Last Updated on March 17, 2023 by Catherine Tobsing

Barbara D. wrote:

Good afternoon.  I have a question regarding feeding Parakeets sprouts.

In my last order, I ordered and received a package of seeds to sprout, which I did without any problem.  

The issue is this – the Parakeets do not appear to be interested in these sprouts. They enjoy and eat other greens such as lettuce, chard, and spinach.   So I started to cut the shoots into small pieces, mixed the sprouts in with the pellets and also had a small dish of cut up sprouts for them. 

They appeared to not take from either dish.

Do you have any recommendations to entice these birds to consume these sprouts? 

Thank you, Barbara D.  

Hi Barbara

1. I find birds like their greens to be fresh and crispy. Not limp. Once a lettuce or kale leaf gets limp, they don’t want it. But if crisp and crunchy they do.
2. For kale and romaine, I would stand a piece of it into a water dish with a little water and take a clothespin to hold it in place. The birds would peck it to bits.
3. For the sprouts, I would float them in a shallow dish of water and offer them in the morning. Then remove after a few hours at most.
4. Introduce veggies gradually: Start by offering small pieces of veggies alongside their regular food. Gradually increase the number of veggies as your bird gets accustomed to them.
5. Offer a variety of veggies: Birds can be picky eaters, so try offering a variety of veggies to see what your bird prefers. Some birds may like carrots, peppers, or broccoli, while others may prefer spinach or kale.
6. Make veggies fun: Cut veggies into small pieces or interesting shapes to make them more appealing to your bird. You can also try hanging veggies from the top of the cage or offering them as a foraging toy.
7. Eat veggies in front of your bird: Birds often learn by watching their owners, so try eating veggies in front of your bird to encourage them to try them too.
8. Be patient: It may take some time for your bird to develop a taste for veggies, so be patient and keep offering them in small amounts. Over time, your bird may start to enjoy them and they can become an important part of their diet.

FYI, you can sprout millet on the spray. It is quite cool. I cut it up into 2-inch pieces. Then you can soak it like the packaged stuff. In a couple of days you will see green shoots popping out.

I would offer it to them, just a piece that is barely sprouted as they LOVE Millet. Then as they get used to that, allow the pieces to grow a bit longer each time, producing more green material. Over time they will enjoy the sprouted millet and perhaps other sprouts more.

How Do I Get My Budgies to Eat Veggies?

It was not easy to get the keets interested in greens, I started with the greens clipped in water. Then I put a piece in the bottom of a food dish and topped it with chopped mixed thawed frozen vegetables. They did NOT want that until I sprinkled a little millet on top and that lured them to try the veggies. They then started to eat them pretty well. 

However, it was not until we ended up with 3 baby parakeets (due to rampant hormones) that the babies were born, the adults grabbed as much veggie material as they could to feed the babies. Once weaned the babies ADORE veggies and will eat loads of them including stealing them from the other birds in the house. Seeing them steal the apple chunks from Barney the cockatiel is very funny. (The keets do get apple, but it is chopped up in their veggies.)

Let me know if I can further assist.

Catherine

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Catherine Tobsing

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