What is the lowdown on Millet?

[Deleted]

There are so many conflicting opinions on feeding millet that I thought I would ask, is it OK to feed as much as they like or restrict it? just when I thought I had it sussed, someone says their avian vet said it causes fatty liver disease. So what is the general consensus?

[haddoway]

Hi It was my vet who said that. My budgie did develop liver problems and I had to soak his seed daily and administer antibiotics regularly. He did live to almost 8 years old, and i think if I had ignored the vet and not soaked his seed and fed him millet he would have died sooner. That said it is probably down to each budgies "make up" Just as one person can smoke 40 fags a day for 60 years and live to 80, another gets ill after ingesting second hand smoke. personally I would exercise caution but I am sure there are many budgies who eat millet regularly with no adverse affects.

[Deleted]

May 13, 2013 11:38:11 GMT haddoway said:

Hi It was my vet who said that. My budgie did develop liver problems and I had to soak his seed daily and administer antibiotics regularly. He did live to almost 8 years old, and i think if I had ignored the vet and not soaked his seed and fed him millet he would have died sooner. That said it is probably down to each budgies "make up" Just as one person can smoke 40 fags a day for 60 years and live to 80, another gets ill after ingesting second hand smoke. personally I would exercise caution but I am sure there are many budgies who eat millet regularly with no adverse affects.

Yeah, it was your post that made me question it. I have read that it's fine to feed as much as you like and the opposite. So now I don't know what to think.

[stace]

It's my understanding that millet is fine to feed on a regular basis, as long as it's part of a wider diet. It's not that millet is fattening or bad, it's that some birds will eat it to the exclusion other elements of their diet, hence the advice not to feed at will. Most seed mixes are made up from a range of millets, just not in spray form.

It's probably a good idea to get a range of spray millets varieties and rotate them if you can, like a mix of red, white and French.

[Deleted]

So, would it be OK to feed 5 buds 2 large sprays a week, one red and one white or would 3 be better? I give my cage bird one every couple of weeks as they are large and he does tend to eat that above everything else.

[nat]

I don't use it at all for my aviary birds for the reasons that Stace mentions. Also its hard to find a decent quality millet spray and the hastle of disenfecting it puts me off a bit as I see no nutritional benefit at the end for them as their seed and veg diet provides everything that millet spray can. I do however use it alot for sick and convalescing birds and breeding pairs with growing chicks. For birds struggling to maintain weight and which need an easy to dehusk snack throughout the day millet spray is brilliant.

[stace]

I cut the large sprays into smaller portions for my cage bird so he doesn't pig out but still gets to enjoy the fun of eating off the spray. He still needs to eat other things or he'd go hungry. He gets two or three different spray varieties, maybe three times a week.

But like I said, I don't feed him giant sprays. I'm cruel like that.

[Hezz]

I never, ever give my three one whole spray. That to me is way over the top. They at best get about an inch each occasionally - maybe once a fortnight. Millet is very easy for them to husk, so it is a good food-source for sick birds - less effort required, but anyone whose birds like millet can testify to the speed they can go through a spray ........ to the exclusion of all else.

PS Sorry, Nat. I just realise I have repeated some of what you have already said. (Must be right then )

[Deleted]

Awww, and it's my main artillery for making friends through the day .

[Deleted]

Okay, so less is more. Or should I say, less more often.

[Deleted]

I tend to forget about millet for weeks on end with Munchy. I usually pull a bud of a spray to give as a treat or a reward, and once there aren't many buds left on the spray I might clip it in the cage. Sometimes I'll put a larger piece in for a few hours and then remove it. Munchy will usually eat it instead of his Trill, so I try to avoid leaving it in too long. He's normally out and about when I put it in, and normally he'll only go to eat it when he's hungry. I think it's really a matter of getting a balance with other foods, with millet being required less as it's in the diet anyway. I think it's just nice for them to get a natural feel from foraging once in a while.

Speaking of mixed diets. I think I need to try to get more vegetables for Munchy to try, and also get more of the ones he likes. We don't really get much fresh veg in my house, it's all frozen or might be finely chopped carrot in the homemade bolognese sauce that gets made in bulk and frozen, or bought in a packet of roasting vegetables which don't have anything he likes.