404-321-4488 |
www.prettyparrot.com |
Daily 10 am to 7 pm EST |
 |
 |
VIDEOS |
|
404-321-4488 |
www.prettyparrot.com |
Daily 10 am to 7 pm EST |
|
|
VIDEOS |
|
ECLECTUS DAILY DIET PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS
These are instructions for a good, basic assortment of foods that you can have prepared in advance, and in a few seconds each morning, put into a separate bowl for moist food, even if you are in hurry and running late. This very basic assortment will nourish your Eclectus fabulously well. Throughout the day, if you add to their food bowl a tablespoon of table food that you are serving yourself -- virtually anything that you eat or cook that is NOT GREASY, NOT TOO SALTY AND NOT SWEET -- your bird will get a lot of variety and have a varied, interesting diet. Junk food is OUT -- spicy food is wonderful, and they will enjoy your cooking especially. Especially avoid chocolate, raw peanuts in the shell, and avocado -- as the brown paper-like covering on the seed is toxic to birds.
Also in the cage 24 hours a day should be 1 handful of our Organic Pellets for a single bird, a double handful if you have a pair -- and these dry pellets should be served in a separate cup away from the moist food. At the end of the day, the chewed remains should be tossed out, as everything in the cup will have a residue of moist food from the beak, or perhaps water has been dribbled over the contents of the cup. These pellets are extremely fresh and living food -- and moistened pellets will mold if left in the cage for a couple of days. NEVER fill the cup to the top and leave it in the cage for several days until empty. Throw away whatever is not consumed of that handful at the end of the day, and replace it with a clean cup with a new handful.
The third cup in the cage will contain fresh water, preferably NOT tap water. We use distilled, which is more pure than spring water or filtered water. WATER BOTTLES SHOULD NEVER BE USED FOR ANY BIRD INSTEAD OF A CUP -- ONLY IN ADDITION TO A CUP. The dirtiest cup of water will still be cleaner than the cleanest water bottle. It is very difficult to disinfect the tube portion of the bottle. Every time air bubbles in, particles from the beak are carried upward, fowling the water inside. The most important reason why you use a cup instead of a bottle is that Eclectus like to rinse their beaks until they are clean. A bottle does not allow them to do this. If a whole layer of food residue ends up in the bottom of the cup -- celebrate. Your bird is trying to have the cleanest mouth possible, and his breath will always be clean and sweet.
I recently gave this advice to an internet mailing list, and one of the members replied that a bird that was given only a water bottle had been chewing and plucking his feathers. Fortunately, when the water bottle was accidentally dropped and broken, the bird immediately stopped this chewing-plucking behavior as soon as it was again able to rinse clean the food residue from his beak with a nice, fresh cup of water. It makes perfect sense that the water bottle was the problem. If the bird was forced to preen with a sticky beak, the feathers would become sticky. This would lead to over-preening and the chewing of feathers to remove the sticky residue. Perhaps the bird became annoyed with the rough, chewed feathers -- went one step further, and plucked them out eventually. This behavior ceased when the bottle broke and he was again given a cup of water and could rinse his beak.
Never bite something and offer a bird the end that has scraped the tartar off your teeth as you bite down. That edge will carry scrapings of tartar from our teeth that include gram negative bacteria that grows in your mouth -- into their mouth. This bacteria is normal for humans, but very toxic to birds and is guaranteed to make them extremely sick. No wet kisses, no teeth-picking is allowed -- ever. Birds must NEVER receive anything that has been in our mouths.
