Birds love to eat seeds, wild birds and pet birds alike. Choosing the right pet bird food is critical for your bird's overall and long term health. Sometimes it is difficult to know whether to feed your pet bird diet pellets, fruits and veggies, or strictly seeds. Most birds will eat nothing but seeds if you allow it. They also deserve a little bird treat now and then.
Bird Seeds, The Most Common Bird Food
Bird seed is the most popular choice for pet bird feed. Bird seeds come in a wide variety and in mixed packs. They can be purchased as loose seeds or formed into a bar that is attached top the side of the cage where the bird can peck from. They are healthy for the bird and some birds live exclusively on bird seed with few or no health problems. Most birds prefer to eat seeds and enjoy a diet that is seed based. Depending on the type of bird you have though, he may require more nutrients than what the seeds alone can offer.
The Benefits of Diet Pellets
The nice thing about using diet pellets as your pet bird food is that they are specially formulated to give your bird exactly what it needs. It takes the guesswork out of how much, how often and what kinds of food to give your pet bird. Some vets suggest that 50-80% of the bird's diet should come from pellets to keep them in their best health. For added health benefits, choose organic pellets for pet bird food.
Good Fruits and Vegetables for Pet Bird Food
Apples, pineapple, figs, kiwi, grapes, lettuce and carrots all make good choices for pet bird food. These fruits and vegetables are good for birds, much like they are good for people. They give the birds their daily dose of vitamins, minerals and carbs. The important thing to remember is to wash all fruits and vegetables before offering them to your pet bird and to remove the uneaten portions from the cage immediately as they can spoil quickly.
There are some foods that you should not feed to your bird because they pose a health risk. To keep from harming your bird, do not offer him avocados, caffeine, chocolate, white flour products, raw peanuts or rhubarb. Safety and long term health should remain your top priorities as you decide which pet bird food is right for you.
