What does your timneh eat?

[SDavid]

Hi everyone. My Timneh is about a year old now. I got her last year when she was about 3 months old. Me and my wife bought her un-weaned and we weaned her for about 2 months after we got her.

For anyone here who owns a Timneh, I'm curious as to what your bird eats. Mine prefers seeds, mainly sunflower, and pretty much ignores the pellets and fruits/veg. in her cage. I know that this is not good because seeds contain alot of fat (especially sunflower) and I'm trying to get her to eat pellets and other foods.

I'm wondering whether or not African greys are prone to obesity or fatty tumors. I'm kind of worried about her eating only seeds because I don't want her health to suffer in the long run.

[Tobysmom]

i really cant tell u much im getting my timneh in 1 week but im keeping him on what the breeder has him on which is roudybush small and goldenfeast asian melody...plus the fruits and vegs

[Pepper's Pa]

I don’t have a TAG, but have a Senegal Parrot, another African parrot. I agree with your concern and desire to help her develop a broader diet with more variety. I would leave a bowl of pellets (Roudybush or Harrison’s) in her cage at all times. Since birds tend to be most hungry in the morning, that’s when you provide the new foods. I’d suggest a cooked product, such as produced by Beak Appetit or Crazy Corn. This should be served in the same bowl and location that she normally finds her seed. After an hour, remove this food bowl and replace it with her seed for about thirty minute, then remove the see bowl and replace it with a bowl of fresh vegetables and fruits. Sometime in the early afternoon, replace the vegetable and fruit bowl with her seed bowl for thirty minutes. Then remove the seed bowl, leaving only the pellets in the cage. At dinner, provide her another cooked meal, including any healthy foods you are having for dinner. If you need some ideas for feeding and recipes for birds, here’s a great book: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/079...lance&n=283155
Many birds will become interested in new foods if they are required to forage to find them. Do you use one of the stainless steel bird food kabobs? There are also a number of toys that provide good foraging opportunities. You may find some feeding and foraging ideas on the food and feeding page of Pepper’s Web Site. Here’s a link to the page: http://home.earthlink.net/~senegalpa...irds/Food.html
Since your TAG has been on her current diet for nearly seven months, it will take some time for her to change. Don't get frustrated and don't give up if she finds it difficult to change her diet. You can succeed and it will provide her a healthier life when you do.
I wish you luck in helping your TAG improve her diet.

[Sashagirl]

My TAG's are currently on Zupreme fruit blend pellet.And I also give them fruits and vegetables.The seeds I give them once in a while.I also have a CAG and he also eats Zupreme he is very funny about what he eats he doesn't like certain foods but I do try introducing him different selections which he throws on the floor.I also have other birds my Eclectus's are on Harrison's course pellets and they love it.I intend to eventually switch all my birds to Harrison if they will except it.Good luck on converting your TAG to different foods,

[Tullysmom]

Yeah, you have to stop with the sunflower seed. REALLY BAD. I know they love them, but... Tully was on nothing but sunflower seeds when we got him, it is just so bad for them, I have no idea why they sell seed mix with those thing in there. I do use them for like a super duper treat every now and again. It's kind of like cheesecake. Tastes REALLY good but you shouldn't have it everyday.

I do give Tully a high quality seed mix, w/o black sunnies, and his breeder had him on Roudybush pellets, but his former owner switched him to Zupreme fruit. I'm trying to get him back to Roudybush, but it's a struggle. So he has that plus fresh fruits and veggies and pasta. He LOVES pasta. It was really hard to get him to take the fresh stuff. The ONLY thing that got him eating it was seeing us eat it. It's kind of a 'monkey see monkey do' type thing. Anyway, THEN he tried it and usually loved it. So try to offer your girl anything healthy that you're eating. See if she likes it. If she won't eat it in her cage, take her out and let her eat with you. They love to eat with their flock!

