What Brand Of Food Does A Parrotlet Eat?
The breeder I got her from used Zupreem pellet and Sunseed fortified small hookbill seed.
If I purchase
ZuPreem Avian Entrees for Small Birds
ZuPreem AvianMaintenance Natural Diet for Cockatiels
Zupreem Avian Maintenance FruitBlend for Parakeets
& finally;
Encore Premium Cockatiel Food
Would this cover the area? I want to offer a varity and at the same type not drastically change her orginal diet.
Whether or not to feed pellets to parrotlets has become a hotly debated topic. There is increasing evidence, both anecdotal from a number of long-time respected breeders and now appearing in avian medical texts, that feeding pellets to small mutations is contributing to kidney disease. For that reason many breeders of color mutation parrotlets no longer feed pellets to mutations and indeed, no longer feed pellets to any of their parrotlets. There are a number of avian vets who now feel that small birds generally don’t do well on a pellet-based diet. (Yes, I am very aware that there are still many avian vets who DO push pellets.)
Many parrotlet owners now feed a widely varied diet of veggies, fruits, grains, greens and proteins and include a good quality seed mix in their parrotlets’ diets. Parrotlets have a high metabolism and generally don’t have the proclivity for fatty liver disease that is seen in some of the other species.
Regardless of what you ultimately decide to feed your parrotlet, you should continue to feed him or her what the breeder is now feeding until your parrotlet is well settled into your home and its new life. Only then should you make any big dietary changes (and they should be made slowly).
If you’d like to join a group of people devoted to parrotlets, please join us at the Yahoo Group, ParrotletsPlus, where we address proper nutrition, housing, training, medical care, disease issues, basic genetics and the love we share for these marvelous birds.
Colette
ParrotletsPlus
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ParrotletsPlus/