• Welcome to Avian Avenue! To view our forum with less advertisments please register with us.
    Memberships are free and it will just take a moment. Click here

Journal - Should zoo foods be chopped (macaws)

Mizzely

Lil Monsters Bird Toys
Super Moderator
Vendor
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Avenue Concierge
Joined
8/9/11
Messages
41,299
Location
Northern Mitten Michigan
Real Name
Shawna [she/her]
Is that one way to bake a sweet potato? I've only put them in the oven. I know you're suppose to give parrots bake sweet potatoes, not raw ones.
Yes it's a quick way to cook it :) I usually use the air fryer but weekday mornings are hectic!
 

Wardy

Rollerblading along the road
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
4/12/21
Messages
4,706
@Mizzely are you giving Ripley, Not Chop twice a day ?
I have found the girls second feed is pretty much going to waste they just dont bother and after a while they start shouting until i swap for pellets.
 

Mizzely

Lil Monsters Bird Toys
Super Moderator
Vendor
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Avenue Concierge
Joined
8/9/11
Messages
41,299
Location
Northern Mitten Michigan
Real Name
Shawna [she/her]
@Wardy no I'm only giving it to him once a day. As excited as I am about him eating veggies, I worry feeding him too much would mean weight loss instead!

I did weigh him today. No change yet :(
 

WikiWaz

Rollerblading along the road
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
5/2/21
Messages
1,291
Location
Midwest, United States
Real Name
Signe

Teckechick

Ask me for a photo of my bird, I have to post one!
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Avenue Concierge
Joined
9/5/16
Messages
4,250
Location
Illinois
Real Name
Dawn
If you don’t follow Dr. Crean he has some good information on raw whole food nutrition. You may pick up some different tips or ideas to try from his posts. He has been doing research and working with vets on Avian nutrition for about 20 years. I found his take on several things make sense and he has done the research to back it up. He also works with Lara Joseph which is where I met him. He had her come up to Chicago for a workshop we attended.

He has done several interviews on YouTube channels as well. If you search his name on YouTube you will find him.

Welcome | Dr Crean

Facebook group name:Avian Raw Whole Food Nutrition

Jason foraging tip for Small-Medium size birds- Give them half of a walnut. They will spend time trying to work the nuts out making it a good foraging item for them.
 

Mizzely

Lil Monsters Bird Toys
Super Moderator
Vendor
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Avenue Concierge
Joined
8/9/11
Messages
41,299
Location
Northern Mitten Michigan
Real Name
Shawna [she/her]
I do like Crean, I however disagree with him on pellets :p
 

Wardy

Rollerblading along the road
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
4/12/21
Messages
4,706

Mizzely

Lil Monsters Bird Toys
Super Moderator
Vendor
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Avenue Concierge
Joined
8/9/11
Messages
41,299
Location
Northern Mitten Michigan
Real Name
Shawna [she/her]
You not a fan of Tops ?
I am not a fan of suggesting that there is only one pellet on the market that is suitable.

So when my bird doesn't eat it, what am I supposed to do? Feel guilty that I am "poisoning my bird?" Or just not feed pellets and hope for the best, even though nutritional related ailments are one of the leading cause of illness and death in captive parrots?

I think it is dangerous and unrealistic to say that any "one" food is ideal and the only acceptable commercial food to feed.
 

Teckechick

Ask me for a photo of my bird, I have to post one!
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Avenue Concierge
Joined
9/5/16
Messages
4,250
Location
Illinois
Real Name
Dawn
I do like Crean, I however disagree with him on pellets :p
Yeah that threw me for a loop as well when he talked about not liking pellets. I get the Science behind what he says about them though and why he would only feed Tops. I also get that not all birds will eat Tops. I have been trying with mine and so far a big no go. After listening to him talk about being called in to give lectures to avian vet students and them not being taught about proper nutrition to just feed pellets, hunting him down after the lectures so they could learn more about nutrition, opened my eyes a bit to vet pellet recommendations. What he said made sense to me so I get why he thinks they are not the best option. :shrug: I posted more for his raw whole food information that people may find useful.
 

