Ah, diet conversion. It can be fun or it can torture 😂. To everyone watching this video and reading this comment, don't give up. It truly is a journey sometimes and I'm not ashamed to admit that I had days when I cried because my cockatiel wasn't eating fresh veggies. My first girl, Sunny (a year old now), was an absolute nightmare to convert (though it could be because I had a lot of misinformation from online before I found David and Sophie's videos), but the freeze dried was definitely a game changer for her. She even got dubbed 'the freeze dried queen' because it was the only way to get her to eat healthy for a while. With my other girl, Luna (only just turning 5 months), it was night and day on how easily she converted to veggies and healthy mixes. She also loves herbs. Sunny finally fully transitioned, after a full year, to being good with veggies and (almost) all the healthy goodies when Luna moved in 😂. It takes time, patience, and sometimes a day here and there of crying because it feels like it's not working. It is. Eventually they will get on a better diet if you're consistent. And don't forget to weigh them regularly when converting and David and Sophie have videos on that as well 😁
I wish I had known about soaking! I have a mix of adventurous and picky eaters here, and these little devils are about to try some soaked lentils. I have a rescue cockatiel who has refused everything but seeds and pellets who is about to get some nice lentils in his breakfast. Love you two, thank you as always for the wonderful video.
I needed this video. We've been trying for over a year with minimal luck. They had some bites of some veggies we hung from a rope, but that's it. They really need those vitamines so today we've started vit drops in their food, while continuing to try to convert them to veggies (now on harrison's / Top's pellet mix and seeds).
For some reason my GCC only wants to eat food if it is is spread out so she can eat one thing at a time. She will eat a variety of veggies but I have to cut the stuff up and spread it out on a plate. She's a conure so she will definitely pick out the sweeter veggies first (peas, corn, carrots, red peppers) but she will also eat broccoli, green pepper, celery, and zucchini. She does love her herbs too. David youre right that herbs are a good way to start on greens. The first green I could get her to eat was mint, but now she loves thyme and rosemary. It smells so good in my house and I have learned to dry out the herbs and use them myself so nothing goes to waste. Thanks for the great advice David. Youve helped us so much in caring for our Kiwi
Herbs are such a win, Im so glad we discovered their uses too! Having a conure buffet sounds like a good idea to me lol, she knows how she wants it presented!
Bit surprised green seeding grasses didn't get a look in; especially since they are what bring wild budgies and cockatiels into breeding condition and are the staple they mostly raise their young on (there is very little dry seed in the arid regions after rain). It's as though these two species are instictively drawn to green seeding grass heads..... and they're almost free! I grow mixed short lawn seed in three pots along with some wallaby grass and rotate them through the bird room every couple of days. Slows down in Winter, of course. Keeps the birds busy and they love it! Full of protein, beta carotenes, water-soluble carbs and trace minerals. You can even grow them on a sunny balcony or window box.
So microgreens are indeed awesome! However sadly I couldnt feature everything in this video and tried to pick the very easiest methods! I have covered grass before however as its very true what you say!
@@TheParrotTeacher Yes, I understand. I think 'easiest' is relative and everyone's situation is different though. I live 40 minutes' drive from the supermarket and 3 hours' drive from the city; so for me, the very easiest methods always involve sustainable and regenerative practices that don't require me to go to the shops or spend more money on specialty products every week.... but that's not for everyone and you know your own audience better than I do.
Hi David - and thanks for your fantastic channel. I follow both you and Sophie and use many of your tips and advice. This results in, among other things, in that my birds have some really exciting cages etc. for interior decoration. And we really care about giving them choices, training with them and having a lot of fun About their diet, most of my birds have adopted it, but my cockatiels, they are a bit more stubborn. 😂❤ Fortunately, I can also be stubborn - so I don't give up. I do use the seed mix Sophie did herself in one of her videos, and I don't think it's more expensive than buying one that is pre-mixed PS: the crew here consists of 6 cockatiels, 2 love birds and 25 budgies
I have started making a dry seed mix for my cockatiel Vera to hopefully get her onto that instead of the commercial seed mix she has currently been on. I have tried soaking the seeds and grains and I noticed she really dislikes them when they're wet. She was however very keen on fresh greens which i was positively surprised to see so I'm focusing on that right now. I definitely find cockatiels to be more stubborn than my budgie for example. It took around two months with my budgie but it's been a year with my cockatiel Sid and she still barely touches anything green. Certainly takes patience...
