I went to the vet and found out Grey has a lipomas probably because of his seed diet. The vet suggested that I give him pellets. (I’ve been giving him budgie seed mix by Trill up until now). Does anyone know good brands of pellets and how to correctly substitute them into his normal food?
There are so many it's hard to say which one, if any, your bird will accept. The conversion process can be a very long one and not always successful because a bird raised on seed does not recognize pellets as food. Many people have success with Zupreem fruity pellets, the smallest size which is the canary size. Never remove the seed mix that the bird is used to eating as most birds will not take to pellets right away and you can starve your bird by removing the usual food source. If you want to go organic Harrison's is a popular choice, in this link you can read their info about conversion, if you cannot get the pellets I have mentioned where you live please consult your vet for a suggestion. https://www.harrisonsbirdfoods.com/using-our-foods/small-bird-conversion/
How much seed is your bird currently eating in a 24 hour period?
Please take the time to read the Budgie Articles and the Stickies posted at the top of each section of the forum.
Most basic questions have been answered there.
You will find many different tips with regard to presenting vegetables and encouraging your budgies to try new foods in the Diet and Nutrition section of the forum.
The first vegetable which my budgies that had not been weaned to vegetables tried (and loved) was sweet corn kernels sprinkled with a teeny bit of garlic powder (NOT salt).
Budgies seem to love "spicy" tastes.
They also adored fresh basil, cilantro, dill, chickweed, zucchini and red pepper.
I use Volkman Avian Science Super Seed Mix for my birds. :thumbup:
When I introduced pellets to my budgie, my Avian Vet recommended using Harrison's High Potency Mash and sprinkling it on the budgie's seed mix every day.
This way, when the budgie hulls the seed it tastes the pellet mash and ingests bits of it as well.
This helps the budgie identify the taste as a food source.
It worked for my all of budgies and lovebirds!
Many members seem to find the easiest pellets to use for introducing pellets to their budgies to be the CANARY sized (XS) Zupreem fruity pellets.
Most budgies like the taste and the "Canary" sized pellets are tiny enough for them to easily eat them.
Once they've become accustomed to the Fruity Pellets, introducing the smallest "natural" pellets is then an easy step.
Other than when I was using the Harrison's mash, I've never mixed my birds' pellets and seed together.
My birds have Zupreem Fruity Pellets, RoudyBush Mini Natural Pellets, Dried Herb Salad and Miracle Meal available at all times.
(Yep - I have a lot of food dishes
Thanks for the info! I’ll get some pellets ASAP and start the conversion process. The food container I have for my bird is about 50g and I fill it with the seed mix every morning. They eat like half of it a day.
You need to cut back on the amount of seed you are giving them.
Each budgie should receive only 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons of seed per day.
That would be a maximum of 3 teaspoons for the two budgies which would equal ~ 15 grams.
I've kept Steve on mostly Roudybush Maintenance (nibbles size) and it looks just like millet which made it easier to convert early on. Buy 22 oz. packages from Morning Bird Company. Steve's going on 5 and has never been sick.
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