advice on transitioning to dry food?

[aethers]

Hi! Thank you for taking the time to read : )
I have two lorikeets who I love to death but are some of the pickiest eaters ever. I currently have them on Vetafarm wild earth which I make into a wet mix. However I would really like them to move onto eating dry mix as it would solve a lot of the problems I currently have. Sometimes I’m out of the house for hours and can’t change out their wet food, so the only thing I’m able to do is make a small batch in the morning so it doesn’t spoil and leave them with fruits and veggies for the rest of the day (which also kind of spoil) until I come home which really isn’t ideal.

I’ve tried getting them to try it dry but I don’t think they even recognise it as food. They just stare at me waiting for me to add water before they can eat it. Has anyone had experience transitioning their own lories over and can give me some advice? And good quality dry food recommendations I can find in Australia would also be appreciated < 3

Thank you so much for your help!

 

[Emma&pico]

Bump

 

[Nhan_Dxo]

I can't even recall the last time I tried using a wet mix because... boy was it messy but the process shouldn't be that much different from getting your bird into chop. Just try mixing in crumbles of the pellet or whatever you're trying to transition to into the wet food and throw in a sprinkle of seeds (or w/e treat) they like to entice them.

I'd mix and not just place it on top so that as they eat they accidentally take a bite of the dry stuff and adapt.

 

[Elysian]

I have absolutely no lorikeet knowledge, but I assume it might be difficult to mix wet and dry..
Can you give them two different bowls for awhile? Maybe there is a solid/dry treat they like that you can mix with the dry food to tempt them to try it?
Then if you've gotten them to taste it I would think you could offer the dry mix first for an hour or so before the wet?

 

[PetFoster]

Hello, I am super late to the party here, but... I would ask my vet for recommendations on doing this. (Given that you are in Australia, I know there are some concerns about taking them to the vet, but I wonder if they could advise by phone?) I am in the U.S. and currently feed Blessings Lory Powder, but I do mix it with water and change it out every few hours. After keeping a few lories over the years, and speaking with aviculturists dedicated to lories, I am very hesitant to recommend feeding anything dry. That said, you are in a difficult place. If your bird(s) have access to several water sources that are refreshed at least twice a day, most powders can be fed dry -- the birds just have to drink enough water with it. Do you place the bowl with dry food right next to the water dishes? Otherwise, I would agree that you need to continue making a very small portion in the morning that they will eat in a relatively short time; then leave the powder in for the day. If they are not in an enormous aviary, they are not going to be expending the same kind of energy that requires constant high-calorie, nutrient-dense foods, as they would in the wild. I put dry-ish foods in foraging toys that my RL loves to tear into throughout the day -- carrots, sweet peppers, etc. I also put a tray of sprouts in her cage every once in a while -- I am just careful to place it in a place where she doesn't poo so much! Since they are still growing, technically, they don't need to be refreshed throughout the day, and I go through them at night and pull out any places that have received accidental "sprinkles". I keep a few trays growing at a time so I can replace the whole thing every other day.