@stuckinthelazycorneragain4016 no problem! Hopefully that helps! You can also try it with wet chop or super wet veggies like carrots and peppers. It took my girl Sunny a full year to convert to actually eating her veggies, so don't give up. David and Sophie have the best videos and if you've not heard about it and have a few extra dollars each month, highly recommend getting on one of their patreons or RUclips memberships to join their discord. Along with David and Sophie being very active, there are lots of other super helpful and knowledgeable people in the group that can give you encouragement, ideas, and answer questions fairly quickly as well. I wouldn't plug it if I didn't know the benefit because birdy care is not cheap lol
I was looking for the Top's seed mix Napoleon here in the Netherlands. Luckily, I found a few webshops where I can order it. But everywhere I look, I see in the description that the seeds need to be soaked in water. Is this really necessary or can I also feed them dry?
I love your videos. First time bird mom here since July. My boy is only a littl over 4 months and he took right to fresh veggies and I make him chop with a variety of things. He loves his peppers. I sprinkle chia seeds onto his chop and I thought that may help in others converting their birds onto veggies. Ive also been mixing up my own seeds. But what ones are the healthiest? I use pumpkin, safflower, buckwheat, chia and hemp seeds. I haven't been able to find much info on healthier seeds except these. I took him completely off of sunflower seeds and the store bought seed mixes. I plan to get the black oil sunflower seeds instead of the ones that come in the seed mixes.
Thank you! Id look into grains too, those are useful to mix in! Safflower and hemp are fine but are best fed more in moderation as they are higher in fat!
Ah, diet conversion. It can be fun or it can torture 😂. To everyone watching this video and reading this comment, don't give up. It truly is a journey sometimes and I'm not ashamed to admit that I had days when I cried because my cockatiel wasn't eating fresh veggies. My first girl, Sunny (a year old now), was an absolute nightmare to convert (though it could be because I had a lot of misinformation from online before I found David and Sophie's videos), but the freeze dried was definitely a game changer for her. She even got dubbed 'the freeze dried queen' because it was the only way to get her to eat healthy for a while. With my other girl, Luna (only just turning 5 months), it was night and day on how easily she converted to veggies and healthy mixes. She also loves herbs. Sunny finally fully transitioned, after a full year, to being good with veggies and (almost) all the healthy goodies when Luna moved in 😂. It takes time, patience, and sometimes a day here and there of crying because it feels like it's not working. It is. Eventually they will get on a better diet if you're consistent. And don't forget to weigh them regularly when converting and David and Sophie have videos on that as well 😁
The work was worthwhile for you! And yes consistency and patience is key as always!
I wish I had known about soaking! I have a mix of adventurous and picky eaters here, and these little devils are about to try some soaked lentils. I have a rescue cockatiel who has refused everything but seeds and pellets who is about to get some nice lentils in his breakfast. Love you two, thank you as always for the wonderful video.
Thank you! Soaking is awesome and so much easier than sprouting too!
I needed this video. We've been trying for over a year with minimal luck. They had some bites of some veggies we hung from a rope, but that's it. They really need those vitamines so today we've started vit drops in their food, while continuing to try to convert them to veggies (now on harrison's / Top's pellet mix and seeds).
Hopefully it proves useful! Keep at it!
For some reason my GCC only wants to eat food if it is is spread out so she can eat one thing at a time. She will eat a variety of veggies but I have to cut the stuff up and spread it out on a plate. She's a conure so she will definitely pick out the sweeter veggies first (peas, corn, carrots, red peppers) but she will also eat broccoli, green pepper, celery, and zucchini. She does love her herbs too. David youre right that herbs are a good way to start on greens. The first green I could get her to eat was mint, but now she loves thyme and rosemary. It smells so good in my house and I have learned to dry out the herbs and use them myself so nothing goes to waste. Thanks for the great advice David. Youve helped us so much in caring for our Kiwi
Herbs are such a win, Im so glad we discovered their uses too!
Having a conure buffet sounds like a good idea to me lol, she knows how she wants it presented!
