Carrot tops for Budgies

[homebird]

I'm sure it was Cindy, or maybe Tielfan (or both!), who told me about feeding Carrot tops to my Budgie. So today i ate the carrot while he enjoyed the stalk. I left him some carrot but he still ignores that part.
This is an Organic Carrot, wrapped on his perch.

[svolk]

That's great that he'll eat carrot tops! I've tried them with Jerry but no luck. And he's never touched a carrot. I think I've read somewhere that they don't eat any orange or red colored foods in their natural habitat..

[catschair]

Great pictures! Will have to try them on my fids (mine actually like red and orange pellets).

[homebird]

That might be the reason he ignored the orange part - but i think over all it's because he's getting used to them.. I started last week when I found them at the grocer. I felt a little mean when i first presented them - he scurried away so fast he fell over the top of his cage & barely managed to catch himself. I was just trying to show him the nice leaf - it was only one frond, not the whole top! The next few times were just as bad - luckily he wasn't too upset with me - just stayed away from the stalk. Finally i started hanging more pieces - really wet - from the top of his cage. When i took him into the living room he had to sit beside them & gradually he started to nibble. So over 5 days I'd say, before he was comfy & even today he was prety upset when I arrived with the stalk. I really think tapping it & the perch is a key thing to do to gain their trust.
Here's another photo - I'm terrible I know!

[Cindy215]

Well he looks like he ended up liking them anyway! I think the wet part was a good idea they seem to like rolling in wet greens. I just figured out Toby my male Parrotlet loves that and now takes all his baths on wet kale lol. My Budgies use a bowl. My P'let hen just avoids them altogether and only wants to roll on the wet cage top lol.

Piper used to eat hardly any of a raw carrot and just used it for a chewing toy which was fine with me. But I wanted to add carrot to her meals three times a week. Anything usually with orange/red is high beta carotine a Vitamin A precursor.

Then I remembered that breaking down the celulose by steaming makes the vitamins more accessable, so NOW I chop in the food processor, then steam in the microwave for a half minute with a little water added, cool and add to their grains. They also will eat it now steamed in whole form. I stick it on the top of the cage in a millet holder and they munch it now. I think it's sweeter. I only give it when I dont give other sweet things because of the sugar. I looked up the difference between raw and steamed on the Nutrition Data site (I think) and there's more Vitamin A steamed.

[homebird]

I'll try the steamed veggies next & see if he'll go for it - thanks