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Spirulina

Fia Baby

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I bought some spirulina a couple weeks ago from Golden Feast to use as a supplement for my cockatoo and macaw. I've been giving them very small amounts of it a couple times per week. But now I've done some additional reading about it as a supplement for humans, and now have concerns about it for my birds. Does anyone else have any insight on it's safety/efficacy as a supplement for birds? It's high in protein, but isn't any "better" than any other protein source. It's marketed as a source of B12, but that's actually questionable.
 

Mizzely

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I think people are way too fixated on protein in general lol. Birds don't need a huge amount of protein! In fact too much protein can cause a host of issues (some medical, some behavorial). What kind of diet are they on otherwise? If they are eating pellets or even nuts and seeds, they are probably getting the amount of protein they need. So I guess, what was the reason you wanted to feed them this?

I also think Spirulina can be high in iron, which birds also don't need a lot of, and can also cause medical issues if fed in large enough quantities for too long.
 

Fia Baby

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That's what I worry about - too much protein, some other claims are questionable, and maybe it's not a good thing to feed if a bird is healthy and on a good diet.
 

Mizzely

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Well, I will say that I spent a lot of my early years of bird keeping adding lots of supplements - avigreens, bee pollen, herb salad, etc - and while most of it isn't going to harm them, if they are already on a pelleted diet and eating fresh veggies and fruit, it's my experience that it just complicates your life unnecessarily and wastes money most of the time. I do the KISS method now - Keep It Simple, Stupid! :lol:
 

iamwhoiam

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One of my vets recommended using spirulina several years ago. I added a very small amount to each birds' dry food/seed mix. I don't do this any more.
 

camelotshadow

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I bought a bottle from Trader Joes organic & ordered a bottle of Nutrex hawaiian which I had in the early 90's & it was excellent.

I've not taken it in 20 years but for some reason I'm going to try it again.

The things I read are you have to watch out for some that can be contaminated with toxins
As far as the B12 I read that the kind of B12 it has is not able to be broken down & used by human.
Maybe birds? It seems to be a inaccessible version. Not sure who researched it as you don;t hear about this too much.

Its a pretty complete hi protein source but much more expensive than other sources so its really not a good for most people.

I've not thought about using it for birds but would be concerned with the possible contamination.

 
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