Bit surprised green seeding grasses didn't get a look in; especially since they are what bring wild budgies and cockatiels into breeding condition and are the staple they mostly raise their young on (there is very little dry seed in the arid regions after rain). It's as though these two species are instictively drawn to green seeding grass heads..... and they're almost free! I grow mixed short lawn seed in three pots along with some wallaby grass and rotate them through the bird room every couple of days. Slows down in Winter, of course. Keeps the birds busy and they love it! Full of protein, beta carotenes, water-soluble carbs and trace minerals. You can even grow them on a sunny balcony or window box.
So microgreens are indeed awesome! However sadly I couldnt feature everything in this video and tried to pick the very easiest methods!
I have covered grass before however as its very true what you say!
@@TheParrotTeacher Yes, I understand. I think 'easiest' is relative and everyone's situation is different though.
I live 40 minutes' drive from the supermarket and 3 hours' drive from the city; so for me, the very easiest methods always involve sustainable and regenerative practices that don't require me to go to the shops or spend more money on specialty products every week.... but that's not for everyone and you know your own audience better than I do.
Hi David - and thanks for your fantastic channel. I follow both you and Sophie and use many of your tips and advice. This results in, among other things, in that my birds have some really exciting cages etc. for interior decoration. And we really care about giving them choices, training with them and having a lot of fun
About their diet, most of my birds have adopted it, but my cockatiels, they are a bit more stubborn. 😂❤
Fortunately, I can also be stubborn - so I don't give up.
I do use the seed mix Sophie did herself in one of her videos, and I don't think it's more expensive than buying one that is pre-mixed
PS: the crew here consists of 6 cockatiels, 2 love birds and 25 budgies
Glad the content is useful!
Wow thats quite the flock you have! It must keep you busy!
I have started making a dry seed mix for my cockatiel Vera to hopefully get her onto that instead of the commercial seed mix she has currently been on. I have tried soaking the seeds and grains and I noticed she really dislikes them when they're wet. She was however very keen on fresh greens which i was positively surprised to see so I'm focusing on that right now. I definitely find cockatiels to be more stubborn than my budgie for example. It took around two months with my budgie but it's been a year with my cockatiel Sid and she still barely touches anything green. Certainly takes patience...
My girl Sunny doesn't like them wet either. I just dry/get the excess water off with a paper towel. Maybe give that a whirl
@@skort94 That's such a simple idea that I didn't think of, thank you! Will definitely try 😁
@stuckinthelazycorneragain4016 no problem! Hopefully that helps! You can also try it with wet chop or super wet veggies like carrots and peppers. It took my girl Sunny a full year to convert to actually eating her veggies, so don't give up. David and Sophie have the best videos and if you've not heard about it and have a few extra dollars each month, highly recommend getting on one of their patreons or RUclips memberships to join their discord. Along with David and Sophie being very active, there are lots of other super helpful and knowledgeable people in the group that can give you encouragement, ideas, and answer questions fairly quickly as well. I wouldn't plug it if I didn't know the benefit because birdy care is not cheap lol
Great idea about the moisture! Keep at it too!
I have to mix seed in my cockatiels chop for them to even consider eating it.
That is a valid method!
I was looking for the Top's seed mix Napoleon here in the Netherlands. Luckily, I found a few webshops where I can order it. But everywhere I look, I see in the description that the seeds need to be soaked in water. Is this really necessary or can I also feed them dry?
Soaking is better for sure! It can be fed dry too however!
I love your videos. First time bird mom here since July. My boy is only a littl over 4 months and he took right to fresh veggies and I make him chop with a variety of things. He loves his peppers. I sprinkle chia seeds onto his chop and I thought that may help in others converting their birds onto veggies. Ive also been mixing up my own seeds. But what ones are the healthiest? I use pumpkin, safflower, buckwheat, chia and hemp seeds. I haven't been able to find much info on healthier seeds except these. I took him completely off of sunflower seeds and the store bought seed mixes. I plan to get the black oil sunflower seeds instead of the ones that come in the seed mixes.
Thank you!
Id look into grains too, those are useful to mix in!
Safflower and hemp are fine but are best fed more in moderation as they are higher in fat!
I got a whole pack of stuff that you have recommended these past months at Northern Parrots, but they don't ship outside the UK :/
Sorry to hear it! Every country does have birdie suppliers though and soaking seeds and herbs are universal!
@@TheParrotTeacher Aye, I got some of the napoleon mix, but freeze dried veggies are hard to come by, let alone for birds.
They are tough to source! Its something us and others are trying to make more accessible