A suggestion -- please try to avoid peanuts in the shell (and out of the shell for that matter). If they chew and ingest a lot of the shell -- they will get a severely impacted crop. A local customer had that happen to her RS male 8-9 years ago, and she almost lost him. His crop was not able to drain and clear, so he did not ingest food for several days. Fortunately, her husband came home on the weekend and noticed that the bird was on his last legs. Also, peanuts too often are contaminated with a naturally occurring mold (aflatoxin) because peanuts grow in the ground -- unless they are well roasted for human consumption. Aflatoxin is very toxic and carcinogenic, and may also be found on brown rice that has not been cleaned properly. Giving him raw peanuts in the shell almost guaranteed him a fungal infection IN ADDITION TO the impacted crop. Peanuts are not worth the risk, so only shelled and well-roasted, unsalted peanuts in the future -- or safer yet, -- none at all. That is why we recommend the rinsing of brown rice, sprouts, all fruits and vegetables soaked and cleaned with Food Grade H2O2. Ask me for further information on this pure cleansing agent for all fresh food.
Also, Eclectus can chew and digest frozen carrots that have been blanched in frozen mixed vegetables better than they can get the food value out of raw carrot chunks. The raw fragments pass right through because the cellulose is not partly softened and broken down by boiling. More tender food is great served raw -- but raw carrots should be considered to be only a plaything -- but an excellent plaything.
Shop for a package of as many types of dried beans that you can find. This can include but are not limited to: Red Kidney, Black Turtle, Black-eyed Peas, Navy, Pinto, Great Northern, Small Red, Garbanzo, Green Baby Lima, Pigeon Peas, October, etc. Open the packages into a large bin to store, and stir them into a mixture. You may find some pre-mixed assortments as well.
COOKING DIRECTIONS FOR ASSORTED DRIED BEANS:
Soaking beans overnight before cooking will cause beans to become "gassy" and smell bad sooner. It is suggested instead to blanch the beans as described below, rather than presoaking beans overnight before cooking. Pre-soaking has been the traditional way recommended on most bean packages to prepare beans for cooking. We get more satisfactory results by following these instructions.Cook a large quantity at one time for convenience and freeze daily portions along with cooked brown rice, which together provide a complement of amino acids for complete protein, low fat, and essential fiber. Just place a piece of plastic wrap over your hand, combine a scoop of beans and a scoop of brown rice (a one day portion), twist the wrap into a ball -- and put it in the freezer. Makes enough for more than a month for 1-2 birds.
You can add 1 cup 3% peroxide to the wash and let it soak for 5-10 minutes to kill bacteria.
PUT SEVERAL CUPS BEANS (4 heaping) IN COLD WATER AND BRING TO BOIL.
START BOILING A SECOND LARGER POT OF WATER SIMULTANEOUSLY
LET BOIL 5-10 MINUTES TO CLEAN OFF ANY DIRT OR MOLD SPORES
STRAIN OFF DIRTY WATER AND RINSE, CLEANING POT AS WELL
PUT RINSED BEANS IN THE SECOND HEATED POT OF WATER AND BRING TO BOIL FOR 40+ MINUTES UNTIL THE BEANS ARE SOFT ENOUGH TO CHEW
RINSE WITH COLD WATER TO CLEAN AND CHILL
RICE:
5 CUPS COLD WATER
3 CUPS OF BROWN RICEWash rice thoroughly 3 times in cold water and strain. You can add 1 cup 3% peroxide to the wash and let it soak for 5-10 minutes to kill bacteria.
Bring rice and cold water to a boil. Cover and lower flame and simmer for 40-50 minutes until liquid is absorbed and the bottom of the rice is slightly brown.
MAKE PACKETS OF BOTH OF THESE IN SARAN WRAP AND STORE IN FREEZER.
TO SERVE, JUST LET DAILY PORTION THAW IN REFRIGERATOR OR RUN HOT WATER OVER THE FROZEN PACKET.
