How To Make My Little Baby Eat Veggies And Fruits

[KiwiBudgie 0]

Hello,

 

I tried to give my little budgie (8 weeks + ) shredded carrot, apple in smallest pieces, lettuce and corn (oh by the way, should the corn be raw or boiled?) ... nothing

he didn't even try it. I have thrown away the next day

Today i tried to give him lettuce (wet in the water) nothing. I put it after in his feeder...when i came back the piece of lettuce was out of feeder

how to make them eat veggies ?

Maybe he is small ? or maybe because he didn't settle up in the new home ?

thank yo

[Karyn 0]

I can only answer that the corn should be raw, my budgies only eat a select few vegies so I am not an expert in recommending how to get a budgie to eat vegies, maybe it is because he is young, most budgies can't resist corn though

[KiwiBudgie 0]

Oh thank you maybe he didn't want because it was not raw. Hee hee hee

Will try again. But he doesn't want any lettuce apples. Nothing except seeds

Can I give him banana ?

[Phoebes 0]

I think the key to success is to just keep putting it in. I buy canned whole corn (otherwise I cook corn on the cob and wait till it cools) with no additives, especially no salt, they love it. You can try putting a piece of carrot or other stuff like apples through the bars. It makes a bit of a mess but often the bird will taste it accidentally because he wants to remove it from the cage, they love housekeeping. One of my birds is crazy about home grown cherry tomatoes cut in two. I found that they also love lemongrass, you can grow different types of grass under a grow light and clip a piece for your bird. I grew a small eucalyptus tree but my birds devoured it, I am presently growing another. They don't sell them here because it's too cold for most varieties to grow. The lettuce can also be stuffed through the bars. When your bird has tasted different things and you see he likes them then you can put it in a bowl. I am going to make blueberry muffins for my birds today with whole wheat flour. The last time I did this they had so much fun tearing them apart. I am sure they taste and it keeps them happy. Sugar is not good for birds either. Although they do like fresh cane, not the sugar but branches of it.

 

I think broccoli is my birds favorite but I only give with no pesticides (true biological). Broccoli sold for humans is not good for birds. I studied and worked with pesticides (horticulture) and even I don't like ordinary broccoli. I find it smells like diazinon a pesticide (brand name) widely used a while back. I used to grow my own and soak it in salty water to remove the pests.

[robyn 0]

The trick is little and often, try one new thing at a time, when they accept that go on to add a new veg. Sweet corn raw or cooked, not so much lettuce it's supposed to give them diarrhea, silver beet is good. A bit of bread is okay, not very often, like us it makes them fat if they get it a lot.

 

Just try the things on the safe food list until he gets used to new foods it takes a while for them to accept it. In an aviary it's a bit different, once one try's something the others seem to follow, also when breeding, whatever veg's you feed parents the young seem to accept when they have fledged.

[paulie 0]

I feed my birds seed (various forms of millet, Black stripe sunflower in small amounts(to much will make them fat when not breeding) steamed rolled oat with husk on, sold as Horse food).

 

Veggies include but not limited to -:

Fresh picked local flowering grasses, Broccoli whole plant when available, spinach, cauliflower, corn on the cob, silverbeet, whole radish plant, Bochoy lettuce (never iceberg or other watery lettuce). I never cook veg for birds, for the same reasons I do not feed pellet mixes, the cooking destroys the nutritional value of the foods particularly vitamin C and D3 and with corn, cooking converts the sugars to complex starches and is difficult for birds to digest. All veg is served raw and on the floor of the cage or flight, this is where they will naturally forage for food including small insects.

 

I also give calcium, iodine and vitamin supplements.

RAW VEG IS BEST.

 

To get a new budgie to try new foods, I use the abundance method. Lots of seed lots of veg on floor near other food or spread over the floor of enclosure. Budgies are normally very inquisitive and like to peck at every thing in its environment and will eventually try.

 

A hungry bird "will look for the foods it knows" and will be reluctant to try things it doesn't recognise as food.

