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why do people hate harrison’s?

barbs0nly

Walking the driveway
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5/8/21
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234
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lilly
i like researching my care for my bird often to make sure i’m keeping up to date with what i’m doing and not slipping in my care, when researching wembleys pellets (harrison’s) i found A LOT of people saying they’re garbage lol i was wondering if there’s any substance to this and if they actually are a “bad” pellet. the main complaints i saw were the gripe in price, the fattier ingredients at the top of the list and them being baked instead of cold pressed, all i understand to an extent and i don’t think just because a pellet is at a cheaper price point that it’s lacking. but i see them compared to tops a lot because of price point differences and the fact that they’re cold pressed. but them using alfalfa is making me a bit sus of it. i looked at roudybush as well and a lot of the other pellets on the market have a similar ingredients list. the main drawback for me would be the baking process but even then she LOVES them they’re the only pellet she wants to eat. in an ideal world she’d eat very little processed pellet but her pallet for fresh food is lacking except in the fruit department but i’m trying to cut that down a bit if she’s gonna be eating a gang ton of pellets id want it to be good for her LMAO. i hope that everyone puts their opinions in this thread and explains their thoughts on it! <3
 

Shezbug

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Mizzely

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It all depends on who you talk to and what their focuses are.

Harrison's is a great pellet. It is research backed by an avian vet, has been around for decades, and uses organic ingredients. It has no sugar or colorings, and instead uses tasty things like peanuts as part of a balanced diet.

Bodies largely care about nutrients. They don't really care much how they get those nutrients. Sure, some are easier to access (bioavailability), but on the whole, the ingredients list is far less important than if all the nutrients a bird's body needs are there and absorbable.

I trust Harrison's over an alfalfa based, cold pressed pellet any day.
 

flyzipper

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If "people" don't like Harrison's, I suspect you were talking to the 3rd cohort in this chart...

Trashy Travis
Practical Pete
Elitist Eugene
Human food
Pizza crust, chips, French fries​
A variety of whatever the human eats that isn't sugary, fatty or salty​
Raw organic only​
Cooked VS Raw
Only eats take-out​
Either​
Raw only​
Pellets
Seeds... because "seeds are what they eat in the wild"​
Whatever "complete" pellet my bird will consistently eat... because it augments whatever nutritional gaps occur in the rest of their diet​
Tops... "because it's raw and cold pressed", even though it's not a complete source of nutrition; this group thinks they feed a perfectly nutritious mix from their own pantry, so the gaps don't matter to them.​
 

barbs0nly

Walking the driveway
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lilly
It all depends on who you talk to and what their focuses are.

Harrison's is a great pellet. It is research backed by an avian vet, has been around for decades, and uses organic ingredients. It has no sugar or colorings, and instead uses tasty things like peanuts as part of a balanced diet.

Bodies largely care about nutrients. They don't really care much how they get those nutrients. Sure, some are easier to access (bioavailability), but on the whole, the ingredients list is far less important than if all the nutrients a bird's body needs are there and absorbable.

I trust Harrison's over an alfalfa based, cold pressed pellet any day.
yep same! i’m glad someone with a lot more experience than me agrees! thank you!!
 

barbs0nly

Walking the driveway
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234
Real Name
lilly
If "people" don't like Harrison's, I suspect you were talking to the 3rd cohort in this chart...

Trashy Travis
Practical Pete
Elitist Eugene
Human food
Pizza crust, chips, French fries​
A variety of whatever the human eats that isn't sugary, fatty or salty​
Raw organic only​
Cooked VS Raw
Only eats take-out​
Either​
Raw only​
Pellets
Seeds... because "seeds are what they eat in the wild"​
Whatever "complete" pellet my bird will consistently eat... because it augments whatever nutritional gaps occur in the rest of their diet​
Tops... "because it's raw and cold pressed", even though it's not a complete source of nutrition; this group thinks they feed a perfectly nutritious mix from their own pantry, so the gaps don't matter to them.​
yup definitely. i’m just super paranoid and want the best for my bird! this helps put things in perspective honestly!!
 

macawpower58

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If "people" don't like Harrison's, I suspect you were talking to the 3rd cohort in this chart...

