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Pellet hater

mybluebirb

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My parrot has been on a seed diet since we got her and when I found out its not good for her, instead I bought pellets for her. I bought the 'Zupreem fruitblend', I thought my birdie would really like it!
But no.. I'm pretty sure she doesn't.
I followed these feeding instructions to help her convert:

All she does is pick a pellet up lick it a little then throw it down...
However, I do occasionally see her chewing some of them but as soon as she sees me looking at her she stops.
Do you think she could actually learn to like the pellets and change her diet?
Any advice on how to make her start eating the pellets?
 

JoJo&Loki

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Sometimes it takes awhile for them to decide it IS food and something safe to eat. Also as Zara said trying other brands until you find one they like. How long have you been giving the pellets? It took mine a full month to try them, but now they love em!
 

Birdie Mama

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Also depending where you live, sometimes contacting the pellet distributor or manufacturer and askingif they have any free samples, they sometimes will send you a bit to try out. Makes it cheaper than buying so many different kinds just to be rejected...
 

fancydance

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Also depending where you live, sometimes contacting the pellet distributor or manufacturer and askingif they have any free samples, they sometimes will send you a bit to try out. Makes it cheaper than buying so many different kinds just to be rejected...
What a good idea!!
 

mybluebirb

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Also depending where you live, sometimes contacting the pellet distributor or manufacturer and askingif they have any free samples, they sometimes will send you a bit to try out. Makes it cheaper than buying so many different kinds just to be rejected...
Great idea! However, I'm not entirely sure if they would, but its always worth a shot!
 

Peachfaced

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Great idea! However, I'm not entirely sure if they would, but its always worth a shot!
You'd be surprised. :) A lot do! Lafaeber sent a huge sampler (it had Avicakes, some foraging stuff they had at the time, Nutriberries, etc). The worst they can say is "no".
 

Birdie Mama

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i am also on the talkparrotlets.com forum, and some members have been able to get free samples just by asking, just can’t remember the companies and this is in the USA. So not sure of other parts of the world.
 

Mizzely

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It took me 6 months to convert my quaker.

There are a lot of pellet brands to try!

 

Monica

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Be sure to try feeding fresh foods as well, such as sprouts, vegetables, a little bit of fruit and perhaps some healthy nuts such as walnuts! :)

My wild caught african ringneck actually prefers fresh food and sprouts over pellets any day! But she'll eat the pellets, too! She'll try just about anything I toss her way, even if I don't see her eating it! ;) (she leaves evidence! :hehe: )
 

Nobirby

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The idea of asking the manufacturer for samples is good. My mother's conure loved Roudybush, so I purchased two bags, at a considerable cost. I could not get Jesse to eat it at all, and I gave it a while. Finally ended up feeding it to wild ducks. All the birbs love the Zupreen Fruit Blend. I guess they have preferences just like us.
 

Ripshod

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With the fruitblend pellets, if your parrot holds food with it's foot while eating then get a larger size. Roger wouldn't touch the smaller ones but when I noticed him using a foot with other foods we went larger, and he loves them.
 

mybluebirb

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Be sure to try feeding fresh foods as well, such as sprouts, vegetables, a little bit of fruit and perhaps some healthy nuts such as walnuts! :)

My wild caught african ringneck actually prefers fresh food and sprouts over pellets any day! But she'll eat the pellets, too! She'll try just about anything I toss her way, even if I don't see her eating it! ;) (she leaves evidence! :hehe: )
My parrot would choose fruit over anything too! :laughing2:
 

Peachfaced

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With the fruitblend pellets, if your parrot holds food with it's foot while eating then get a larger size. Roger wouldn't touch the smaller ones but when I noticed him using a foot with other foods we went larger, and he loves them.
That's true, too! When I adopted Rupert, he was being fed Roudybush, but they were quite large! I think they were meant for Toos and Macs. He liked them, but he would waste a good majority of the pellet. Over several months, I tried to find the happy medium where he'd eat them without much waste, while still being able to hold them.

I once offered him a bit of crumble size I had left in the freezer, and he gave me this baffled look, as if to say, "Mom, this isn't food!"

Roudybush's small size pellet seems to be the best for us. Sherbs (Lovebird) eats that size as well.
 
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