The Caique Site
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The Caique Manual
6. Feeding One of the most controversial topics for parrots is what and how to feed them. There is a number of reports of very healthy Amazons kept for over fifty years subsisting entirely on the same foods eaten by their owners. That diet was clearly preferable to the seed based diets often recommended in the early era of aviculture (Vice, 1984). While I cannot recommend this now, it will do in a pinch. Now everyone seems to have a different philosophy about feeding themselves and their bird. Recently, the debate over the proper base diet for parrots seems to have resolved in favor of formulated diets, i.e., pellets, over seed diets. Nonetheless, all parrots have a beak well adapted for hulling seed and the ancestor of today’s parrots is thought to have been a seedeater (Homberger, 1981). The debate is further complicated by the fact that the various parrot species have evolved with different dietary needs. For example, budgerigars and cockatiels can sustain themselves on a seed based diet, lories and lorikeets need nectar and pollen, the Pesquet’s parrot is almost exclusively frugivorous. As to caiques, like most parrots, there has been no systematic study of their diet in the wild (Galletti, 2002), so we know little about the optimal diet of a caique. It is clear, however, that caiques are omnivorous, i.e., they eat both plant and animal origin foods. While it is agreed that a formulated food should form the basis of their diet, even the companies that sell those diets recommend the addition fruits, table food, some seed, and other foods. In this section, I describe the various foods that may be fed to caiques. I have placed them into rather broad categories for ease of presentation. If you want addition information, I recommend the extensive review by Donoghue and Stahl (1997). Formulated diets (Pellets). I currently recommend that a commercial formulated diet form the nutritional basis of the caique’s diet. Any one of the commercial diets will provide adequate nutrition. The large commercial breeding operations have largely moved to using formulated diets exclusively and this has resulted in increased production of healthy chicks. The commercial formulated diet to select, however, is a matter to be decided by the bird and its human. An additional consideration is whether or not the bird is in the midst of its breeding cycle. I have found that caiques have definite preferences. Color and taste play an important role in caique food selection. They seem to like the brightly colored pellets more than the non-colored ones and offering the multicolored pellets provides some environmental enrichment. It is clear that they can distinguish colors since they often prefer one or two colors to the rest, and will pick only those pellets to eat. Oddly, each caique seems to have an individual preference. One of my pairs picks out all the yellow and green pellets and leaves the red and purple behind. Yet, another of my pairs has the opposite preference. Fortunately, there is no difference in the nutritional value from color to color. Another property controlling preference is the taste. Caiques like things that taste sweet. So if you have a chance to compare one formulated pellet diet with another, taste them yourself before you buy and pick the one the sweetest one. The best thing about feeding a formulated diet is that you need not worry whether your bird is getting proper nutrition. The companies that manufacture these diets have set themselves the goal of formulating them tosupply complete nutrition. This, however, presents a problem since the nutritional requirements for most parrots are unknown. For the most part, they succeed and these diets contain nearly all the protein, vitamins, and other nutrients your bird needs. There are a number of caveats associated with feeding pellets. The most important is that you should never supply additional vitamins or minerals if you feed pellets. These are included in the formulated diet. A second is that the pellet diets are not formulated specifically for caiques but for the “generic” parrot. A third problem with pellets is that they usually do not stimulate the interest of parrots. Parrots need environmental enrichment. These are the reasons that most aviculturalists provide their birds with a few seeds as well as fresh fruits and vegetables. The addition of these foods is even recommended by some of the formulated diet manufacturers (Massie, 1998). It is important that caiques become accustomed to pellets at an as early an age as possible. It can prove very difficult and long-term process to convert a caique from a seed based diet to a pellet diet. I has taken years for one of my oldest female birds accept