Ask Lafeber

Nutriberry amount

Is there a limit to the number of nutiberries to feed birds diagnosed with athersclerosis?

Hi Gloria,

Nutri-Berries are formulated the same as pellets, but they are not ground up. As Dr. Lamb recently said, they are basically the last step before the food is ground and made into pellets. So there is not a limit to Nutri-Berries or pellets as a daily main diet. Parrots eat to meet their nutritional needs, so if a food is nutritionally balanced, the bird is highly unlikely to over eat. However, when feeding Nutri-Berries, it is important that the bird is eating most of each berry, without wasting too much. If you give too many at a time, he may pick out a few favorite bits and discard the rest and this could mean he isn’t getting the full benefit of the food. So once a bird is used to eating Nutri-Berries, we recommend limiting the number you give at a time, and not giving him more until he has eaten all of what you gave him. Soon he will learn to eat all of each berry.

As far as what to avoid, Dr. Lamb spoke about this in her last webinar. She said that in general, Vets are now recommending against feeding your bird meats and poultry. A small amount as an occasional treat is fine, but it should not be fed on a regular basis. She said that Vets are seeing more atherosclerosis in pet birds and generally offering too much animal protein is thought to be the most common cause.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda