Did you know that there are no laws or restrictions governing the production of commercial seed mixes?? That means that everything from the quality of the grains used to chemical additives goes without supervision. Did you ever notice the handful of “dust” at the bottom of your pre-packaged mix? While a certain amount of dust is to be expected as seed hulls break apart, much of the dust in these bags are due to the disintegration of old, dry and brittle product, non-food related shop dusts and “whatever else”. When I found this out years ago, I almost fell over. Seed is an essential part of the diet for my cockatiels and quaker, so I decided to take matters into my own hands. I called my vet and asked her what she feeds her cockateils and she told me she uses only human-grade grains. The production and processing of these grains ARE subject to government regulation.

All of the grains I use in making my seed mix are human-grade and organic. They can be found in the bulk bin department of Whole Foods, or a similar establishment. The directions are easy: Buy ‘em, put ‘em in a bowl and mix ‘em up! I usually keep a pound or two ready for use in an air-tight container and freeze the rest. If you take the time to get as much air as possible out of the bags, they will keep for about six months. Vacuum sealers are great for this purpose. These are the grains I use (clockwise from top left): whole wheat berries, pearled barley, quinoa, hulled barley, whole spelt, rolled oats, oat groats, hulled millet, rye flakes, whole grain rye berries and steel cut oats. You are not limited to just these ingredients.

Note: Be sure to stir your mix up before serving as the smaller grains like quinoa, millet and steel cut oats tend to fall to the bottom.

Seed comprises about 50% of the diet of many small birds. The rest is made up of organic pellets and fresh fruit and veggies. Given this balance, you can see why it is so important to provide them with the healthiest and freshest product available. Take a look at the difference between a store bought product and my seed mix. Note the difference in color. The lighter colored homemade mix on top is clearly fresher and offers more variety without any unnecessary ingredients.

Note: The homemade mix at the top contains only fresh, organic, human-grade grains.

To my surprise, my cockatiels had a problem with switching to this new blend. They were accustomed to and comfortable with their old store bought brand.  My feelings were hurt when they shunned my mix. So, I did what any good mom would do: I tricked them into eating what was good for them! I added a 1/4 lb of my mix to 1 lb of their old mix to start with, slowly upped it to 50/50, and eventually weaned them completely off of the old seed. They love it now.

While I don’t recommend seed in the diet of many birds, it is the largest part of the diet for some species in the wild and access to seed provides them with emotional as well as physical well-being. If the seeds are fresh, many will sprout and are really beneficial to to the diet of any sized birds. Cockatiel seed can sprout into a delicious, healthy treat for your large parrots.

One super easy method of sprouting is to spread a thin, sparse layer of seeds over a damp (not quite “soaking wet”) paper towel before you go to bed. I put the paper towel and seed mix on a plate or in a shallow container and cover loosely with a dry paper towel. Leave it on the counter in a warm spot over night and you will have the beginnings of sprouts in the morning or afternoon. The key to success in this is finding just the right spot in your kitchen (or wherever) to place the paper towel. Try different locations if your kitchen counter isn’t working for you. It is not necessary for the seed to have a plant growing out of it. The benefit of sprouts begins at the first stages of germination. The tiniest little nodule coming out of the seed means is has sprouted and is ready to eat. Don’t leave your sprouting mixture out beyond the afternoon. The wet paper towel can easily pick up bacteria the longer it stays in the air. Have fun!

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I decided to do a video blog about the changes we made to Storm’s environment in an effort to set him up for better success in his time here with us. So please take a look!

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Tip to take home: Setting an animal up for success just means putting the odds in his favor. For example, if you’re going to train your bird a new trick, you don’t want to start at your neighbor’s house, during a party with a bunch of strangers looking over your shoulder and talking distractions and music playing. That is setting your bird up to fail. However, if you work with the training table they are used to “learning” on, with no music or outside distractions and it’s just you and your bird and he’s on a training diet, you have set your bird up for succeeding at the task ahead.

You’re all probably wondering what happened with Storm?! Well, I will tell you…

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In my attempt to let Storm spend more time with me, I brought him out in the morning to watch me work out. He can watch me from his cage, but I thought some “out of cage” time was even better. The quality time trick had worked so well the day before that I thought… why not?

?Well, I quickly learned the reason why not…

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Apparently, there was a law passed stating that when your bird needs medical attention, your vet must be closed. Probably for the weekend. Sure, there are all night emergency vet clinics available, but chances are there won’t be an avian vet. Bad enough that you have to bring your beloved parrot to a complete stranger in the worst of times, but he or she might not know an egg-binding from a fur ball. Still, accidents can and do happen. It is a very wise idea to have a parrot first aid/evacuation kit always on hand to treat the minor problems, or to stave off the major ones while you are on your way to get help. Know what each item in your kit is for and how to use them, know when your vet must be called. This is a list of contents you should have in your first aid kit, followed by things necessary for emergency evacuation:

Photo from www.drsfostersmith.com

From a broken blood feather to a broken leg, your first aid kit can help save your parrots life.

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At home, Storm was allowed on his owner’s shoulder by choice. He wasn’t put up there, he was LET up there to put himself there. This is a huge problem over time and it’s best to always PUT your bird on your shoulder if you want it there, and not let it put itself there.

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The reason why is because you bird will know that it’s only OK to go there if you put him there and otherwise will stay on your hand. It can also be super tough to break the habit of a bird who immediately lets himself on to your shoulder and if he does it to you, it is likely he will do it to everyone else, too. Such was the case for Storm.

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One of the biggest decisions you will face as a parrot owner is in selecting the right veterinarian. Here, in Austin TX, there are a large number of parrot owners, so we are graced with several avian vets allowing us the freedom to choose among them. Other states have relatively few, and I have a number of friends who drive hours to get to one.

Why an avian specialist? A birds physiology largely differs from that of our cats and dogs. Testing for and treating disease and injury in our companion parrots must be suited to a bird’s needs and vulnerabilities. A vet who is inexperienced in avian care might not be qualified to handle your case due to lack of knowledge of ailments specific to birds or the products available to treat them. Further, handling a sick, grumpy parrot who is being manhandled by a stranger is tricky business.

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