It can't be emphasized too much, how important good nutrition is to good health. This is even more true when you are raising youngsters, as the nutrition they receive can affect their health for the rest of their life! So many problems and troubles later in life can be avoided by proper nutrition. Yet, just what does a good diet for your pet bird consist of?

You will hear almost as many theories on what constitutes a proper diet for our avian companions, as you will be able to find people who keep and care for them. Some of these theories vary widely. So, just who is right? Exactly what does it take, to see that your beloved bird receives...

by R C McDonald
copyright © 2001. All rights reserved.

The answer is not quite so simple as many people think. Few of the avian species commonly kept as companions have been so thoroughly studied by scientists that we can say exactly what their dietary requirements are. Yes, in many cases we understand most of the basics, which general quantities of carbohydrates, fats, and fibres should be present. But what about the trace nutrients so essential to proper operation of the body?

In many species the needed quantities and quality of these nutrients will vary somewhat from the requirements of other species, as will elements considered toxic. Tomato and potatoe leaves, for example, are poisonous to humans, and are usually considered toxic to avian species, too. Yet at every chance, my chickens used to 'gate-crash' my garden and gleefully strip the tomato and potatoe plants of all their leaves, to the point where their crops would be bulging with them.

Yet they remained extremely healthy, and this occasional 'binge' never produced even the smallest sign of harm in any member of my flock, nor did it affect the quantity or quality of the eggs they laid. I know, because I had the eggs tested for possible toxic content, that simply wasn't there.

While such an observation is not scientific, and does not provide conclusive evidence as to the actual toxicity of these leaves for that particular avian species, one thing it certainly does indicate, is that more species-specific studies are needed!

Mere observation that chickens have eaten tomato leaves and taken no harm does not mean I would be within my rights to turn around and feed tomatoe leaves to my pet budgie, either. What if a budgie is different from a chicken, and the leaves are poisonous to him? Well, although I don't know for sure whether or not tomato leaves actually are poisonous to a budgie, I do know that he is indeed very different from chickens, and also that he evolved on an entirely different continent.

That is enough evidence of the possibility of essential basic differences right there, to make me refuse to assume that similarities exist, when in fact they may not. But for some reason, often you will find 'scientific facts' produced for 'all avian species', when in fact thorough studies have only been done on a few of the multitude of species in existance.

The production of pelleted foods for our avian companions is a good example of some of these assumptions in play. Various methods of manufacturing pellets exist, and all destroy component nutrients to a certain extent during the manufacturing process. Just exactly to what extent varies with the kind of process used. Differing manufacturing processes use varying amounts of heat, liquid, and pressure to produce the final end product.

Most pelleted feeds produced commercially require that extra nutrients be added after manufacture, in an attempt to replace those lost during processing. This is an attempt to return the pellets to a state where they may provide what is considered 'complete' nutrition. In some instances these additional nutrients are 'soaked' into the pellet, in other cases they are added as an outer 'shell'.

Some manufacturers have studied the effects of a long-term diet consisting only of their pellets on several species, and some research along these lines is on-going. Yet to date, no one has yet produced conclusive results from intensive long-term studies on the long-term effects of a pelleted diet on the wide variety of avian species found in our homes.

It is true that such a study is both difficult and very expensive to perform; but is this any excuse for assuming that these foods maintain complete health until proven otherwise? Yet in many cases, this is the exact logic behind the sale of these products for our birds' consumption - 'until it is proven inadequate, let's assume that it is as complete as we intend it to be!'

Many people point to the fact that thousands of dogs and cats have been successfully fed for decades now, on kibbles - the equivalent, for them, of the pelleted diets manufactured for avian species. Yet how many people remember how many decades into this 'easy-feeding' experiment we were, before it was discovered that the presence or absence of certain elements was causing problems?

The problems developed by older cats from a long-term diet high in potash is by now well documented, and kibble manufacturers have for many years now, been taking steps to correct this problem.

But that doesn't change the fact that lab development of the kibbles, and research on the effectiveness of the proposed cat foods before marketing began, failed to show the existence of this problem - it wasn't until multitudes of cats had been eating these foods for years, and began showing up at the local veterinarian's offices with problems, that the cause and source was pinpointed and means could begin to be developed to combat it.

One of the saddest facts in existence anywhere, is that bird owners, who tend to be so caring, even passionate, about their pets, almost always believe they are feeding their birds well. Yet research has told us, and continues to tell us, that often this is quite simply not true. Over the long term, an inadequate diet leads to chronic illness, and, if you are trying to breed, will practically guarantee a poor performance.

One of the most interesting studies ever conducted on pet birds and their dietary problems was done in New York by researcher Laurie Hess, while working as a vet at the Animal Medical Centre in New York city.

She conducted her study on 135 pet birds, and reported her findings at the first International Symposium on Pet Bird Nutrition held in Hanover. As a guideline for her measurements, Laurie used the recommended nutrient allowances for companion birds as developed by respected avian vets Ritchie, Harrison and Harrison in 1994.

Her findings were utterly appalling. Twenty-seven percent of the birds she tested had less than the recommended levels of vitamin E, while a shocking sixty-seven percent were low in vitamin A. Even worse, ninety-seven percent - almost her entire sample! - were low in vitamin D, and even more, ninety-eight percent, were low in calcium.

I find it very interesting that half the birds she surveyed were being fed on 'complete' pelleted diets made specifically for birds.

Equally interesting, to my mind, was the fact that pet bird owners who fed seed-based diets were more liable to be aware that the diet they were providing was incomplete, and so had a tendancy to provide vitamin and mineral supplements, as is the common practice in much of Europe and Britain. Tests conducted in these countries have shown that, with proper supplementation, a seed-and-vegetable-based diet can work very well, when it comes to maintaining avian health.

Some say that the birds eating pellets would have tested far differently if they had been receiving enough quantity of the pellets to satisfy their full nutritional requirements. They point at the fact that few pet bird owners feed pellets alone; most 'dilute' the product by feeding fruit, vegetables, and scraps of table foods.

These people want all pet birds to be fed pellets, and nothing but pellets. But I am very reluctant to stop feeding a variety of foods to whatever avian companion I happen to be feeding, from finches to macaws. If they will eat pellets, fine, I will not argue a bit. Usually I will even offer more!

But I see the pleasure these intelligent, sensitive creatures get from enjoying the variety of foods I provide them, and I see how much energy and time they invest into enjoying these pleasures, and I am reluctant to change that. Maybe they would be healthier on a diet of one hundred percent pellets. It's possible.

But I won't be the one to test it, because I know if I did, they would be bored and unhappy with the change, and I couldn't bear it. Besides, I know that a diet consisting of seed, greens, and a few other extras, along with a good, balanced vitamin-and-mineral supplement, can be managed so as to keep my birds both healthy and happy.

Do we really wish to use our beloved pet birds in a similar kind of experiment to that performed on our cats and dogs for so many years? How many years will it be, before we will be able to point with confidence at a particular kind and style of pellets, and say with certainty that this mixture provides a complete and balanced diet for my particular avian companions, and be sure that we are speaking the truth?

by R C McDonald
copyright © December 2001.
All rights reserved.
www.robirda.com

For more articles on this subject, see

• www.birds2grow.com/art-whysupplement-vit.html
• www.birdcareco.com/English/Articles/Alarming/