pellets, and she still has to have seed. No one recommends abruptly ending the feeding of seed in order to force the bird to eat pellets. Parrots suffer too much from neophobia for this to work. There are a number of approaches for converting birds to pellets. Most manufacturers recommend that they be phased in. You can do this by adding the pellets into the seed mixture in increasing portions over the course of a few weeks. At the end of the process, the bird should only be receiving pellets. There are other ways to encourage conversion. One that I have used in my tall cages is to place the pellets in cups near the top perches and the seed container on the floor. This works because caiques, particularly mature ones, prefer the upper part of the cage over the cage bottom. This takes a bit longer than the mixing method. Pellets should be available at all times, i.e., ad libitum. Place the pellets in a bowl located fairly high in the cage where the bird will encounter them more often and thus be more inclined to eat them. Caiques almost never binge on pellets. So as long as they stay dry, they may be left in the cage form several days. However, they should to be replaced with fresh pellets at least once a week or as needed if they become fouled with feces or other foods. Seed. At one time all experienced aviculturists relied exclusively on seed and fruit diets (Vice & Mainster, 1984). Except in some areas of the world where they are unavailable, most now feed some sort of formulated diet. Still, anyone who has ever owned a parrot can attest to the fact that seeds are much appreciated and that they eat them in a nearly ritualized fashion. They position the seed in their bill in just the right way to remove the hull, crush and then ingest the kernel. Commercial seed mixtures are still available and I recommend them as an occasional break from the formulated diets. For anyone serious about providing their bird with proper nutrition, seed based diets present a number of challenges. The commercial purveyors of these diets prepare them under the assumption that all the seeds in the mix will be eaten. This almost never happens. Caiques, like most parrots prefer certain seeds to others. This is a particular problem with mixes containing sunflower seeds. They eat all the sunflower seeds before eating any of the other seeds. Since sunflower seeds contain a disproportionate amount of fat, parrots on this diet often become obese. If you must feed a seed based diet, purchase one that is safflower based and be sure it is fortified. A fortified seed mix contains added vitamins and minerals. You should also limit the amount of seed available to the bird as a way to encourage it to eat all the different seeds in the mix. In addition, it is imperative that you provide plenty of fresh vegetables and fruits. With seed diets, you need to be much more concerned about potential nutritional gaps than with the pellet diets. I provide a small amount of a safflower seed based mix to my pet birds as a treat when they are out on their stands. The diet for my breeders in pellet based, but I also provide a very small amount of seed in their cages. If you provide your bird with both seed and pellets, be sure to place the seed on the floor of the cage and the pellets close to an upper perch. Avoid seed mixes meant for wild birds. Wild birdseed mixes do not provide a balanced diet and a recent report on wild birdseed purchases in Texas found that 17% of them contain unacceptable levels of aflatoxin (Bailey, 2001). Nectar. One of the earliest reports about the diet of caiques was by La Vaillant (1801) who lived in Dutch Guiana (present day Surinam). He noted that they consumed so much nectar and sweet fruits that their white breasts become discolored. A more recent study has taken this further and reported that P. l. leucogaster is one of several parrots that pollinate the flowers of Platonia signis (Maués, 1997). To induce birds to provide this service, the flowers of this tree have developed a cup-like shape with the pollen bearing anthers clustered around the upper edge. So when a bird puts its beak into the flower to take nectar, it picks up pollen on its head that can be carried to the next flower the bird visits. Perching birds, although not caiques, have also been implicated in the pollination of Symphonia globulifera (Gill, 1998). Caiques have been reported to “eat” the flowers of this tree as well, and both tree species belong to the Moronoboideae genus indigenous to the neotropics. Caiques have been reported to “eat” the flowers of the Inga laterifolia as well as those of some species of the Norantea and Eschweilera genera. During my visit to the Tambopata Research Center, Dr. Brightsmith noted that he had observed caiques biting into the base of flowers