Path: utzoo!censor!geac!torsqnt!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sdd.hp.com!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!unix.cis.pitt.edu!dsinc!ub!uhura.cc.rochester.edu!rochester!kodak!uupsi!intercon!ooblick From: ooblick@intercon.com (Mikki Barry) Newsgroups: rec.birds Subject: Re: Re: INDOOR - Novice questions about pet birds Message-ID: <276CE3AE.3CB6@intercon.com> Date: 17 Dec 90 15:26:37 GMT References: <2730005@hpdmd48.boi.hp.com> <2707@oucsace.cs.OHIOU.EDU> Organization: InterCon Systems Corporation, Sterling, VA Lines: 34 In article <2707@oucsace.cs.OHIOU.EDU> bchurch@oucsace.cs.OHIOU.EDU (Bob Church) writes: >Well, you came pretty close to the death alternative. You should *never* deny >food to a bird. Their digestive systems cannot take fasting. Very true! I don't know how many stories I've heard of people inadvertently starving their birds to death trying to get them to switch their food. I'm really glad that this didn't happen here because the owner was smart enough to see that it wasn't doing the bird any good to try to force it. However, I have a few suggestions. First, if you are converting a bird from seed to pellets, do it gradually, over a 4 week period or more. Start either with offering pellets only during the morning, then after an hour or two, remove the pellets and offer a 50/50 mix of seed to pellets. Gradually cut down on the amount of seed and increase the amount of pellets. But be sure to do this over a long period of time, and watch the bird's droppings. If the droppings are predominantly green, the bird is NOT eating the pellets and you should make sure that there are enough seeds to sustain him. Birds can be really finicky. If you are happy with feeding seeds, there are a few ways to add more nutrition to the diet. One is by feeding nekton-s in the water (or on the food) and adding vionate minerals. Another way is to give peanut butter sandwiches (cut really small for cockatiels), corn bread with nekton and vionate baked in, pasta (many birds are just wild over pasta), kale (I've never seen a cockatiel refuse kale...I'm sure there's one somewhere in the world :-)), spinach, or offer the bird a bite of an apple or banana that YOU are eating. If the bird sees you eating it, he knows that it's food. Oftentimes, birds won't eat pellets or new foods because they don't identify it as food. If YOU eat it, then a tame bird will get the idea. Especially if you often give treats from your plate. Mikki Barry mommy to 35 cockatiels (and counting)