Apr 23, 2024 14:22:13 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Nov 2, 2019 11:44:47 GMT
Hello, dear budgies owners. Those ones, who have an experience with long living budgies, please... are you feeding your budgies with some special supplements or pellets? On avianavenue I was told something like the pellets are necessary, maybe mainly in the winter when greens are not much available. And probably sprouted seeds can not replace the greens. Regardless that, do you agree with pellets guarantee that budgie will not have vitamines deficiency? As I said, my beloved budgie Bilko died on 25. 10. 2019 and maybe some people think on that forum that it could potentially be connected with lack of vitamines D or some other vitamines and it can develope many problems at budgies. Lack of vitamines is hard to diagnose at budgies. What is your opinions on that? Is it real, or is it a good business for pellets producers?
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Post by tweetiepiesmom on Nov 2, 2019 15:51:55 GMT
I'll give you my 2 cents worth. It seems bird experts in USA favor pellets (not sure why) and bird experts in UK favor seeds but both say neither seeds or pellets should be the birds' main food source - they should get plenty of fresh vegetables and some fresh fruits. I myself eat mostly organic fresh whole foods and avoid processed foods so why wouldn't I give that to my Sweetie Pie also? The food mix I have for him is made up of several seed mixes and dehydrated vegetables and fruits. I've had him for about 5 weeks now and am struggling to get him to eat anything other than his seed mixture. I remove his feed cup and replace it with a cup containing chopped up vegetables. Sometimes he goes over and gives it a lick but hasn't bitten anything. After about 3 hours I give him back his seed cup - sigh, I don't want to starve the little guy. I've tried clipping fresh strawberry and carrot to his cage beside his favorite perch, all to no avail. I'll keep trying. Here's an article that I found that sums it up. www.thesprucepets.com/feeding-your-bird-seeds-or-pellets-390608
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Apr 23, 2024 14:22:13 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Nov 2, 2019 16:08:29 GMT
Of course, also dandelions or chickweed into the diet, but prefering herbs to vegetables.
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Oct 6, 2011 7:41:27 GMT
Marianne Marlow
Administrator
George, Daisy, Iris, Billy, Peter, Chipper, Dinku, Barney, Ayla and Rocky
Posts: 28,749
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Post by Marianne Marlow on Nov 2, 2019 16:09:31 GMT
My longest living budgie was Sky. I rehomed him when he was 4 years old, he had never flown. He lived 8 more years until age 12.
He had a seed diet, supplemented with cuttlebone, iodine block vegetables (basil, dill, carrot, sweetcorn and occasional others) and egg.
Exercise is very important I would say, so they need a few hours a day of flying time.
Also mental stimulation - toys to destroy or play with, and company, either a human or other budgies.
In my humble opinion I don't think pellets are better.
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Oct 6, 2011 7:41:27 GMT
Marianne Marlow
Administrator
George, Daisy, Iris, Billy, Peter, Chipper, Dinku, Barney, Ayla and Rocky
Posts: 28,749
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Post by Marianne Marlow on Nov 2, 2019 16:10:53 GMT
Pellets are not natural to budgies either, they eat seeding grasses in the wild.
They definitely sell seeds for budgies in America.
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Post by tweetiepiesmom on Nov 2, 2019 16:23:32 GMT
I keep trying to get my little bird to eat something other than his seed mixture. I haven't tried sprouted seeds yet so I'll give that a try. He is still very skittish especially with my hand in the cage. He startles easily to new noises. Yesterday I was across the room from him and sneezed loudly - he went flying! I am home most of the time so I spend time frequently throughout day talking to him and resting my hand in his cage. It is his diet that worries me mostly. He hasn't nipped at his cuttlebone so I gave him a cup of ground oyster shells (made for small birds). I haven't seen him go for it. I'm trying everything from the suggestions I get to see what he'll go for.
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Post by Shirls on Nov 2, 2019 16:28:26 GMT
Unless your budgie is really brave tweetiepiesmom you may well need to put various veggies in the cage on different occasions until one day he will try one and find he likes, or dislikes it. It takes time, the first time I put some greens in the cage they were terrified of it, they thought it was going to kill them of course!! Just like adding a new toy.
