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Post by tomtom on Sept 19, 2015 16:14:07 GMT -5
Hi i am new here! My name is Claudia and my Quaker parrot's name is Tomas. I've started to try to feed him a pellet diet. He eats the pellets. But he will only eat them if I wet the pellets. If I give him the pellets dry, he won't even try to dip them in his water bowl. He just won't touch them. Please tell me if I'm doing something wrong so I can correct it right away. Would it be bad of me to wet his food whenever I give it to him? What would you suggest?
Also his feathers are in bad shape. Is it because he has always been on a seed diet. Or because he preans himself really little? His feathers look really whisppy.
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Post by cnyguy on Sept 19, 2015 19:32:24 GMT -5
Welcome!  There's no reason you can't continue giving Tomas the softened pellets. Though he also eats the dry ones, my QP Ralph expects some soaked pellets every day. You might also try experimenting with some different brands and flavors of pellets to find out if there is one that Tomas would eat dry. An all-seed diet can result in poor feather health. Foods containing lots of Vitamin A are helpful in promoting healthier feathers-- broccoli, carrots, sweet potatoes and dried red peppers are some that Tomas may like. Does Tomas like baths? Regular baths or mistings are good for the feathers too. |
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Post by biteybird on Sept 20, 2015 3:50:29 GMT -5
Welcome, Claudia and Tomas. I don't have experience in converting parrots from seed to pellets, sorry. Cnyguy has given you good advice and I'm sure others will chime in too. I hope you enjoy the forum! |
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Post by tomtom on Sept 20, 2015 9:34:28 GMT -5
Thank you so much for replying. I just put some moistened pellets in his bowl. He seemed to eat it with so much pleasure. I will try to give him baths more often, along with foods with vitamin A.
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Post by julianna on Sept 21, 2015 15:04:04 GMT -5
Hi tomtom and welcome. There are various ways to give them a bath. You can spray them with water and sometimes they really enjoy that. Or you can put a water bowl in their cage and allow them to dunk in it. Be sure the water isn't too warm. My QP asks for a bath about every third day and he gives himself a good soaking. After the bath they will shy away because they feel very vulnerable but that won't last for too long.
I spoiled my QP and after bath time he wants to sit on my finger with my right hand cupping the top of his body. He loves this because my hands are warm and he will purrrrrr just like a kitten.
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There's no reason you can't continue giving Tomas the softened pellets. Though he also eats the dry ones, my QP Ralph expects some soaked pellets every day. You might also try experimenting with some different brands and flavors of pellets to find out if there is one that Tomas would eat dry. 