presumably into the flower’s nectary to obtain nectar. Penard (1908) and McLoughlin (1989) made a similar observation. McLoughlin noted that a flock of black-headed caiques that had been foraging in a tree above him left behind red tubular blossoms scattered on the ground and only the base of the flower was missing. One of the features of all the flowers that caiques have been reported to “eat” is that they are brightly colored pink, red or orange. This suggests that coloration may be a signal to the birds that suitable nectar is available in those flowers. We do not fully understand the implications in terms of total nutrition, but the many reports of nectar theft from many flowers and the mutualistic relationship with P. signis is proof of nectar consumption by caiques in the wild. Long before I became aware of the nectivorous ways of caiques, I was providing my birds with ginger ale or juice when out of their cages. After learning about their nectar consumption, I experimented with a number of nectar-like liquids. Based on the analysis of the sugar content of the Symphonia globulifera, I prepared a solution of 5% dextrose and 5% fructose (Gill, 1998). My caiques seemed to like this solution. I also experimented with a commercial formulated nectar mix meant for lories and lorikeets as well as the “complete” liquid nutrition preparations such as Sustical and Ensure sold for human consumption. My caiques seem to like all of them. A small cup of “nectar” can be provided in the morning and the bird allowed to take its fill. Any of the nectar-like liquids may be served except honey. While honey has the same composition as nectar, it may be contaminated with the spores of Clostridium botulinum that are not killed by pasteurization. Because of this, the Centers for Disease Control do not recommend feeding honey to young children and all birds except vultures are susceptible to botulism. The commercial lory mixes and, the human nutritionals, such as Sustical or Ensure, may be used to supplement the requirements of birds that are not eating or do not eat a balanced diet—particularly those on a seed diet. The “nectar” I use most frequently is ginger ale or a clear juice such as cranberry juice. It should be noted that not all breeders believe giving nectar is good for caiques. While Them (1988) added vitamins to the bird’s sugar water, Ireland (1989) believed it made caiques more aggressive. If you feed nectar it should be discarded at the end of the day and replaced with fresh in the morning. Fresh fruits and vegetables. While the formulated pellets provide a good nutritional base, an interesting selection of other foods should be provided to keep them entertained and fill any nutritional gaps. Fresh fruits and vegetables fulfill at least part of this need. While pellets are a concentrated source of nutrients, fruits and vegetables are largely comprised of water, thus, unless eaten in large amounts does not compromise the more balanced nutrition provided by the pellets (Massie, 1998). With a few exceptions, caiques may be allowed the same fruits and vegetables we eat. I have included extensive lists of both those that are acceptable and some of those thought to be unacceptable or toxic in separate appendices. You will find that caiques develop individual preferences for fruits or vegetables that differ from bird to bird. In the wild, caiques forage most frequently just after sunrise and just before dusk (Hilty, 1994). For this reason, I provide them with fruits and vegetables in the morning and remove them in the late afternoon before they have a chance to spoil. If you provide fresh fruits and vegetables, they do not usually become moldy within that short interval even if you live in warm areas such as Florida. The only time I ever had a problem with mold was during an anomalous period when it rained continuously for several weeks during a Florida summer. I prepare the fresh produce by chopping them into foot-sized pieces. Some commercial breeders and aviaries run them through a blender that converts them into a sort of mash. They claim this is to make sure the bird receives a more complete complement of nutrients, but I suspect it is more a matter of economy since it takes time the chop the produce. In Europe, they feed many local fruits and berries not readily available at North American markets. These include the fruits of the Hawthorn (Crataegus sp.), European mountain ash (Sorbus aucuparia) and rose hips. Because some of these, such as he mountain ash fruits, need to be cooked before people can eat them. I cannot recommend them unless you have had some experience in their preparation. Even in North America one occasionally finds things such as radish pods at farmers’ markets that are not carried in supermarkets. There are also many