Also a bird that has been hand reared is at a disadvantage because it will have missed out on learning what food is from parents and other birds. This doesn't mean that it won't eat other foods, it just take longer for it to try new things.

 

I cant comment on pesticides as I don,t have that info.

 

Rule of thumb, thoroughly wash all veg but don,t cook.

 

EDIT-- Your bird may be fretting a bit too as he will have bonded with its surrogate feeder. Take it slowly and spend regular time quietly talking to, offering a finger to roost on and you will gain the trust of your bird. once you have your birds trust things will be much smother for both of you.

Remember your new bird is a baby and is learning how to live. At 8 weeks they can be compared to a 2-3 year old child learning potty training.

Edited October 30, 2013 by paulie

[paulie 0]

NO NO Banana is too high in potassium can be toxic to budgies and resembles nothing found in their native desert habitat of central Western Australia, C &W areas of South Australia, southern and central areas of Australia's Northern Territory.

 

Offer lots of fresh foods and seed at the same time. See "Safe foods list in this forum".

 

A hungry bird and particularly a hand reared bird may not recognise it as food and will look for what it currently recognises as food.

Offer lots of fresh food and seed, and while exploring, he will find and try it. I put it on the floor of the cage or flight where budgies will naturally forage. Will need to be changed at least once a day depending on local temp and humidity.

A hand reared bird may take longer to recognise food depending on how and what it was raised on.

Persistence & patience are the keys to success.

.

Edited October 30, 2013 by paulie

[KiwiBudgie 0]

Thank you !!!! But today he didn't even eat seeds !!!! Just nothing

[KiwiBudgie 0]

Thank you Paulie !!!!! Thinks a lot.

I think he ate a little on the second day or third from the feeder. But yesterday I put him in a new cage the big one and even if I think he enjoys him self there he stops eat. It seems that he doesn't understand where to eat not talking about veggies !!!! Not even apple placed on the cage near his toy

Edited October 31, 2013 by Finnie

[paulie 0]

Kiwi No prob.

New location and baby bird. If isn't sick add everything and let him explore. New birds to my stud often take some time to get use to the new environment.

[Birdlove 0]

Thank you !!!! But today he didn't even eat seeds !!!! Just nothing

 

If he isn't even eating seeds, I think it would probably be best if you didn't offer him any fruits/veggies until he is settled into his new home and eating his seeds. You can clip a spray of millet near wherever he likes to perch in his cage. Most budgies can't resist it, and it is better than eating nothing. Once he is totally comfortable in his cage and eating seed, then introduce veggies. I also think it is best to choose one kind of veggie and offer it repeatedly (every day). Budgies don't recognize new things as food and so they don't eat it. But if you put one kind of veggie in the cage every day eventually your budgie should get curious and nibble on it.

 

Good luck

[Birdlove 0]

The trick is little and often, try one new thing at a time, when they accept that go on to add a new veg. Sweet corn raw or cooked, not so much lettuce it's supposed to give them diarrhea, silver beet is good. A bit of bread is okay, not very often, like us it makes them fat if they get it a lot.

 

Just try the things on the safe food list until he gets used to new foods it takes a while for them to accept it. In an aviary it's a bit different, once one try's something the others seem to follow, also when breeding, whatever veg's you feed parents the young seem to accept when they have fledged.

 

robyn, my budgie eats lettuce all the time, its his favorite veggie, and he never has diarrhea...

[KiwiBudgie 0]

sorry for this a little bit :) question, but if my budgie has today poo of dark green color, but absolutely not liquid and normal shape is it okay ?

[Phoebes 0]

NO NO Banana is too high in potassium can be toxic to budgies and resembles nothing found in their native desert habitat of central Western Australia, C &W areas of South Australia, southern and central areas of Australia's Northern Territory.

 

Offer lots of fresh foods and seed at the same time. See "Safe foods list in this forum".

 

A hungry bird and particularly a hand reared bird may not recognise it as food and will look for what it currently recognises as food.

Offer lots of fresh food and seed, and while exploring, he will find and try it. I put it on the floor of the cage or flight where budgies will naturally forage. Will need to be changed at least once a day depending on local temp and humidity.

