High energy pellets for young bird

[Known Space]

I'll be getting a baby bronze-winged pionus in August. I'll be visiting the breeder - and the bird! - in about 3 weeks and get an idea of what he feeds his birds. But probably not pellets.

I feed my parrotlet Roudybush maintenance pellets. But Roudybush suggests their high energy breeder pellets for young birds. No worries, the bird will be weaned and fledged when I get it. But Roudybush still suggests young birds to be fed these pellets for 3 months until after fully weaned.

According to this website, the nutritional value of these pellets is:

Guaranteed Analysis
Crude Protein (min.) 20.0%
Crude Fat (min.) 3.0%
Crude Fiber (max.) 2.0%
Moisture (max.) 12.0%
Ash 5.0%
Calcium 0.91%
Phosphorus 0.83%
Available Phosphorus 0.61%
Sodium 0.15%
Chloride 0.22%

What's people's take on this here? Are regular maintenance pellets fine or are these higher potency ones the way to go?

 

[Mizzely]

You can do either way I have never personally used higher performance pellets except when I needed a parrot (Bobber) to gain weight.

 

[Known Space]

Sorry mods, I completely did not catch the diet section of the forum. Could someone please move it to that subforum?

 

[painesgrey]

Young animals in general have slightly different nutritional requirements than adults. It varies depending on the animal, but most have higher calorie and protein requirements to help provide them with the energy their body needs to fully grow and fill out. In birds, this is typically important because young birds need to develop the body mass and muscles required for good flight.

I don't think you'd be doing any harm by feeding a maintenance diet after weaning, but I think there is some merit to giving them a high energy diet for the first few months after weaning. It's up to you whether you want to go down that road.

 

[Matto]

I use the high energy for my breeders when they're in breeder season and for the chicks from weaning up to about 3-4 months old. I think you're fine either way. Ps roudybush high energy are on a crazy sale at drs fosters and smith right now.

 

[Matto]

Basically I think you're fine either way. High- energy pellets are very important for making sure that breeders get all the calcium and nutrition they need and it also helps support the chicks they're rearing. But once the chicks are weaned its not terribly important.

 

[painesgrey]

I use the high energy for my breeders when they're in breeder season and for the chicks from weaning up to about 3-4 months old. I think you're fine either way. Ps roudybush high energy are on a crazy sale at drs fosters and smith right now.

Link for the lazy. It's on clearance for $2.25 for a 44oz bag.

 

[Known Space]

Hi! Thanks for everyone's responses here! Wanted to see more of a general consensus before I really made up my mind!

Sadly, the site doesn't ship to the Netherlands and it would've probably cost an arm and leg anyway haha.

So is there still a marginal benefit to using high energy pellets for young weaned parrots? Or is it more a matter of it doing neither any harm not particular good?

 

[painesgrey]

Hi! Thanks for everyone's responses here! Wanted to see more of a general consensus before I really made up my mind!

Sadly, the site doesn't ship to the Netherlands and it would've probably cost an arm and leg anyway haha.

So is there still a marginal benefit to using high energy pellets for young weaned parrots? Or is it more a matter of it doing neither any harm not particular good?

To be honest, I doubt there has been much research on the subject to quantify any benefit. I would probably say, "it couldn't hurt."

However, if it's difficult/expensive to get the high energy, or you think your adult parrotlet might partake too often, then the adult maintenance will be fine.

 

[Known Space]

To be honest, I doubt there has been much research on the subject to quantify any benefit. I would probably say, "it couldn't hurt."

However, if it's difficult/expensive to get the high energy, or you think your adult parrotlet might partake too often, then the adult maintenance will be fine.

Yeah makes sense. The thing I was personally wondering about was hypervitaminosis, though I hadn't yet really compared the micronutritional profile of the high energy ones with the maintenance pellets. So in my mind, playing it safe in regards to that is probably the way to go.

I'm also guessing that a growing bird will probably compensate for any lack of energy intake by eating additional pellets.