nutritious fruits available in our ethnic markets that you can probably feed caiques that I have no experience with. There is one caution related to feeding fresh produce. If you have your own farm and grow your own fruits and vegetable, take care to keep them free of animal fecal material. Salmonella and Escherichia coli O147:H7 are a particular problem in this situation and have been implicated in human infections. Birds are particularly susceptible to these bacteria. In this vein, you also need to consider the potential contamination of organically grown fruits and vegetables from some farms. Contamination of sprouts seems to be a particular problem and several reports of disease from contaminating bacteria have been reported by the Centers for Disease Control. (Go to the CDC website and type in “sprouts” in the search window.) Animal origin foods. There is a tendency to avoid providing parrots with animal origin foods. In fact, most parrots are omnivores and eat both plant and animal origin foods. Some aviculturists provide live insect larva to their birds and parrots are reported to eat them in the wild (Shade, 2000). Just as for people, a varied diet is important for achieving a balanced diet. For example, humans are not able to synthesize several of the amino acids known as essential amino acids, e.g., lysine. Plants are a very poor source of these, but animal flesh is very good. This is the reason I provide my birds with a small hunk of cheese every day and some cooked meat at least once a week. Risdon (1973) discovered that parrots seemed to rear healthier chicks when fed a variety of meats. Stoodley (1984) and Low (1972) recommended providing them with fish or beef broth. If you want to give your bird a special treat, though, offer them a cooked chicken bone. A caique will shred it into splinters to reach the marrow. McLoughlin (1983), after he learned that Aratinga pertinax not only nested in termitaria but also ate termites, offered them to a hand-reared caique and it ate over 200 in an hour. This bird also liked grasshoppers and small caterpillars. On occasion, I give my breeders a treat of a waxworm larva (Galleria mellonella) especially when they are feeding young. Some bird owners provide crickets—alive, frozen or freeze dried. These are greatly appreciated, as are the small grubs of the flour moth (Lüling, 1986). Having a flour moth infestation is not pleasant, but you can make the most of your misfortune. I have tried mealworms (Tenibrio molitor), but they did not accept them as well. As observed by Low (1980), most parrots prefer the soft-bodied larvae. If you wish to try them, crickets, waxworms and mealworms are available at pet stores specializing in reptiles. Letting your bird have milk is a bit controversial, although cheese and yogurt are considered very acceptable. Some people believe birds are like people who suffer from lactose intolerance, but this is not supported by scientific evidence. Indeed, milk is a protein and calcium rich staple offered by nearly all aviculturalists. Bechstein (1837) found milk very beneficial for birds in the early nineteenth century; Low (1980) believes it is important to provide it to birds when they are rearing their young; and Stoodley (1984) advocated providing skim milk as a source of essential amino acids. Studies indicate that lactose, the sugar found in milk, can comprise up to 20% of the diet without adversely affecting the growth of young chickens (Fox, 1959). While another study indicated that providing lactose to young chickens actually accelerated their growth (Rutter, 1954). I do not provide milk as a practice, but my pets often share my breakfast of milk and cereal, and I have not seen any adverse effect. Cooked foods. There are a number of foods that need to be cooked before they are served. For example, all meats that you serve your caique should be cooked for some of the same reasons we do this for human consumption, i.e., to prevent disease, release nutrients, etc. There are a number of other foods that need to be cooked before they are palatable. These include pasta; dried grains such as corn, rice and barley; and dried pulses such as peas, lupins and beans (McGrath, 1992; Abramson 1992). A couple commercial products intended for parrots require cooking. One is marketed under the name of “Crazy Corn” and the other “Beak Appétit.” These are mixes of a number of dried foods. A major advocate of providing cooked foods was the late John Stoodley (1984). The way he recommended preparing the dry pulses was to soak them overnight in water, rinse them with fresh water, then bring them to a boil in fresh water. Once cool, he mixed them with wheat that had been sprouted for two days. He recommended using a mixture of pulses—everything from butter beans to split