Hi, I’m getting my first cockatiel in a few weeks and was wondering if your Cockatiel Nutriberries are more of a special treat to be had occasionally or as a main part of my cockatiel’s diet instead of regular pellets? I was planning on using your Cockatiel Pellets but if Nutriberries can be used instead I’d prefer them to help encourage foraging.
Hi Lee,
Nutri-Berries are nutritionally balanced as a main diet. They are formulated the same as a pellet, but they are not ground up. When you get your new bird, you need to start with the same diet he is used to. Then you can gradually convert him to his new diet. Sometimes you need to start by crumbling the Nutri-Berries until he is eating them, and then start including some whole Berries until he learns to eat them whole. With Nutri-Berries, he should learn to eat most of each berrie without wasting too much. Once he is eating them well, if you see he is wasting a lot of each one, you can reduce how many you give him at a time and then give him more once he eats the first ones. Your goal is for him to eat as many as he needs each day, without wasting too much, He will eventually eat anywhere from 6-12 berries a day, depending on his individual metabolism and activity level. You can still offer pellets along with the Nutri-Berries, but do not offer additional seeds. As long as 80% of his diet is Nutri-Berries and/or pellets, he is not likely to over eat. Birds generally only over eat if their nutritional needs are not met. In addition to his main diet, you can offer fruits, veggies, greens and healthy snacks as 20% of his diet. Here is a link to our feeding guide with more information and ideas.
Enjoy your new bird! 🙂
Brenda