A hand reared bird may take longer to recognise food depending on how and what it was raised on.

Persistence & patience are the keys to success.

.

 

No wonder my birds hate banana. Other forums suggested they liked it. My birds will have nothing to do with it.

[KiwiBudgie 0]

continue to try nothing... touch the carrot and almost crashed disgusting

No chance with apple either

[Birdlove 0]

sorry for this a little bit :) question, but if my budgie has today poo of dark green color, but absolutely not liquid and normal shape is it okay ?

 

Are you asking if its okay if your budgie's poo is darker than normal? If yes... it is probably fine. My budgie's poo varies in color. As long as it is solid and a shade of green it is probably nothing to worry about

[Finnie 0]

I can only answer that the corn should be raw,

 

Budgies will eat corn in any form. It doesn't need to be raw. If you use canned corn, you should use the kind with no salt added, because the regular kind is too high in salt.

 

Broccoli sold for humans is not good for birds.

 

Regular broccoli is fine for birds. There are many different opinions about organic vegetables vs normally produced ones. Go with whatever you prefer.

 

NO NO Banana is too high in potassium can be toxic to budgies and resembles nothing found in their native desert habitat

 

Very little of what we feed our birds actually comes from their native habitat. If we wanted to mimic a wild budgie's diet, we would fail miserably. Fortunately for us, and for budgies worldwide, they thrive on the various substitute diets that we humans have been able to develop for them.

 

For those whose budgies like bananas, more power to them. I highly doubt a budgie would eat enough banana to overdose on the potassium, which is an essential component of minerals in a bird's diet anyway. Generally, I have found that budgies are not real partial to any fruits, but there are always exceptions.

 

Any food that you like to eat that is not high in fat, salt and sugar, and is not chocolate, avacodo or onion, then go ahead and feed it to your budgie. (I.e., no junk food.)

 

Thank you !!!! But today he didn't even eat seeds !!!! Just nothing

 

Blow on his seed dish and look for empty husks. He probably ate while you were not looking, but you can't really tell by looking at the seed dish.

 

But yesterday I put him in a new cage the big one and even if I think he enjoys him self there he stops eat. It seems that he doesn't understand where to eat

 

Let him settle in to his new home. No more switching cages. He needs time to get comfortable and find his way around his cage, and where the food dishes are located, and whether it is safe to explore the cage, and now he has to start all over from day one again.

 

Kiwi, if you are this worried about him eating, then you need to leave him alone. Back off and WAIT until you see that he is eating happily before you mess around with anything else. There will be plenty of time for baths, bonding, taming, playing, and teaching to eat every vegetable under the sun AFTER he relaxes and eats his seeds well enough to keep up his strength.

 

Fortunately from the description you gave me in your email, his poops are formed normally and he is obviously eating something. Don't worry about tweaking his diet until next week. Just let him eat his seeds and the food the breeder gave you to take home until then.

[Flip 0]

Hi KiwiBudgie,

I agree with Finnie. The most important thing to do now is to let your budgie settle in to his new home. Be consistent with what you feed him and don't give him new foods to try at first. There will be plenty of time for this later. He's only a baby, and everything is new and strange to him now and you have to let him work it out and adapt to his new surroundings. Don't change anything or add anything now - whether it be toys, food containers, etc until he looks more confident and at ease. Also, don't expect too much from him too soon. He will settle down and you'll soon have a happy, noisy little bird.

 

A brief word about food. When your budgie is settled in, you can try new foods with him. I find that most budgies are naturally suspicious of new foods, and you may have to try an item (eg, carrot, apple) at least several times before they will nibble it. Having said that, not all budgies will like the same fruit and vege. Some of my birds go crazy for beetroot, and others avoid it. Some love celery and broccoli, and others won't even try them. They all have their preferences. All my budgies love corn however. I use corn on the cob or thawed frozen corn kernels.

[Unicorn fartz 0]

 You can start them eating veggies by slowly putting shredded carrots in with their seed. At first they may eat it accidentally but after while they will start to enjoy the taste of it .