peas, occasionally replacing a portion of them with dried corn. The largest portion, i.e., about two fifths of the mixture, should be soybeans since they are protein rich. Another food, prepared by people who are really devoted to their birds, is “birdie bread.” There are a number of recipes for this “bread.” The easiest one is to prepare a commercial corn bread mix according to the package directions adding the whole egg, including its crushed shell before baking. A number of other recipes may be found on the internet and in bird magazines. I have found, however, that caiques do not eat enough of these to warrant making them on a regular basis. In my experience, the only cooked food caiques really appreciate is meat. I have cooked the dried foods and made “birdie bread,” but my caiques did not seem to appreciate them. So I give them a small bit of meat and sometimes beans or pasta that I have cooked for myself, but I cannot recommend going to any special effort to cook just for your caique. Vitamins. You frequently see avian vitamins for sale in pet shops. Unless advised to do this by your veterinarian, you should only use these if the birds are fed an unfortified seed and vegetable diet. Never provide additional vitamins if any portion of the bird’s diet includes pellets, even if the bird is eating a few seeds and vegetables. All pellet diets contain vitamins and most seed mixes are vitamin fortified. Read the labels on the seed mix before you decide to add vitamins because too many vitamins, particularly the fat soluble ones, can make your bird sick. If you have to feed vitamins, sprinkle them over the bird’s favorite fruits taking care to follow the manufacturer’s instructions. Never add vitamins to the bird’s water, since this encourages bacterial growth. Mineral supplements. Most people provide a mineral-type supplement. One argument for providing a mineral supplement is that caiques visit the clay-licks known as colpas in the wild (Hollaway & Hollaway, 1999). It is thought that by consuming this clay, parrots are better able to deal with the natural toxins in the seeds and foods they eat in the wild. Alternatively, the clay may aid the digestion of the immature seeds that wild parrots sometimes prefer (Hilty, 1994). Presently, the real reason parrots visit colpas is unknown.Parrots in other parts of neotropics, such as in Costa Rico, do not seem to need to visit colpas. Because most of the foods that we offer our pet birds are the same ones we eat ourselves or are especially blended for parrots, they seldom encounter high levels of toxins in their diet. So, there seems little reason to offer them any clay. Nonetheless, I have offered my caiques clay that I sterilized in an oven both as a dry dust bath and as a wet paste. My caiques completely ignored it regardless of the form. There may be several reasons they rejected it. One of them may be that it was not the proper type of clay. Parrots are reported to only eat one layer in the clay bank in preference to others (Gilardi, 1999). The “Manu” mineral blocks are marketed as being this type of clay, but to me they appear to be little more than the standard mineral blocks with brown coloring added. The clay I saw the caiques “eating” at the copla at the Tambopata Research Center in Peru seemed to be a mineral crumble that broke apart as the bird held it in its claw while gnawing on it. Maybe some resourceful person will eventually discover the clay that caique prefer and market it. I do not offer my birds a mineral block. They rarely chew on the gypsum mineral blocks available at most pet shops. These only seem to gather debris and get dirty. Neither do I offer grit. Parrots do not require grit because they do not need to grind food in their gizzard. If you watch them, you will note that they first hull the food and then squeeze the pulp in their beak to extract the liquid and smaller particulate matter. The hull and coarser parts are then dropped onto the cage bottom. In the past, I offered oyster shell. Many parrot owners provide this, but mine ignored it entirely. The one mineral-like thing I always provide is cuttlebone. You may present it in several ways. You can secure it to the inside of the cage or, alternatively, buy the cuttlebone chunks and drop them into their roost box. Most of the time, they ignore the cuttlebone, but when the mood strikes, a caique will attack it and chew it into fine powder. If it is a female, this is often a sign that she is going to lay an egg. So, I make cuttlebone available in their cages at all times. Tonic foods. Tonic foods are given to the bird for the purpose of increasing health and vitality. Often these are the same ones touted for human use such as wheat grass, spirulina, and bee pollen. Early in the twentieth century, castor oil, epsom