Trashy Travis
Practical Pete
Elitist Eugene
Human food
Pizza crust, chips, French fries​
A variety of whatever the human eats that isn't sugary, fatty or salty​
Raw organic only​
Cooked VS Raw
Only eats take-out​
Either​
Raw only​
Pellets
Seeds... because "seeds are what they eat in the wild"​
Whatever "complete" pellet my bird will consistently eat... because it augments whatever nutritional gaps occur in the rest of their diet​
Tops... "because it's raw and cold pressed", even though it's not a complete source of nutrition; this group thinks they feed a perfectly nutritious mix from their own pantry, so the gaps don't matter to them.​
This is going to offend 2 out of 3 people.
I'm between trashy and practical. My birds LOVE pizza and FFs.
But lots of folks are more sensitive than I am.
 

Hankmacaw

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@barbs0nly I think you will find that the people who "hate" Harrison's pellets are ignorant of it's background, or stubborn as all get out, or easily influenced by claims of the arrogant, or too lazy to do the research, or don't have a clue what research really is and on and on. Now I think I have insulted a bunch of people, but most of whom I've insulted have no problems insulting me.

I want to give you an example of someone who is truly arrogant.

"Is Red Palm Oil REALLY Good For Your Parrot?

Maybe it’s my suspiscious nature, but whenever a doctor or vet “highly recommends” a name brand product (especially if they sell it), I think twice. To be fair, I must acknowedge that many may carry products because they truly beileve in their health benefits. But there are also those who carry products, and push them, because it benefits their bank accounts.

Many medical professionals receive kickbacks for promoting certain brands of products. (A kickback is a payment of money, favors or something else of value offered in exchange for pushing a product. It is, in a word, bribery.) If the product is a good one, you may say no harm, no fowl. But what if that product has a dark side? One such questionable product is red palm oil......."
Author Patty Jourgensen specializes in avian health, behavior and nutrition and has been working with and caring for rescue birds since 1987. (Highlighting provided by me)This is all I could find out about Miss Jourgensen - nothing else showed up on searches. She is a consultant for Bird Tricks)

Now for Dr. Harrison who developed Harrison's bird food. Too long for here, but if you have any intellectual honesty, you will read it.;
https://www.linkedin.com/in/greg-harrison-dvm-5511b668 and here


And here is Dr. Harrisons explanation of Red Palm Oil;

OFF MY SOAPBOX

I'm a "Practical Pete", but I almost always know when I'm doing something not quite the best for my bird.
 

FeatheredM

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I love Harrison's, there are many people who do love it here
 

barbs0nly

Walking the driveway
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234
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lilly
@barbs0nly I think you will find that the people who "hate" Harrison's pellets are ignorant of it's background, or stubborn as all get out, or easily influenced by claims of the arrogant, or too lazy to do the research, or don't have a clue what research really is and on and on. Now I think I have insulted a bunch of people, but most of whom I've insulted have no problems insulting me.

I want to give you an example of someone who is truly arrogant.

"Is Red Palm Oil REALLY Good For Your Parrot?

Maybe it’s my suspiscious nature, but whenever a doctor or vet “highly recommends” a name brand product (especially if they sell it), I think twice. To be fair, I must acknowedge that many may carry products because they truly beileve in their health benefits. But there are also those who carry products, and push them, because it benefits their bank accounts.

Many medical professionals receive kickbacks for promoting certain brands of products. (A kickback is a payment of money, favors or something else of value offered in exchange for pushing a product. It is, in a word, bribery.) If the product is a good one, you may say no harm, no fowl. But what if that product has a dark side? One such questionable product is red palm oil......."
Author Patty Jourgensen specializes in avian health, behavior and nutrition and has been working with and caring for rescue birds since 1987. (Highlighting provided by me)This is all I could find out about Miss Jourgensen - nothing else showed up on searches. She is a consultant for Bird Tricks)

Now for Dr. Harrison who developed Harrison's bird food. Too long for here, but if you have any intellectual honesty, you will read it.;
https://www.linkedin.com/in/greg-harrison-dvm-5511b668 and here


And here is Dr. Harrisons explanation of Red Palm Oil;

OFF MY SOAPBOX

I'm a "Practical Pete", but I almost always know when I'm doing something not quite the best for my bird.
totally agree with everything here, the articles were extremely interesting and i found knowing the background of the food and the qualifications to the person who makes it very insightful!!
 