A PAIR OF BIRDS GET 1/4 CUP OF BEANS AND 1/4 CUP OF RICE PER DAY, 1/4 CUP MIXED VEGETABLES (any kind of vegetable, fresh is best)(chop is good), 1/2 HARD BOILED EGG CHOPPED VERY FINE OR MASHED WITH FORK -- EACH DAY. THAT IS A FULL CUP OF FOOD PER PAIR EACH MORNING, 1/4 CUP FRUIT IN THE LATE AFTERNOON. A TABLESPOONFUL OF "SAFE" FOOD YOU EAT AT SUPPER AS WELL. THEY WILL BEG FOR ANYTHING ELSE YOU EAT AT EACH AND EVERY MEAL. GIVE THEM AS MUCH AS THEY WANT. You will of course, have a single handful per bird (about 1/8 cup for a single -1/4 cup for a pair) of pellets in the cage 24 hours a day, along with a fresh cup of water daily.
SAFE FOOD: NOTHING GREASY, SALTY OR SWEET
SPRINKLE A PINCH SPIRULINA ON DARK GREEN VEGETABLES AND 1/2 TSP AVIAN TRIO ON TOP OF BEAN-RICE-VEG-CORN-EGG DAILY.
You will of course, have a double handful (about 1/4-1/3 cup) of pellets in the cage 24 hours a day, along with a fresh cup of water daily.A SINGLE BIRD GETS HALF THE ABOVE AMOUNTS, only 1/4 hard boiled egg per day, 1/2 CUP TOTAL MOIST FOOD IN THE MORNING, 2 HEAPING TBSP. EQUIVALENT FRUIT IN THE LATE AFTERNOON. THEY WILL BEG FOR ANYTHING ELSE YOU EAT AT EACH AND EVERY MEAL. GIVE THEM AS MUCH AS THEY WANT. You will of course, have a single handful per bird (about 1/8 cup for a single -1/4 cup for a pair) of pellets in the cage 24 hours a day, along with a fresh cup of water daily.
SPRINKLE A PINCH SPIRULINA ON DARK GREEN VEGETABLES AND 1/2 TSP AVIAN TRIO ON TOP OF BEAN-RICE-VEG-CORN-EGG DAILY.We serve vegetables in the morning, because they will keep all day. We serve fruit only in the afternoon, because it goes bad quickly and generates fruit flies if left too long. We add variety from whatever we serve ourselves on our plates, cooked food, casseroles, pasta dishes, or whatever other fresh foods are in season. This can include but should not be limited to squashes, potatoes, greens, endive, escarole, kale, pomegranates, pasta, etc. etc. etc. -- the more variety the better. They especially like spicy food and home cooking. Give them a heaping tablespoonful of everything that hits your plate that is not junk food. THEY CAN, AND WILL, EAT A LOT.
*************************************************************************
WHY WE GIVE OUR BABIES EXTRA NUTRIENTS FOR A GREAT START IN LIFE
What is eaten early in life may have a direct effect on how well you age.A study published today by Glasgow University scientists shows that finches given a poor diet briefly in early life become adults that can't cope with ageing. Birds that had a low quality diet for just two weeks grew into adults with much lower levels of antioxidants in their blood, and such birds have shorter lives.
Antioxidants are a key part of the body?s defences against ageing. They reduce the damage caused by free radicals that are produced during normal metabolism. Animals cannot make these antioxidants (which include Vitamins A and E, and also carotenoids, so they must obtain them from their food.
The birds given the poor diet were not short of food, but the food they had was low in protein and vitamins. It is interesting that all the zebra finches were given the same normal diet after the early chick stage, so had been eating the same amount of these valuable substances for most of their lives. The birds all grew into apparently normal adults. However, it seems that the birds given the low quality diet early in their development were then less able to use the antioxidants that they ate when they grew up.
Professor Pat Monaghan, who led the study, said that this work demonstrates a mechanism that links diet during early life to what happens much later. The reason for this has so far been poorly understood.
A further finding of the study is that birds faced with a shortage of life-extending materials, choose to spend them on looking good to attract a mate rather than saving them for old age. Some antioxidants such as carotenoids, are also used as pigments, often involved in red and yellow coloration. So there is potentially a conflict between the amount an animal invests in preventing ageing and the amount it puts into its body colouration. In the case of the zebra finches, the early diet of the birds did not alter the redness of their beaks, so there was no change in the amount of carotenoids used as pigments. Females prefer males with bright red beaks.
