Tips on How to Offer New Foods to Seed Junkies
Cockatiels are flocking birds and they will eat when their human companions are eating.
They may fly to you and start nibbling on your lips trying to get at your
food. Eating or pretending that you are eating may help your cockatiel to accept a new food.
Allowing your bird to see you prepare food and put it in their dish may
also help. I mince Mama's vegetables and foods next to her cage, or I let
her walk around the table while preparing them. If I start eating a food,
she heads over to the dish to have a look. The more I say "Ummmm,
good" the more likely she is to try it. Make a big fuss over new foods and show
your bird how much you are enjoying them. Try offering new foods by hand or
serve them on a little plate next to your own.
Hand-feed
your cockatiel 1 or 2 pieces of cornflakes, cheerios or other dry cereal before starting the transition to pellets. The crunching sound will help
make pellets seem more familiar because pellets make the same crunching sound. Many
cold cereals contain zinc. Although birds do need a very small amount of zinc in
their diet, zinc is a toxic substance. Do not go overboard feeding your
bird cold cereals or purchase brands that do not contain zinc.
Cockatiels are very
intelligent. Before starting your bird on pellets, teach it a word
associated with eating. When Mama started eating pellets, I made a big
fuss praising her and repeating the words "Eat Something." Now when I give her a new food, I say "Eat
Something." She will go to her food dish and take a nibble.
She may not like the food, but she samples it.
Your bird may be more receptive to new, foods if they are offered outside of the
cage on a saucer or different food cup. Let your bird "Dine Out" for a change. Once your bird is
eating new foods, you can start placing them inside of the cage in food dish. Have a few extra food cups on hand
for fresh foods. I prefer using stoneware, china or porcelain dishes so I can
put them right inside of the dishwasher to kill bacteria.
Put a
vinyl or cloth placemat in an area where your bird likes to play. Sprinkle some
pellets or tiny pieces of vegetables on the placemat. Since cockatiels are
always foraging for food, your bird may start nibbling on the little pieces
while searching for other things to chew on. Vinyl and cloth placemats will keep
fresh veggies from becoming contaminated with any bacteria. Vinyl can be wiped
clean with a disinfecting wipe then rinsed. Cloth can be tossed in the washer
and drier. You can use white paper towels instead, but if your bird is a paper
chewer, it will be more interested in chewing on that instead of the new food
you are trying to introduce.
Another factor that
influences a bird's acceptance of a new food is the size of the pieces.
Everything that I serve Mama, with the exception of breads and baked
sweet potatoes must
be minced into very tiny pieces the size of a small seed. Try
different ways of cutting fresh vegetables into different sizes and shapes. If
your bird won't eat cockatiel pellets, try using the parakeet sized ones. The
formulation and proportions are identical. The only difference is the size. If
this doesn't work, try using Roudybush Crumbles. Some birds like the crumbles better.
To shred fresh vegetables and fruits into very soft tiny pieces, scrape them
with a sharp knife. This works well with birds that prefer softer, moist foods.
Also try cutting them this way.
First slice or use a potato peeler to
slice pieces into long, paper thin strips.
Next, hold the stack of slices together and cut lengthwise into sticks about the size of
a toothpick. Hold the stack of sticks together and cut a third time, across
the sticks to make super thin, tiny pieces for your bird. Carrots, broccoli, apples, pears, celery
green peppers and green beans work very well.
One method
of getting your bird to eat vegetables is to give your bird a choice of at least
3 or more different types, all mixed together or in separate sections on a small
plate. A colorful variety of food can perk up a bird's interest more than
a dish with just 1 color in it.
Birds like to forage for food. When I gave Mama and Cookie a combination
plate of at least 3 choices from the following: carrots, broccoli, green beans,
celery, green peppers, parsley, romaine lettuce, corn , peas and apples, they
both started eating all of the vegetables immediately. Broccoli, carrots,
green beans and green peppers are their favorites. Another method of introducing
fruits and vegetables suggests that you try only 1 new food at a time and don't
introduce another one until your bird is eating the first one. This method did
not work with Mama, even after a year.