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Post by tweetiepiesmom on Nov 2, 2019 17:17:07 GMT
I have read that liver problems are common among budgies. Luckily, I have found a small pet store not too far away. They have birds and a few reptiles and fish as well as a good supply of bird items. The owner breeds budgies (parakeets are what they are called here unless they are the English budgie). The owner told me to keep trying various fresh foods but to feed him what he'll eat, seeds or pellets. She gave me two different bags of seed mixes to try which she feeds to her birds. I put each one in a different cup side by side in his cage. He put his nose in one to check it out and then checked out the other cup which he ate. The next day I switched the seeds in each cup and switched where I put them. He ignored the one he didn't eat from the previous day and went right to the seed mix he'd eaten before. My guy seems to have definite food preferences! I have tried pellets with my guy but he won't eat them.
ivanvanca - I noticed I didn't answer your question. "to no avail" means I wasn't successful.
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Apr 23, 2024 14:22:13 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Nov 2, 2019 18:18:44 GMT
Sorry, what does this mean? : "She gave me two different bags of seed mixes to try which she feeds to her birds." Sorry, which HER birds? I do not understand now. ... "and switched where I put them...." also here I am confused He ignored the one... it means that he was still eating from the same cup, regardless what seeds it contained... Now I understand... So, He is still eating from the same cup, whether there are pellets or seeds.. That is strange.
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Post by tweetiepiesmom on Nov 2, 2019 19:44:50 GMT
Let me try to clarify what happened. The woman at the store gave me two bags each contained different seed mixtures. She feeds both of those seeds to the budgies that she raises. I have a green cup and a yellow cup to put the seeds in for my bird. I put one seed mix in the green cup and I put the other seed mix in the yellow cup. I put both cups side by side in the cage. He ate the seeds in the green cup but not the ones in the yellow cup. The next day I switched - I put the seeds that were in the green cup in the yellow cup and the seeds that were in the yellow cup in the green cup. He ate the seeds that were in the yellow cup (which were the seeds that the day before were in the green cup). He will eat what he likes but will not even try something he doesn't like or has never had before. Once I had some steamed carrots (at room temperature) that had no seasoning or salt on them. I chopped them up and put them in his cup and put the cup in the same spot that I put his seed cup. I saw him lick the carrots and then he ran over and drank some water. Guess he didn't like the carrots.
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Apr 23, 2024 14:22:13 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Nov 2, 2019 20:05:44 GMT
I understand fully now. Sorry, maybe I need a simple way of explaining, but also in my own language. I could understand it this way before, but there were some phrases that were mistaking me. I think you could try raw carrots, or the green parts of the carrots. Or chickweed maybe. What kind of seeds does your budgie prefer? What does it contain? Or what brand is that?
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Post by tweetiepiesmom on Nov 2, 2019 20:35:15 GMT
The brand he likes is Volkman parakeet seeds. I'm not sure if it's available outside of the USA.
Ingredients: White Proso Millet, Canary Grass Seed, Oat Groats, Red Proso Millet, Flax Seed, Rape Seed, (Canola), Small Cracked Corn, Nyger Seed, Sunflower Chips, Hemp Seed, Vitaminized Oat Groats, Fruit Mix (Coconut, Dates, Papaya, Pineapple, Apple), Carrot Granules, Oyster Shell, Spinach Flakes, Orange Oil (Vitamin C used as natural preservative
I am trying something new every day. Today he has sweet corn.
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Apr 23, 2024 14:22:13 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Nov 2, 2019 21:07:21 GMT
There are lot of seeds in there. I heard about that brand, but I use to order from Germany to Slovakia. They have many millets, grass seeds, etc. I heard that those prestige brands like versele laga contain addided oils or sugars.... Does your budgie really eat the corn? fresh, or boiled?
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Post by tweetiepiesmom on Nov 2, 2019 21:38:14 GMT
He hasn't eaten it yet. It is steamed and I cut it off the cob. I've seen pictures of budgies eating the corn on the cob and someone on this forum said it was ok to feed budgies corn.
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Post by jellybean on Nov 2, 2019 21:46:06 GMT
Feed it RAW though, don't cook it. I feed all my veggies raw.
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