The study was funded by the Natural Environment Research Council, and involved collaboration between biologists at Glasgow University and at the Scottish Agricultural College at Auchencruive near Ayr.
All these birds described in the notes below were not from our aviary, and were in poor condition from eating a less-than-ideal diet for years. The reports of dramatic improvements in the health and attitudes of these birds are wonderful to hear -- usually by phone when their owners are placing pellet reorders, and occasionally people take the time to write notes like these. I love it that we get phone calls like this all the time, describing the improvement in the health and feather quality of birds that change over to our pellet formulation, supplements and diet recommendations.
We recommend these pellets because of the results people have noted on these Testimonial Letters. If you ever you consider switching to another brand of pellets, re-read these again:************************************************************************
*****From a lady that had bought a rescue bird which was not fed properly for years: Hi Jane, Thank you so much for taking the time out to talk to me the other evening. I have taken your advice and am feeding Ruby according to your instructions. She is a totally different bird! She is no longer shrieking like she was when I talked to you. She is very happy and content and is LOVING the recipes you suggested. Feeding time is no longer stressful and we are actually having fun trying new things and watching her devour them!! I am a firm believer in your pellets, spirulina and Trio and will always use and recommend them to my ?bird friends?. Thanks again for your time and advice as well as your dedication to the magnificent Eclectus!! Kelly
**** Hi Jane, Just wanted to give you an update on my fabulous Ruby!! Since we have started following your diet instructions and faithfully using your supplements, she has gone from 377 grams to 397 grams!! This has happened in just short of 2 weeks!! There is no more shrieking and we are enjoying each other more than ever! She is cooing more and starting to chatter more ? I think she will be talking up a storm soon. She already says ?hello? and ?step up?. You were right on about the 20 ounce crock too ? she doesn?t waste near as much food as she used to with the smaller crock. Thanks a million for your advice and your wonderful products! Kelly
*****From: Ginger & Maury Subject: Thank you for info and product Jane, What a miracle worker you are!!!!!! We purchased a male Eclectus from a local breeder who is quite reputable, last September on the day he was weaned (at about 12 weeks). We named him Paco. He is a tender & loving bird that does not know an enemy nor is there anyone that he will not go to when asked to step up (onto their finger or shoulder). However, since we got him, he had not grown feathers. We took him to a vet who told us he had "beak and feather virus." Another "expert" at a Bird store told us that he was eating the color off his feathers and then sold us some "very high quality" seed to help him get better nourishment. Somehow (it's a very long story) we had some information about you (which we had not even thought about during our bird purchase period), which I decided to use and see what information you might have.
I expected a cold shoulder but what I received was the best southern hospitality since Rhett Butler left town !!!! (And we live in the South also). You were extremely polite about my simple questions. When I mentioned that his feathers were turning black you responded with, "You must be feeding him seeds." Yep ... I was poisoning my own bird. I took your advice and got the pellets (which he loves), the spirulina, and the bee pollen/propolis/royal jelly mix. When I unpacked the box, I opened the can of pollen and turned to put the lid in the trash. When I turned back around Paco had his beak buried in the pollen eating it.
All of this was only 13 days ago. Now he has green feathers starting to grow over his entire body, primary flight feathers are growing on each wing and a new tail feather is coming in. His eyes sparkle and his breath , once bad enough to gag a maggot, is now sweet. We have him off seeds entirely and onto fruits, veggies, sprouted beans, soaked bean, hard-boiled eggs and your supplements. Needless to say, he is looking better than he has in months and is getting much more playful at the same time. Thank you so much for the information and product. If .... no let's not say IF, .... it is now WHEN we get a mate for Paco, you can be sure she will come from you. Thank you, Maury And Ginger
***** From: "Charee" Hi, . . . . . . I wanted to update you on my Ruby Rose, it has been two months since she started the new diet and nearly a month since beginning the tranquility supplement. Ruby has been without the Lupron injections for over a month and the feather ruining has ceased. The additional perches I ordered also did the trick and the excess beak growth has trimmed off and she looks wonderful! I am so thankful for your advice, counsel, and expertise. The diet you have recommended has made her happier, healthier, and financially more affordable to care for. Thanks again! Talk to you soon, Charee Minnesota
***** From: Phyllis and Robert Subject: Hi Jane Hi Jane, Just wanted to send you a note to "Thank You" for all the help you have gave me in taking care of my Vosmaeri Eclectus's...they are both looking great...The female when I got her was in very poor condition and her feathers showed he lack of good nutrition and care...now after just a month on the diet of your pellets,and your bean diet with the added spirulina and avian trio she is looking 100% better...also we added the full spectrum lighting that you have and not only are the birds looking great from the benefit of these lights so are my house plants...I also think it is really good for us too...I am positive these birds in a few more months on this diet will be in the best of health...cant wait to get the new pedicure perches and the car seat/stands to take them on rides with us, it will be great stimulation for these very intelligent birds...I have owned different parrots before but have never been so taken by the beauty and intelligence as I am with these...cant imagine life with out them...Keep up the great work with educating everyone on how to take the best care of Eclectus's and look forward to learning more from you...Also the Vos's are looking forward to the new line of toys :) Take good care... Phyllis
***** From: Phyllis Subject: Hi HI Jane , Just a note to let you know how fast your second recommendation is working for my female eclectus...I upped the spirulina and avian trio and she is just full of new pin feathers and is already feathering out ...I also took away all seed for both of them and even my male is getting new feathers...can't believe how fast they started responding -- this is great...I cant thank you enough for your help.... Thanks again from my Ekkies and I, Phyllis
***** From: Ernesto Subject: Testimonial Dear Jane: Just a quick note to express my profound gratitude for all your wonderful constant help with the 3-year-old Solomon Island male Eclectus I adopted early last April. Thanks to your great pellets and nutritional products, he quickly began to shed his stressed, dull and stained tail feathers and currently sports a beautiful new tail. But more importantly, he had a terribly long and flaky overgrown beak, quite unsightly, and with the right diet and your incredible pedicure perches he filed it back and snapped the remaining deformed tip off, so that he now has a truly picture-perfect beak. Thank you for offering such high quality products, and for always being there on the phone for helpful advice, information and support. Sincerely, Ernesto
***** From: David & Cindy Subject: Re: [EclectusBreeders] Breeding Hi Jane and everyone. I have increased the use of Avian Trio and Tranquility and now have begun to feed only Special Needs Pellets and fresh foods -- [no more seeds]. Peter is starting to gain more feathers on his chest and he has not chewed off the tips of his tail feathers. His wings are fuller too. Flicka has regained her full beauty and I have not been bit for some time. All other things being the same it must be the better diet. They both still look for nuts and seeds but 99 percent of their diet is the good stuff. Maybe someday even Peter will regain all his beauty. David and Cindy***** HI Jane, these are pics of Sulena when I first got her her feathers were dull and she was picked under her wings and had a bare spot on her face...then the pic dated for feb 03 is taken today...after being on your pellet diet and bean and rice diet with NO seed ...she is beautiful :) I owe it all to your knowledge of these great birds...and for you kindness in sharing what you know to me...now this bird that was once on a bad diet and mistreated -- looks great and is very loving...I am so glad when I purchased this bird I was able to find you :) Sultan, my male Ekkie Vos I always thought was beautiful and now I look at him and he is more beautiful than ever too...Keep up the great work with these wonderful birds...I will have to send more photos later of Sultan but really wanted you to see Sulena and how much of a difference that your diet has changed her...My Vos Ekkies and I are forever grateful for you and your knowledge...Thanks again, Phyllis
********************************
404-321-4488 |
www.prettyparrot.com |
Daily 10 am to 7 pm EST |