When trying to get
your cockatiel to eat fruits and vegetables, hiding the new food under a layer
of seeds or pellets can help. By picking through the top layer, your bird may
get a taste of the new food and enjoy it. Discard and wash food dish after 1
hour to prevent spoilage. I put my bird's dishes right in the dishwasher to kill
all bacteria
Did you
ever notice how your bird always goes to your silk flowers or plants, trying to
chew on them? Try to fool your bird into chewing on something nutritious and
safe. To make greens more appealing, place a few leafs of kale or another dark leafy vegetable
inside of a small glass to look like a flowers in a vase. Let your bird play near it and watch
him start nibbling!
Pancakes made with
finely chopped fruit,vegetables, jarred baby food or crushed pellets is a nourishing source of foods
that your cockatiel may not want to eat otherwise.
French toast can be
made without the egg, by soaking the bread in baby food sweet potatoes, carrots,
bananas etc. and sprinkling a bit of sugar on top.
Some birds will eat thawed and warmed frozen mixed vegetable cubes. Warm the cubes in the microwave then
dice smaller. Check for hot spots then sprinkle a bit of millet seed on top.
If
your bird won't eat fresh fruits and vegetables, try steaming them and serving them warm.
Mama loves to be hand-fed baked sweet
potatoes or cooked carrots cut into 1/4 inch cubes.
Mashed sweet
potatoes are a great hiding place for finely minced chicken and other foods. Moisten the
potatoes with a bit of milk and roll into balls. Cockatiels
generally love the sweet taste. These can be made ahead and frozen.
Peel and
core an apple then bake in your microwave for 3-5 minutes. Cool and cut into
pieces so there are no hot spots. Hand-feed the cubes to your bird.
Baking bird breads with the addition of fruits, vegetables, nuts, cheese,
high protein baby cereal, jars of baby food fruit/vegetables, pellets
and very finely ground eggshell usually gets a cockatiel to eat new foods.
Try the recipe below and experiment with new foods.
Don't
give up on a food just because your cockatiel refuses to eat
it the first time. The more your bird sees the food
the more familiar
and appealing it will become.
Mama's Favorite Bird Bread
Mama's Bird Bread 1
Ingredients:
1 box Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix
3 tablespoons cornmeal
1 tablespoon peanut butter
1 small jar-baby food sweet potatoes
3 eggs
1/2 C apple or pineapple juice
2 eggshells, finely ground to a powder
OR scrape cuttlebone with a knife- about 1 teaspoon
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Directions:
Prepare muffin mix as directed on package. Add the 2 additional eggs (total of 3 eggs)and all of
the remaining ingredients. Mix well until peanut butter is dissolved. Pour into
a greased 8x8 inch square pan. Bake at 325 for 25-30 minutes. Cut into 1 inch
squares and wrap each row in plastic wrap. Put wrapped rows in large Ziploc bag
and freeze. Break a piece off a row and defrost
as needed.
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Revised Recipe--1 packages Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix, 1/2 cup
cornmeal, 1 large jar baby food sweet potatoes, 1/2 cup grated carrots, 1/2 cup
cockatiel/budgie pellets, 1 and 1/2 tablespoons peanut butter, 1 and 1/2
teaspoon baking powder, 3 eggs, 1/2 unsweetened apple or pineapple juice. Bake
400 F, about 35 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
Tip from Arlene: Divide the batter into 4 portions. Add a different
fruit or veggie to each portion. Spread as 4 rows in baking pan. Your will have
4 different flavors of bird bread. Tip from Lari: substitute milk with
apple or pineapple juice.
--1 Package1 large jar baby food sweet potatoes, 1-1/2tablespoons
peanut butter, 1/2 to 1 teaspoon baking powder. Bake 325 degrees F, 35 minutes.
Tip from Arlene: Divide the batter into 4 portions. Add a different kind of
fruit or veggie to each portion. Spread as 4 rows in baking pan. Your will have
4 different flavors of bird bread. Substitute milk with apple or
pineapple juice.
Adding some crushed pellets, broccoli buds, or grated carrots to the recipe, will add more
vitamin A & D into your bird's diet. You can hide just about anything in
bird bread. You can also heat your bird's frozen pieces of bread in
the microwave for a few seconds. Mama enjoys her bread warm and fresh from the
oven, just like people do. Sometimes I omit the eggshell or scraped cuttlebone,
because she eats plenty of cuttlebone each day.
That way we can share!
Thank you so much Liza for sharing the photo!
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