# He won't eat any fruits or veggies! Help!



## Lunawolfsong (Mar 31, 2016)

My cockatiel, Kirby, refuses to eat any fruits or vegetables. I've tried different tricks to encourage him to eat, but he simply refuses. I've tried presenting them in different ways, sneaking them into his food bowl, eating it in front of him, and even removing his regular food before bedtime so that he would be hungry in the morning and giving him fruits and veggies instead of pellet. He simply started eating a paper toy rather than the healthy stuff, so I put his pellets back in. What should I do? 

I can tell what he likes and doesn't like, because he kind of taste foods he does like when we hold it for him, but won't take a bite out of them! So far, I know that he likes romaine lettuce, apples, snap peas, and green bell pepper. In fact, green bell pepper was the only vegetable that he actually ate. 

I've been told that, if all else fails, I can buy supplements from a bird store and put it in his water, where it'll dissolve so he'll get the supplements when he drinks, but that sounds really expensive and I'm worried it'll evaporate with the water as well!


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## Noekeon (Feb 17, 2016)

Mine doesn't eat anything else than her seed/pellet mix as well and haven't seen any problem or discomfort. If they feel like eating they'll eat that's my point of view at least. I put a bowl in her cage with veggies everyday though even if she doesn't touch it as maybe eventually she will lol. 

Best regards, Noekeon & Kana!


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## Lunawolfsong (Mar 31, 2016)

The only issue is that they need fruits and vegetables everyday. Most of their diet should be fruits, veggies, and pellets, and just 14% seed. Plus, I adopted Kirby from a rescue, and he had an almost all seed diet there and is overweight. Exercise can only get him so far...


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## Vickitiel (Oct 10, 2012)

Keep trying! Don't give up. Try cutting the veggies up into really small pieces and hanging leafy ones from the cage bars. 



Lunawolfsong said:


> Most of their diet should be fruits, veggies, and pellets, and just 14% seed.


This isn't true... Although fresh food every day is very important, cockatiels are predominantly grain eaters so 14% seed isn't realistic. You don't want to underfeed your bird if he/she is used to a seed diet by dramatically reducing the seed - that is dangerous and not recommended. Variety is key to the ideal 'tiel diet.

You can also try sprouting seeds. It's a hit with most birds!


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## roxy culver (May 27, 2010)

> The only issue is that they need fruits and vegetables everyday. Most of their diet should be fruits, veggies, and pellets, and just 14% seed. Plus, I adopted Kirby from a rescue, and he had an almost all seed diet there and is overweight. Exercise can only get him so far...


That's not true, like Calitiels said. It's everything in moderation, but seeds are a vital part of a tiel's diet. most feed a diet with a foundation of seed and pellets, with veggies tossed in. Tiels are not generally fruit eaters (I could never get mine to eat any, they weren't fans) but veggies are a good place to start. 

Supplements are a bad idea because you can't measure them in water and there is the possibility of causing a toxicity. Supplementing with pellets is a much better way to go. Sprouting seeds is also a good source of nutrition. I always had two bowls of seeds and two bowls of pellets in my bird's cages (I had 12 birds at one point) and never let these get empty. They picked what they wanted to eat and they did just fine.


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## Lunawolfsong (Mar 31, 2016)

Okay, I'll try introducing leafy greens as toys and hang them from his cage, shredding broccoli tops into his seed, and increase his seed intake. Thanks!


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## Lunawolfsong (Mar 31, 2016)

In another post I mentioned that I got a new playgym for Kirby. I think that this could actually help with his veggie intake; there's a little treat cup that comes with the gym that I can remove and set up easily on the top of the gym. Right now I've got millet spray in there, and the only times that I put the cup on his gym there's always millet in it; it's never empty. I'm hoping that over the course of the next few weeks he will begin to associate the cup with goodies because the cup isn't always there, but when it is it's filled yummies. Maybe, after some time, I can begin to put fresh fruits and veggies in the cup instead of millet (or with the millet) and maybe he'll try some because they're in his treat cup and the treat cup means goodies. What do you guys think?


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