# sun flower seeds



## elijahfan (Jul 28, 2008)

i was just wondering about sunflower seeds, its seems to be all jojo eats from his seed, should i vet his seed, the seed i buy has a lot of sunflower seeds in, all so i got some before that had nuts in do i need to have a re think about the seed, i mean it sure jojo eats more then just the sunflower seeds but that's his favorite 

is there anything wrong with the sunflower seeds? he does have fresh fruit and veg but only seems to really eat broccoli he eats apples as well lol


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## Renae (Feb 9, 2008)

_Most seeds contain a very high fat content and when given a choice, birds will select the seeds with the highest fat content over the ones with a lower fat content. Simply put, they just taste better. Sunflower seeds contain a whopping 47%-49% fat and safflower 24.6% fat. Cockatiels love sunflower seeds. According to Dr. Bruce Henderson, DVM, sunflower seeds are the "Cupcakes and Twinkies" of the avian world. High fat diets contribute to the same health problems in birds as do in humans. Birds can have high cholesterol levels, become obese, get strokes, heart attacks and other heart problems or develop serious illnesses such as Fatty Liver Syndrome which is fatal. High fat diets also cause birds to have a short life span. Since cockatiels can live 15- 20 years of age, it is important that they receive adequate nutrition to ensure that they live within range of their full life expectancy._

That pretty much says it all. I'd try not to get the seed that has sunflower seeds, as they are his favorite it could lead to problems if he has too much. Have you tried him on pellets? they're better then a seed diet. I'd still be giving/offering him veggies, try mixed veggies if you haven't already.. he'll eventually be curious and try it.


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## elijahfan (Jul 28, 2008)

so with the seed i have i should remove the sun flower seeds or only give him one or 2 the rest i swear is just budgie seed, looks like i may need to vits my pet shop and have a look and difrent seeds, i get mine from a local petshop i think mix there own, i might try the banded seed next time, pellets i think i have seen them in pet shops 

veg i wil be a bit creative with jojo is still only young so curbing his eating habbits might be a bit easier :d 

thank you, i didnt relaise that seed could contain so much fat, mind you to use a sun flower seed is healthy i supose to a bird who has a much lower calorrie intact its but bigger,


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## sweetrsue (Jul 8, 2008)

You could just buy more seed without sunflower and mix them thereby lowering the ratio of sunflower to other seeds. It is always a good idea to mix any new diet with the old diet to make the transition easier.


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## elijahfan (Jul 28, 2008)

so what sort of seed should i mis it with the stuff he has now looks like budgie seed


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## Sophia (Aug 11, 2007)

Sunflower seeds aren't bad for them, but just not in extent. You can still put them in jojo's seed just long as there's only about 4-5 in there or maybe less, with seed. 
You can mix it with budgie seed, pellets, maybe a few nuts etc.


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## Birdie21 (May 24, 2008)

The only cockatiel seed I find without sunflower seeds, in my area, is from one pet shop that sells bulk. I read someplace that the tiels should only have 2-4 sunflower seeds a day. I feed my outside birds the oil sunflower seed and use a few of those for Piper.


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## elijahfan (Jul 28, 2008)

thank you, so i just removes the sun flower seds and only put 2 in each bowl or so, i ahve given her some gratted carrots tonight for her to try, i will see what ther seed i can find out there, the breeder didnt leave me with any food, can i buy peanuts for the shop, the peanuts still in the cases like in dumbo then i open it and take the nut out ? 

my jojo need a food revamp lol, i will carry on feeding him his normal food with less seeds in for now while i look for something a bit less sun flower seedy, i understand they can live on budgies mix alone, should i buy budgie food then mix in my own sunflower seeds and nuts ?


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## xxxSpikexxx (Jul 30, 2007)

I would just buy a cockatiel seed mix and take out some of the sunflower seeds. For peanuts you could give one as a treat but never give peanuts in the shell as they could have aspergillosis on them.


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## elijahfan (Jul 28, 2008)

this morning i toke out a lot of sun flower seeds i might take a pic of what i give him, i toke out the sunflower seeds leavnig in the other bigger seeds, then toped it up with a small amount of budgies mix gave it a stir 

i am hoping he doesnt hate me for it lol


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

You can always save the sunflower seeds and use them as treats for your bird to take from your hand. If your bird needs any training to get more comfortable with you, this is an excellent way to go about it!


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## elijahfan (Jul 28, 2008)

i didnt think of that  i might try that


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## Flappy (Aug 28, 2008)

Misty seems to be the opposite. I've noticed there are always full sunflower seeds in her dish. She seems to prefer the smaller seeds, and eats sunflower seeds as the last option. I do give her already hulled sunflower seeds when she's sat on me. But she doesn't go crazy for them!


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## PtsRPpl2 (Sep 22, 2008)

That's how my Kiki is. My senegal and other tiel loved sunflower seeds but Kiki rarely touches them. I have been sneaky with trying to get her to eat pellets lately...when she's out on one of her stands with me in the morning and at night, that's the only thing I offer in the dish. She wouldn't eat them in her cage but she gobbles up now!  Now if I can just get her to try veggies and other foods...!!


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## Danielle (Aug 15, 2008)

I was amazed to read how few tiels should eat. I'm lucky in a way, Harley hasn't worked out how to hull them yet. I tried giving him the hulled ones I occasionally give to my rats, but he doesn't seem to care for them. I might try and bribe Quinn with them, though.


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## elijahfan (Jul 28, 2008)

i use min for bribe  our local pet shop as closed down so i will have to get the food from somwhre else


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## Danielle (Aug 15, 2008)

You can buy them at a lot of supermarkets in the pet section, both loose and in boxes. If you're looking for hulled ones as a treat, you can find them in the nuts/health section of supermarkets, too.


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