I have recently (6 months) acquired a Galah, a bird I have always dreamed of having. Altho aware of their propensity to fatty tumors I have apparently overfed her and she has gained considerable weight. I feed Nutri-berries and pellets to my birds along with other healthy “stuff.” My question now is how to safely cut back on her rations and it would be most helpful if you could give me the amount of Nutri-berries and pellets that are appropriate for her if she were NOT overweight and then I can cut back accordingly. Thank you very much.
Answer:
Hi Mary,
Did your Avian Vet tell you she was overweight? Weight gain is not necessarily a bad thing. Since she has been transitioned to a nutritionally balanced diet, it is highly unlikely that she is eating too much. Birds eat to satisfy their nutritional needs, and once those are met, they do not continue eating – for example they aren’t likely to overeat out of boredom like domesticated pets. Because she is eating a balanced diet, her body will utilize the nutrition. She’s not getting anything in excess, as far as the pellets and Nutri-Berries are concerned. Parrots have an extremely high metabolism, so they burn off what they eat if it is healthy. If she has gained fat, this would come from any extra foods she is eating in excess – even healthy foods in excess can be too much if it isn’t within the guidelines of what she needs. A nut is OK, but eating too many nuts can add too much fat, and so on. These type foods would be what you need to cut back on if she is in fact too fat. But more likely she has gained healthy muscle and muscle is heavier than fat. This is why it’s very important to have a Vet assess her weight, and not just go by a number. The Vet will go by her weight as well as her overall muscling. There is a healthy range of weight for each species, but these are guidelines. Size among the same species can vary greatly. A large Galah could be twice as heavy as a smaller Galah. Amounts to feed also vary by each bird’s individual metabolism and activity level. I have two of the same species of macaw, and one needs 6 Nutri-Berries daily while the other needs 12. Because parrots are foragers, it is important that they have some food available to them all day. Pellets can generally be left in the cage all the time. Nutri-Berries can be given a few at a time, but this is mainly to encourage the bird not to waste too much of each berry. In the wild, if food is abundant, parrots eat a couple of bites and discard the rest of the food. This serves to re-plant the environment and feed ground dwelling animals. So when we give too many Nutri-berries at one time, they waste more. As for daily amount, she might need 6 or she might need 12. And with pellets, again you can generally free-feed with those. You have also only had her for 6 months, and it can take up to a year for a bird’s entire body to fully change and get into shape when they have been fed a poor diet and then are changed to a nutritionally balanced diet. And of course, exercise is important. You might try teach her to forage for her food instead of offering it in a dish. If you get some good foraging toys and teach her other ways to forage, you can eventually feed her entirely through foraging means. I’ll give you links to our foraging webinars as well as our nutrition webinars. There are several webinars on each playlist – In The Picky Parrot, Dr. Lamb does discuss daily amounts as a guideline. But again, let a Vet determine whether she is overweight, and just so you are prepared, most will immediately tell you not to feed seeds. But this means loose seeds. All pellets are made from ground seeds and grains and then balanced with other nutrients. Nutri-Berries contain the same ingredients and nutrients as pellets, but they aren’t ground up into a pellet and instead provide natural foraging exercise.
