Pellet Switch

[Amazinganderman]

Hi
I am switching my Tiel from seed to pellet and after 4 weeks of adding more pellet then seed method I went full pellet today...She went to her dish and ate a good bit and now is chirping like she is hungry, Should I give in and give her a bit of seed?

Thanks

[marieandchirpy]

Jan 7, 2011 14:33:42 GMT -5 @Amazinganderman said:

Hi
I am switching my Tiel from seed to pellet and after 4 weeks of adding more pellet then seed method I went full pellet today...She went to her dish and ate a good bit and now is chirping like she is hungry, Should I give in and give her a bit of seed?

Thanks

Hmmm you might have to use another method to convert her to a pellet diet.

www.cockatielcottage.net/finicky.html

www.cockatiels.org/ownersandenthusiasts/converting-seed-junkie-to-pellets.htm

The best thing to do right now is to give in and then try a different method of converting her.

[amazinganderman]

Thanks!

I was hoping I was soo close:( She actually ate a good amount..Oh well, I gave her some seed in a separate dish and she is chowing.... I guess I will try again in the Morning:)

[john]

As long as she is eating some, she should be OK. She will go back and eat more as she gets hungry. Birds try to trick the human into thinking they are the smart ones, some times they do it. If you just give the bird pellets, NO animal or bird will strave themself if food is available,
even if they don't like it. Theink of how many people dislike liver and onions, but if that is all there is, it is dinner time.

[dreamcatchers]

I wish I could say that John is 100% correct but in my experience, some cockatiels will starve themselves to avoid a food that they don't recognize. I lost a lovely Cinnamon Pied hen that way. In my earliest bird experience, this hen came from a breeder who did everything right but she fed harrisons and I fed zupreem. It has been noted that baby cockatiels form a preference to most foods when weaning and tend to avoid trying new things. I feed a basic combination of seed and pellet (1/4 seed and 3/4 pellet) as well as offering all kinds of different veggies and fruits to be sure that they don't become too dependent on one type of food. You can also try different types of pellets, different size pellets or try offering the pellets soaked in a little fruit juice. It is important to change diets slowly and to keep a close eye on your bird as you do any changes. It sounds like you are doing everything right, it just may take a little longer and a little more experimenting.

[amazinganderman]

Hi

Thanks all for the Great Advice!

I am going to feed her the pellets in the AM and wait a little bit after she eats some of them.. If she still is chirping non stop I feed her some seed for about 20 min then take the seed away and leave the pellets... I will try this for a couple of days. I was just hoping since she Ate some of it she knows it is food and Like John said will eat it when she gets hungry. She is a real quiet little girl so I know when the crazy chirping starts she is REALLY hungry.

Thanks again