Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!att!cbnewsj!duane
From: duane@cbnewsj.ATT.COM (duane.galensky)
Newsgroups: rec.birds
Subject: Re: INDOOR: Cockatoo Diet
Keywords: Cockatoo
Message-ID: <4568@cbnewsj.ATT.COM>
Date: 10 Apr 90 13:31:34 GMT
References: <35800@cci632.UUCP>
Reply-To: duane@cbnewsj.ATT.COM (duane.galensky,mt,)
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories
Lines: 44

In article <35800@cci632.UUCP> rka@ccird7.UUCP (Robert Anton) writes:
>After 2 years of strictly eating sunflower seeds and corn kernels, our
>cockatoo (Opus) has discovered cheese (he prefers cheddar cheese).  We have
>tried to feed him vegetables, fruits, parrot treats, ... to no avail.  
>My question is whether this is healthy or not.  Should he have his cholesterol
>checked :^) ? 

Sammy (a white cockatoo) loves cheese also.  Cheese is a good source of
protein and much-needed calcium...BUT: the casein in cheese can lead 
to digestive problems, particularly crop disorders which you would 
definitely want to avoid.  Cheese should therefore be offered sparingly.
Other good protein sources are scrambled eggs (cooked well, with *very*
well cooked eggshell crushed in for calcium...beware that eggs carry fowl 
typhus which can be fatal!), chicken (Sammy looves to gnaw on chicken
bones, but be careful to supervise the bird at all times), or any other
stuff that *you* eat (it's often said that the healthiest birds are the
ones that share the dinner table, both for food variety and the psychological
benefits of eating with others present).  Make sure the cage (or whatever)
is equipped with a mineral block that the bird can use...this is often
overlooked and critically important, from what I've read.

A diet of strictly seeds is not good.  Of course the bird loves 'em,
but seeds are too high in fat to be a sole source of nutrition.  Most
experts advise that the diet should be only about half seeds!

You might try this in order to urge the bird to take fruits and veggies: 
place a tray of washed fruits and veggies in the cage and remove the seeds 
(don't worry, the bird won't starve!).  If you leave the seeds there, 
the bird will never eat the good stuff!  In the early evening, monitor 
how much was eaten, and supplement with seeds as necessary.  Keep in 
mind that fruits and veggies are a vital part of a wild bird's diet, 
and not insisting that the bird eat them is sure to be very detrimental 
(as a defense mechanism, birds won't show health problems until they become 
extremely serious, so don't judge by Opus' outward signs).  DO NOT
offer seeds of fruits such as apples and pears: these are toxic to the
bird's sensitive metabolism.

After a few days, I'll bet Opus loves the stuff!  Sammy goes bananas
over bananas, apples, pears, etc., and actually prefers them to seed.
As long as I keep supplying the stuff, the seeds go untouched.  Do
Opus a favor, and you'll be rewarded with a longer, more valuable
relationship.

duane