeds, are rich in protein and carbohydrates; while "starch" seeds, such as canary and millets, are rich in carbohydrates, but lower in protein.
It is an invaluable food at all times; however, it is especially important for breeding or molting birds. Medicinal Herbs many of which grow as "weeds" in our gardens Eating whole flaxseed rather than flaxseed oils because you get the whole package: the protein, fiber, minerals and phytochemicals along with the omega Flaxseeds are also the best source of the phytochemical lignan.
Lignan is documented to have anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-viral and anti-cancer properties. I sprinkle Flaxseed on my birds fresh food daily.
Sunflower Seed : African Greys may become obese, which is detrimental to their health. Sunflower seeds are very high in fat and it is recommended to keep the quantity of sunflower seed down to a minimum. Birds generally favor sun flower seed over other nutritious food, which can lead to malnutrition. Reducing or eliminating sunflower seed from your pet's diet is recommended. Summary: In the wild, African Greys eat fruits, leaves, insects, bark and flowers.
In captivity, they should eat a varied diet of fruits, vegetables supplemented with some seeds and nuts. Rice, cooked beans, corn, tortillas, pasta, potatoes, bread and cooked chicken are healthy foods for Greys. They also need extra calcium supplementation, so add bones, oyster shell, and cuttle bones to the diet. Now, the difficult task of getting him to eat his new diet.
It is not appropriate to starve birds into eating what you desire. Instead, you need to appeal to their playfullness and curiosity.
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