You can also try warm oatmeal with bananas in it. Tully likes that a lot. I also give him organic baby food just a little warm. For a treat once a week I make him a peanut butter sandwich (organic peanut butter on wheat bread). Tiny one of course. He loves that. Also get "The Healthy Bird Cookbook" by Robin Deutsch. It's WONDERFUL!! I love that book! It has tons of recipes and it's basically a nutritional guide. It's a great book. I think all breeder should give a copy of this book to new owners.

Anyway, keep pushing the fresh stuff. Don't get discouraged. And Please, go get that book! They have it on Amazon.com I know. Really, you won't be disappointed, it's a fantastic book. Good luck converting your little girl!!

[jmphysics101]

Ours eats EVERYTHING!! She LOVES food. We feed harrisons, and we have to stop ourselves from constantly filling her dish. We give fresh food as well, and her bowl is constantly empty. I believe they are prone to obesity, but I wouldn't have believed it until now.

[SDavid]

Thanx to all of you who responded. I got out of work early today so I took her to a bird store called "For Birds Only" in my area just to have an "experienced eye" look at her. She's not overweight and seems healthy and happy.

I bought a seed mix that does not contain sunflower seeds and a different type of pellets. The woman at the store was feeding these pellets to her birds so I figured I'd give them a try.

I do bring her over to the dinner table when me and my wife are eating and she will nibble on some corn or carrot but never enough to make a meal out of. It's as if she's more interested in what's going on rather than the actual food on the table. She likes a food called Nutri-berries which I put in her foraging toy but I'm not sure if this food is much better than seeds. I do have a kebob on which I put various fruits and vegetables but those usually end up on the cage floor or in her water bowl- never eaten.

I know it'll take time to get her to eat other foods but I don't plan on giving up. As she was being weaned off of formula we were advised to keep pellets, seeds, water, and fruits/veg. in her cage at all times-which we did. Unfortunataly she took to the seeds only and seems to consider nothing else as food.

I'll probably go out and look for "The Healthy Bird Cookbook" this weekend. I'm pretty sure I've seen it at the local Petco's. I've also seen the various pre-cooked meals that are on the market. I may try those as well but my main goal for the time being is to try to get her to eat at least one new type of food.

[Wiggi]

Don´t forget that African parrots need more calcium than other species. Good sources for calcium is for example figs, broccoli, sesame and pumpkin seeds and almonds.
They also need more protein than other species, they are recommended to eat Harrison´s high potency formula pellets (if you serve Harrison´s). If your parrot flyes a lot he needs extra fat too, so perhaps you could use the sunflower seeds as treats.

[Tullysmom]

Originally Posted by SDavid

my main goal for the time being is to try to get her to eat at least one new type of food.

That's the hard part I know! It may sound crazy, but when you eat something in front of her say, "Mmmmm!! This is so good!! Yummy yummy!!" I know you'll look like a nut but I swear it works! You just have to treat them like you would a little kid sometimes. They can be so stubborn just like a three year old! She'll eventually get it though.

[bekfreak]

Originally Posted by SDavid

Hi everyone. My Timneh is about a year old now. I got her last year when she was about 3 months old. Me and my wife bought her un-weaned and we weaned her for about 2 months after we got her.

For anyone here who owns a Timneh, I'm curious as to what your bird eats. Mine prefers seeds, mainly sunflower, and pretty much ignores the pellets and fruits/veg. in her cage. I know that this is not good because seeds contain alot of fat (especially sunflower) and I'm trying to get her to eat pellets and other foods.

I'm wondering whether or not African greys are prone to obesity or fatty tumors. I'm kind of worried about her eating only seeds because I don't want her health to suffer in the long run.

Please, please, please try to get your Timneh away from the sunflower seeds. Yes. It can cause fatty liver in the long term. If you want try to order something called Ultimate Blend Bird Paradise Shopping Cart this is my TAG's main diet outside of veggies and some fruit/nuts.