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Meal mixes - where do these fit in a parrot diet?

Momof3litt

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I recently purchased a bag of Higgins International Cuisine, Inca Bean flavour. My GCC adores it, so now I'm trying to figure out where it fits in a parrot diet. Is it chop? Is it junk food? Is it a supplement?

I feed Argo Harrison's high potency superfine pellets (he is 5 months old) and a variety of veggie chop mixes that I make. He will nibble at birdie bread, but has never eaten a whole serving. He has access to other pellets occasionally (I use TOPS and Roudybush in enrichment toys and he eats them) as well as a small amount of my homemade seed mix and individual safflower seeds for training. His high-value treats are sunflower seeds and nuts (cashews, almonds, pine nuts, pecans). I thought he was eating well, but I've never seen him finish a bowl of anything until he tried the Higgins mix. He was so calm and chilled out afterwards, it made me question the way he has been eating up until now. I know he gets nippy when he's hungry or when he's trying to communicate something to his human flock and he has been nippier this week. I also think he was not enjoying the chop mix I had prepared (frankly I don't blame him, it was frozen and thawed, so a bit too wet). So he wasn't eating as well (although not noticeably - there were no changes in weight) and he was grumpier.

So where does the Higgins-type stuff fit in? I am willing to use it or explore making something similar - the beans must make it more filling - but does it count as chop or is it more of an occasional extra? If you serve something similar, how often do you serve it?
 

Destiny

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These kind of mixes tend to be predominantly grain-based with some veggies. I wouldn't consider it a replacement for veggie-based chop, but rather an alternative to pellets as a base diet. It can also be given occassionally as a supplemental food.

I would probably offer the same amount of chop, but less pellets on days when I was feeding the world cuisine.
 

Momof3litt

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It's actually mostly beans, with quinoa, barley, sweet corn and potatoes on the "grains" side. It is oddly labelled as a "bird food appetizer", so I guess they are implying it should be an addition to the diet, not a replacement for anything.

The ingredients are: quinoa flakes, pearled barley, carrots, dehydrated black beans, dehydrated sweet corn, dehydrated lentils, celery, dehydrated garbanzo bean, dehydrated navy beans, parsley, dehydrated pinto beans, potatoes, dehydrated red kidney beans, sweet peppers, rosemary, tomatoes, kelp, dehydrated vegetable broth.

I haven't quite figured out where beans fit for birds - they seem to be a common chop ingredient and if they are sprouted than they are veggies (?)

I do like the idea of periodically mixing it with chop for variety and letting it replace some of the pellets, especially since I serve pellets in meal-sized portions, not free-fed. It does seem to be quite a healthy mix for a "fast food", kind of like making something like oatmeal or a bean soup mix for humans :).
 

Sparkles!

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My conure crew love the Worldly Cuisines!
I rotate fresh/cooked foods daily and give in the morning on their playstands, after they’ve had a teaspoon or so of pellets as a “pre breakfast snack” in their cages when they’re uncovered in the morning before I shower. This gives me time to get ready for the day and get that food cooked or prepped to go onto the playstands. And their real breakfast is the prepared (non pellet or commercial diet) stuff.
I treat all cooked food/chop/fruits & veggies the same. Everything gets rotated throughout the month and can depend on what’s in season and what’s available.

The only time I withhold is when hormones are going berserk. Warm, carb rich foods drives those need-to-breed instincts. It’s usually early spring for my flock, and at that time we feed freeze dried.
 

macawpower58

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I've just started using stuff like this, and so far I've used it as a main meal, a treat, and a additive.
I think I like it best when I add it to some of the prepared chop I've already made.
All is warmed and mixed, and my birds really enjoy it.
The other most often use is a small later in the evening snack.
Seems to be enjoyed as they start to settle down for the night.
 

Mizzely

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I prefer to use them as treats, but since Ripley actually likes some of those blends and rarely eats straight veggies, I use them as his "chop". I mix in freeze dried and dehydrated veggies and baby food puree (and in his case, baby bird food for the extra calories) to maximize their potential.
 

Teckechick

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I give these to the boys on occasion as well! I’ll give it as an extra breakfast treat with their veggies. I like that you can get a few days out of it. Gives them a bit of treat with breakfast sometimes!
 

Peachfaced

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I just use it as an additive. My birds get diced veggies (some steamed, some raw), as well as sprouts, every day. I just add in a little spoonful of the Bird Street Bistro (I cook enough to last me about 2-3 days). They have access to pellets in a separate bowl. They get snacks/treats as well.
 

javi

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I give it along with everything else (chop, sporouts, pellets etc). I prefer Bird Street Bistro tho
 
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