Large Bird
Diet and Nutrition
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Larger caged birds (conures, parrots, cockatoos, macaws) should be fed as follows:
- Seeds and seed mixes should not constitute more than 20% of
what your bird consumes daily.
- 80-100% of the daily diet should be comprised of table food
items:
Animal Protein Sources: Cooked lean meat (red meat, pork, poultry, fish, etc.) dog/cat kibble, cooked eggs (yolk and white), cheese, cultured milk products (cottage cheese, yogurt, etc). Raw and even pasteurized milk should not be offered because they contain coliform bacteria. Furthermore, many caged birds are sensitive to milk sugar, which is present in milk but not in cultured milk products.
Whole Grain Products: Dry cereals, cooked cereals, rice,
uncooked oatmeal, granola, breads (whole wheat in particular),
muffins, pasta (cooked or uncooked), crackers.
Nuts, Trail Mix: In moderation (nuts are rich in oils and fats.
Fruits and Vegetables: Fresh, frozen-thawed or canned are all acceptable. Fresh fruits and vegetables are the most nutritious.
Remember: When birds eat a lot of fleshly fruits and vegetables, they excrete excessive fluids in the form of urine, which is normal and to be expected. This increased urine in the droppings is polyuria, not diarrhea!
-"Junk Food" Items: In moderation.
Remember: Salty foods are acceptable for pet birds as long as
they are given in moderations and as long as fresh water or fruit
juice is always available.
The following foods can be prepared and offered to large
psittacines (conure, parrot, cockatoo, macaw) on a daily basis. This list has been compiled with consideration to ease of preparation, economy of time, and maximum nutritional value. You should offer at least one item from each of the following food groups daily.
WHOLE-GRAIN FOOD
(Replaces seed mixes and nuts)
Make up a mixture of any combination of the following ingredients (equal volumes of each) and store it in an air-tight container:
- Chex (TM) cereals (rice, corn, wheat, bran, graham)
- Shredded Wheat (TM)
- Cheerios (TM)
- Puffed cereals (wheat, rice, millet)
- Kashi (TM) Cereal
- Granola
- Uncooked (dry) pasta (mix different shapes and colors for
variety)
Your bird's individual preference for the various cereals may
vary somewhat and depend on its body size.
ANIMAL PROTEIN
- Cheese (grated or chunks; refrigerated in sealed container or
plastic bag)
- Cooked lean meat
- Canned lean meat (chicken, turkey, water-packed tuna)
- Hard-boiled egg (chopped or quartered and refrigerated in
sealed container or plastic bag)
- Milk bones
- Bird pellets(add several handfuls to the cereal mix
mentioned above)
VEGETABLES
- Fresh vegetables are most nutritious. Cut up ahead of time and refrigerate in sealed plastic bags or airtight containers.
Legumes (peas, beans, etc) and other dark green and orange
vegetables are preferred.
- Thawed, frozen mixed vegetables (takes minutes to thaw when added to warm water). Cooking the vegetables, although
reducing their food value, may be advisable to reduce numbers of potentiallly harmful bacteria.
- Canned vegetables are least nutritious of all choices.
FRUIT
- Fresh fruit is most nutritious. Cut up ahead of time and
refrigerate in sealed plastic bags or airtight containers.
- Dried fruit.
- Canned fruit is least nutritious of all choices.
These suggestions are made to accomodate bird owners who are
bewildered by the apparent complexities of offering a balanced" diet and who have very little time each day to prepare and offer the "right" foods. Bird owners who do not cook or eat at home will find these suggestions helpful because they can prepare all of these items with only moderate initial preparation and offer them daily with little effort.
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