Mizzely

Lil Monsters Bird Toys
Super Moderator
Vendor
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Avenue Concierge
Joined
8/9/11
Messages
41,299
Location
Northern Mitten Michigan
Real Name
Shawna [she/her]
Yeah that threw me for a loop as well when he talked about not liking pellets. I get the Science behind what he says about them though and why he would only feed Tops. I also get that not all birds will eat Tops. I have been trying with mine and so far a big no go. After listening to him talk about being called in to give lectures to avian vet students and them not being taught about proper nutrition to just feed pellets, hunting him down after the lectures so they could learn more about nutrition, opened my eyes a bit to vet pellet recommendations. What he said made sense to me so I get why he thinks they are not the best option. :shrug: I posted more for his raw whole food information that people may find useful.
I know I'm sorry to go off on a tangent! For whole fresh food feeding his information really can't be beat :)
 

Wardy

Rollerblading along the road
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
4/12/21
Messages
4,706
Yeah that threw me for a loop as well when he talked about not liking pellets. I get the Science behind what he says about them though and why he would only feed Tops. I also get that not all birds will eat Tops. I have been trying with mine and so far a big no go. After listening to him talk about being called in to give lectures to avian vet students and them not being taught about proper nutrition to just feed pellets, hunting him down after the lectures so they could learn more about nutrition, opened my eyes a bit to vet pellet recommendations. What he said made sense to me so I get why he thinks they are not the best option. :shrug: I posted more for his raw whole food information that people may find useful.
I have watched quite a few of his own vids and vids where youtubers have talked food with him and he feeds over 50 fresh foods a day to his flock i could never do that.
 

flyzipper

Rollerblading along the road
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
9/28/20
Messages
2,679
Location
Canada
Real Name
Steve
he feeds over 50 fresh foods a day to his flock i could never do that
Agreed, and I'll add that it's off-putting and unnecessary.

I enjoy his content in moderation and take tidbits from him here and there, but if he really wants to make a positive impact on the largest number of birds, he needs to do a better job making his approach accessible. The Facebook group is often cluttered with followers who look to be virtue signalling (my interpretation, so maybe that says something about me, rather than them) with their own 50 ingredient chop of the week.
 

Wardy

Rollerblading along the road
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
4/12/21
Messages
4,706
Agreed, and I'll add that it's off-putting and unnecessary.

I enjoy his content in moderation and take tidbits from him here and there, but if he really wants to make a positive impact on the largest number of birds, he needs to do a better job making his approach accessible. The Facebook group is often cluttered with followers who look to be virtue signalling (my interpretation, so maybe that says something about me, rather than them) with their own 50 ingredient chop of the week.
Absolutely agree

Wonder what his thoughts on Not Chop would be ?
 

flyzipper

Rollerblading along the road
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
9/28/20
Messages
2,679
Location
Canada
Real Name
Steve
Wonder what his thoughts on Not Chop would be ?
I just checked my browser history and I originally found this study from his post, so I assume he supports the approach :)

"Take tidbits from him here and there", indeed.
 

Wardy

Rollerblading along the road
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
4/12/21
Messages
4,706
I just checked my browser history and I originally found this study from his post, so I assume he supports the approach :)

"Take tidbits from him here and there", indeed.
I dont do facebook so couldnt see it :nocomment:

My birds where both eating chop no problem they now very much get involved with their food.
20220421_110042.jpg

Surely thats got be better than being stuck over a bowl of 50 ingrediants.
 

AussieBird

Biking along the boulevard
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
7/23/20
Messages
5,030
Real Name
Call me AB
I dont do facebook so couldnt see it :nocomment:

My birds where both eating chop no problem they now very much get involved with their food.
View attachment 406362

Surely thats got be better than being stuck over a bowl of 50 ingrediants.
Agreed, I gets so happy over the fact Quarter is doing something even if it’s just eating.
 
Top