Sometimes getting our birds to eat fresh foods can feel like a battle, but please know even if you lose a battle, but you haven’t lost the war unless you give up. If you understand the health benefits of them eating fresh foods you won’t give up. I too have had this battle, but I am happy to say that finally my two Cockatiels Spree & Lazarus are eating some fresh at least once a week, but this past week it was twice. I still offer it to them 3 days a week.
I have a new Canary (Elijah) & I am trying to get him to eat fresh, I don’t know if he ever had it in his previous home, but have doubts his owner cared for him that much. I say that because him & another Canary were abandoned in an apartment when the guy got evicted. Canaries tend to like greens, so I decided to try putting greens in a holder I have. You fill it & attach to the cage bars & they can peck at it & get the greens. I will attach a photo of it below. Update: after about a month of feeding him fresh 3 times a week he is eating most of the fresh foods I give him. I found putting some small pieces of greens on top of the other fresh foods attracted him to the dish. I also sprinkled a little Chia seed on the fresh food.
The end you attach between the bars opens & you can fill it & close it. You can also put in pieces or fruit or other veggies for your birds to peck at. So far this is a way I can get Elijah to eat fresh & he has had, Kale, Romaine lettuce, Mustard greens, spinach in this container. I found he also eats better when fed in the AM than the PM.
Trying different types of ways to feed fresh may be what works, from as simple as putting the fresh food in the same type of dish you use for seed or water. I replace the seed cup with the fresh food & leave the seed out while the fresh food is in the cage.
Or maybe a more creative thing like one of these fresh food holders below. Now if your bird is not comfortable with new things, put the new item a good 3 feet from the cage, but in view of the bird & daily move it closer as long as it isn’t scaring your bird, go as slow as need to, so your bird feels safe & comfortable with the new feeder.
This one above allows you to attach a piece of food to a wheel & your bird can play & eat.
This one & the next one hold food for your bird to pick at.
They are similar, but one is more open.
Veggie & fruit kabob skewers are another idea & they are usually used for birds that are medium to large. They come in a variety of lengths & looks, with some having a ball you unscrew & feed food onto it & then put the ball back on.
Sometimes a dish (shown below) that looks interesting is good for the curious bird such as a Lovebird or Parrotlet.
Another option might be a hanging basket type holder for fresh foods.
If your bird is tame, having them out with you & having fresh food nearby & feeding them fresh food they think your eating can entice many birds enough to try it. Saying “yummy this is good” & acting like you’re eating & enjoying it, or really eating some of it. Best not to let your bird eat anything that has been in your mouth, or bitten off of.
Birds can also be enticed to eat food when they see another bird eating it.
Now in the above photo the one male Parakeet doesn’t appear to want to share & the one on the right reaches for a bite.
Being open to trying new things may be the answer to getting them to eat fresh foods & don’t give up. I have blogged a few times on feeding your birds so please go to my home page & look at the table of content under the show tab in the upper left corner of the home page, then you can go back to the home page & scroll to the posts on bird care/feeding.
So to recap:
1. Don’t give up, keep trying. Fresh food is so good for our birds health, a diet of just seed or pellets is not good for a long healthy life.
2. Try feeding fresh a different time of the day, maybe your bird prefers to eat earlier or later.
3. Try a different holder/dish for the fresh food.
4. Try putting the fresh in the same type of dish their seed is fed in & replacing the seed dish for fresh for a couple hours a day. . Birds can go hours without food or water (so don’t worry).
5. If your bird is tame then try hand-feeding it fresh veggies & fruit.
6. Try cutting the food in a different size or shape. I have seen birds eat some food if cut smaller or in a different shape.
7. Try a variety of fresh fruits & veggies, even try thawing frozen veggies & fruit. Some birds like some veggies raw & some like some veggies lightly steamed. (NO salt or butter added).
8. Remember most people like variety in their diet & so do most of our birds, what they may eat today, they may not want tomorrow, or what one bird likes might not be what another likes.
I hope you have found this helpful, if so please click the like button at the bottom of the page. Share my blog with others, Subscribe, Comment, & Visit often. My goal is to help pet owners help their pets & share my 20 years of fostering pets & a lifetime of living with pets. I am passionate about animals & write this blog to share my knowledge with others. If you have a question you can email me. I am also open to topic suggestions. My email is echoinggreatpetcare@gmail.com Thank you, Debbie
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