How often should i feed them

[karan16865]

Newbie question, it seems my tiels will eat their seed mix constantly when it is in the cage, and they love millet and spinach, just wanted to know whether i should only put the seed pots in the cage certain times during the day, and limit the millet to once every few days?, just concerned because i don't want to overfeed them.

thanks

[Laura]

I would definitely limit the millet it should be only given occasionally as a treat, how much seed is in the bowl? I only put there daily allowed amount in mine and when its done thats it they also eat pellets veggies and birdie bread throughout the day. Here is a link for a food pyramid Bea posted it gives you an idea of how much and what they should be eating :)

http://www.talkcockatiels.com/showthread.php?t=1452

[karan16865]

the pots are pretty full!, is it best to feed them morning then evening with seed mix and veg's inbetween

[birdieness]

Well i don't feed per day. i fill the few food cups i have, leave them for a few days and then refill. They don't go hungery because they also get veggies everyday. Water gets changed everyday and mien hardly ever get millet. Once in a while they may. They always have a cuttle bone.

[karan16865]

Oh okay cool, thanks, i will try that, i have cuttle bone but they don't seem to touch that at all, lol, they fussy eaters, will eat only spinach at the mo, no other veggies, i will keep trying with the veg.

[Bea]

Rather than not giving them fresh seed as often (it really should be given everyday), try measuring the seed to give them only what they need. :) One cockatiel needs two tablespoons of seed mix a day. That way they can't over eat on seed, and as an added bonus they'll get much better nutritional value from the seed mix because they have to eat more than just sunflower seeds and millet. :D

If they like spinach try them on other dark leafy greens - bok choy or pak choy are really good. Spinach can affect their ability to absorb calcium so it shouldn't be fed a lot.

[atvchick95]

my dishes are filled daily not all the way, but they don't pig out at them they eat a little when i refill them in the morning then they'll go do something , play, sit on the play gym and look out the window, nap, etc. then they go back through out the day and eat more

Mine also get veggies and birdie bread every day

and mine get millet once -twice a week sometimes more if i have it

I've been reading up on millet alot actually - and it has a ton of vitamins in it which i was surprised to see (on more then 5 different websites) since i keep hearing bad things about it.

[Bea]

I'm confused on millet too, my avian vet told me that millet is low in energy and used when you put fat birds on diets. :huh: Seeing as more sources seem to say it should be a treat i don't feed it very often anyway.

[Aly]

Keep trying with the veggies -they'll eventually go for it. Just don't give up since it's really important that they get a variety of things in their diet. Millet is only as a treat. Mine get it maybe once or twice a month.

[karan16865]

thanks guys for all the input, i will cut down on the seeds to a smaller amount and experiment with the veggies. I live in the UK, any good seed mix you would recommend? e.g. any sites, or brands, mine has a allot of sunflower seeds in it, which i know is high in fat, i have to remove allot of it.

[allen]

i only measure what the daily seed should be then they go for the veggie mix then i also put the birdie bread i made into different cookie cutter shapes

[Laura]

Rather than not giving them fresh seed as often (it really should be given everyday), try measuring the seed to give them only what they need.

Thats what I do if I didn't they would be eating seed 24 hrs a day and way to much of it.

[Bea]

thanks guys for all the input, i will cut down on the seeds to a smaller amount and experiment with the veggies. I live in the UK, any good seed mix you would recommend? e.g. any sites, or brands, mine has a allot of sunflower seeds in it, which i know is high in fat, i have to remove allot of it.

Trill is quite good, i think you can get it there? I used to use it but decided there were too many sunflower seeds. What i do now is buy a bag of tiel mix and a bag of finch mix from the pet shop (look for clean, dust-free mixes) and mix them together. It really spreads the sunflower seeds out and increases the variety of seeds. :)