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22 Jun 2014

Feeding Your Budgie (Parakeet)

Posted By : Guest

Filed Under : Nutrition | Birds | Roudybush | Bird Food | Budgies

Giving your budgie the proper nutrition is important if you expect it to live for many years. Seeds were once the only food that bird enthusiasts believed were the proper way to feed their birds. But new research has proved that seed mixes don't contain enough calcium, iodine and vitamin A, and they contain too much fat, which is harmful to your budgie's health and may shorten their lifespan. Most domesticated budgies die between the age of 3 and 7, and this is often due to malnutrition.

So what should the budgie be fed? The first thing is to introduce pellets to your budgie. This needs to be pellets that do not contain preservatives, artificial flavourings, or colourings such as Roudybush Daily Maintenance - Nibles. If you choose another brand, just be sure no added sugars are included inside the mix you choose.

In general budgies can be picky eaters. For some reason these parrots are stubborn and it takes time to incorporate new foods into their diet. It is even more difficult as they get older. The best time to incorporate and expose them to new foods is when they are young preferably when they are being weaned.

In general many parrots have a deficiency of vitamin A and suffer a great deal because of this lack. Feeding budgies, bird pellets is a great way to supplement for this deficiency. With Roudybush Daily Maintenance pellets, you can avoid a wide range of problems that are associated with the low nutritional values from seed mixes: breathing problems, obesity, calcium deficiency, breeding problems and early death. I know this may seem like a huge eye-opener, even a bit shocking to a lot of people.

Why do they keep selling seed mixes in pet stores if this is so bad for budgies? First of all: not everything they sell at the pet store is good for your budgies. Think of all the sugar-loaded crackers and other treats that are more bad than good for your budgies' health. Birds have been associated with eating seeds for centuries, but this is actually not how it should be. Budgies in the wild feed off grass seeds, plants and fruit. If they weren't exposed to so many dangers, they would outlive domesticated budgerigars.

People buy seed mixes for their budgies because they don't know better - and because everyone else does it - and because there's a beautiful picture of a budgie on the cover. The people who manufacture these seed mixes don't know how bad this is for birds.

Roudybush are special steam-pelleted food that is designed to retain beneficial nutrients while eliminating harmful bacteria. Roudybush is proud to provide your pet with healthy food that is good for them, with ingredients their bodies require, not food that is appealing to our human eyes. That is why Roudybush only uses high quality ingredients and never add food colourings or sugar. So what is fascinating is that after a few months on Roudybush pellets, you'll notice a physical and emotional difference in your pet's health.

Roudybush Daily Maintenance diet contains 11% protein, 7% fat and is used for budgies year-round. No additional vitamins or mineral supplements are needed and your can choose between two different pellet sizes for budgies, either nibles or crumbles.

Pellets should never be given to a budgie if it has not had time to adjust to them. Many owners will make the mistake of placing just pellets into the cage and expect their budgies to eat them. Though an owner’s intentions are good, this can be a fatal mistake as many budgies will refuse to eat them at first and many will die as a result of starvation.

So how can the budgie learn to eat pellets? It is being consistent with the bird’s healthy diet and being patient as new foods are introduced. Many budgies will at first disregard the pellets placed into the cage. The pellets can be placed by the food bowls or the water dish. At first the budgie may decide to occasionally pick at them out of curiosity. Once the budgie shows the slightest interest with the pellets, the owner can then begin mixing a teaspoon of pellets into its seeds on a daily basis. If the budgie is already eating fruits and vegetables, a few pellets can be sprinkled on top. This constant exposure with other food items helps the budgie to identify the pellets as something that is edible.

As the weeks pass, the ratio of pellets and seeds should gradually change. More pellets should be added and the seeds slowly phased out. This gradual shift will help the budgie adjust to its pellets. The owner must remain consistent with this approach.

If the budgie is still not that keen on trying the pellets the owner can try a new blend of pellets. Some are shaped differently and have different tastes that a pet budgie may prefer. It is important the owner find one that sparks the bird’s curiosity as this will make the transition from seeds to pellets easier. It also important to know that some pellets may die the droppings of the parakeet. This is totally normal and the owner should not worry.

Owners who have tame budgies may have an easier time in getting their bird to eat the pellets and new foods because this birds are usually very interested in what their owners eat. Many owners can pretend to eat the pellets and the budgie will take notice. The owner can then offer their budgie some pellets to see if they will eat them. If the budgie does not like the consistency the owner may wish to moisten them up a bit as this makes the pellets more alluring and may be more edible to the bird.

Owners need to realize that all birds are different and some may take longer than others to accept the new foods. Pellets are a foreign food item and are not natural to a budgie. For this reason alone, budgies need time to adjust and get used to the shapes and colour of pellets. The owners who are consistent with providing their pet budgie with healthy and new foods will eventually reap the rewards of having a not-so-picky bird and also a more healthy and long-living bird.