derin

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Akron, Ohio
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Derin
i like researching my care for my bird often to make sure i’m keeping up to date with what i’m doing and not slipping in my care, when researching wembleys pellets (harrison’s) i found A LOT of people saying they’re garbage lol i was wondering if there’s any substance to this and if they actually are a “bad” pellet. the main complaints i saw were the gripe in price, the fattier ingredients at the top of the list and them being baked instead of cold pressed, all i understand to an extent and i don’t think just because a pellet is at a cheaper price point that it’s lacking. but i see them compared to tops a lot because of price point differences and the fact that they’re cold pressed. but them using alfalfa is making me a bit sus of it. i looked at roudybush as well and a lot of the other pellets on the market have a similar ingredients list. the main drawback for me would be the baking process but even then she LOVES them they’re the only pellet she wants to eat. in an ideal world she’d eat very little processed pellet but her pallet for fresh food is lacking except in the fruit department but i’m trying to cut that down a bit if she’s gonna be eating a gang ton of pellets id want it to be good for her LMAO. i hope that everyone puts their opinions in this thread and explains their thoughts on it! <3
I personally love Harrisons, Roudybush was the only thing my tiel would eat, but she ate Harrisons almost right away. She was a little underweight, and I wanted to put weight on her without giving more seeds, and Harrisons put weight on her now she is 96 grams and looks healthier than ever. Her feathers are so much prettier as well. I do not hate Roudybush, my birds seem to like Roudybush more than Harrisons, but I prefer Harrisons because my cockatiel is healthier now.
 

Kassiani

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:shrug: I've come to be in the 'whatever pellet you can get your bird to eat' camp. I feed TOPS, but supplement with Harrison's. All my birds will eat both without a problem. I started feeding TOPS because I couldn't get the budgies to eat anything else. Some may not like the fact that Harrison's is baked like a cereal or the fact that the main ingredient is corn?
 

Elysian

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Yeah I was really surprised to see this title.. I don't think I've ever heard anyone really disparage Harrisons.
In fact there was a period of time where I felt really guilty for not feeding it because it seemed like everyone swore it was the best!

We must have researched in very different circles lol
 

barbs0nly

Walking the driveway
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234
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lilly
Yeah I was really surprised to see this title.. I don't think I've ever heard anyone really disparage Harrisons.
In fact there was a period of time where I felt really guilty for not feeding it because it seemed like everyone swore it was the best!

We must have researched in very different circles lol
yep!! i’ve read a few articles talking about peanuts as an ingredient and talked to a few ppl i know personally and there was a lot of mixed opinions. i just like getting down to the bottom of it either way and knowing the consensus. i’ve researched diet (obv since i have a bird lol) but i’m not an expert !
 

barbs0nly

Walking the driveway
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234
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lilly
:shrug: I've come to be in the 'whatever pellet you can get your bird to eat' camp. I feed TOPS, but supplement with Harrison's. All my birds will eat both without a problem. I started feeding TOPS because I couldn't get the budgies to eat anything else. Some may not like the fact that Harrison's is baked like a cereal or the fact that the main ingredient is corn?
yep that’s what i’ve seen!!! especially them not being cold pressed. i’ve decided i’m fine with that and think they’re a nice pellet. we’ll see how much my girl likes the adult lifetime lmao
 

Oscarbird

Sprinting down the street
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559
This thread is really interesting. Never used Harrison's before because we cannot get it locally here and Oscar loves his Roudybush. I'm going to be watching this thread though, because I'm curious as to what others have to say.
 

Wardy

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I have just started feeding my conure Harrisons high potency pepper she took it straight away.
I did start a thread regarding transitioning and someone advised me not to feed Harrisons as they had heard lots of horror stories i asked them to reference them and i am still waiting.
She does also get Roudybush daily maintenance and pretty bird small bird i tried her with lafaber tropical and she just threw them on the floor.
I plan to keep feeding her a selection of pellets in case there is availabilty issues and something becomes unavailable i am however very much in the if my bird eats a particular pellet then thats the right pellet to give my bird.

The good thing for me regarding Harrisons is i can buy it locally everything else i have to get online.
The articles @Hankmacaw put links up for where very interesting and most definately gave me some confidence there wasnt a problem with Harrisons however @Mizzely had also commented on my other thread giving me confidence.
I do doubt a lot of things as Mojo is my first bird however i am pretty confident with the forum if i am going in the wrong direction someone will point me in the right direction i think thats why i post so much :laughing2:
 
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