salts, onion, rock salt, and whiskey were the touted tonics (Nicholson, 1929). These are hardly what we would consider good tonics today. Thus, the concept of what constitutes a tonic food changes with the era. Despite this, or perhaps because of the fad nature of tonic foods, a whole industry has sprung up to sell these products. Usually they disappear as their fad status fades. Carolyn Swicegood (1998) is a proponent of feeding tonic foods to parrots. She recommends feeding them aloe, garlic, fresh ginger, and sea vegetables. If you live in tropical areas, many species of aloe are available. Be sure you only feed Aloe vera. Feeding garlic, however, may be dangerous. There is a report of a conure dying after its owner force fed it garlic (Wade, 2004). To me fresh ginger has a very pleasant odor, but my caiques ignored it. I do not put much stock in any of these, but to give them a fair chance, I have tried feeding many of them. I have not fed aloe, sea vegetables or pollen. My caiques did not much like any of the tonic foods I offered. They avoided the fruits sprinkled with wheat grass and spirulina and immediately dropped the ginger after it tried it. They seem quite healthy despite not eating them! There is little harm in giving a small quantity of these to your birds, but do not expect them to be appreciated. Dangerous foods. Dangerous foods fall into three basic categories. The first are foods that are intrinsically dangerous because they are poisonous. A second group are those that are not poisonous, but if consumed in excess are deleterious. A third group is comprised of foods that are contaminated with toxin producing or pathogenic organisms. Below is a bit about these dangerous foods. As a general rule, do not to serve any food to your bird that is known to be poisonous for people. This may seem obvious, but it bears mention. However, there are some foods that are safe for humans that are considered too toxic to give your bird. The most common of these are avocado, chocolate, and alcohol. There are studies showing avocado is harmful to cockatiels (Hargis, et al., 1989; Shropshire, et al., 1992). I suspect that members of the allium group of plants, that includes onions, leeks, and garlic, may have a degree of toxicity and should be avoided. Wade (2004) reports that a conure fed a large amount of garlic died from liver disease. The evidence that chocolate is toxic is less well documented, but be on the safe side and avoid it. Chocolate contains a compound called theobromine that is toxic for cats and dogs and may be for birds too (Hawley, 1994). Alcohol will cause your bird to get drunk. You may think this is cute, but chronic use affects birds just as badly as it does humans. A list of additional human foods, known or suspected to be deleterious for parrots, are included Appendix B. The category of foods that are dangerous if given in excess are chiefly those with high fat content. The one warning given by most veterinarians is not to let caiques, or any parrot, eat too many fatty foods. Caiques that eat too many sunflower seeds, peanut butter, cheese or nuts can become obese and this can lead to a heart attack and death. Likewise, you should also not allow your bird too much salt. Giving your bird salt is as bad for them as for us. If your bird consumes large amounts of salt it may develop kidney disease. It is not only important to provide nutritious food, but it must be free of bacteria and molds. For example, monkey biscuit dipped in water or juice is a favorite of caiques, but you need to be careful not to leave these in the cage so long that bacteria or molds grow on them. You need to be especially aware of mold contamination. Molds produce mycotoxins that are dangerous for both birds and people. This is a particular problem for grains, peanuts, meats, cheese, and bread. This is one of the reasons to avoid providing seed meant for wild birds. As noted above, a survey of wild birdseed purchased in Texas feed stores revealed a high frequency of contamination. Peanuts, for example, are often contaminated with aflatoxin, a particularly potent mycotoxin produced by Aspergillus flavus. You should only purchase the unsalted peanuts meant for human consumption since these monitored for the presence of this toxin. Any food that has an off odor or is obviously moldy should be discarded. It is not worth the risk. This is also why it is important not to allow fruits and vegetables to remain overnight in the bird's cages. Spoiled and rotten fruit are thought to cause diarrhea in parrots. Entertainment
foods. There are some
edibles that you give your bird more for entertainment than nutrition. A small
freshly cut leafy limb or twig off a tree is one of these. Of course, be sure it
is from one of the safe trees listed in the appendix. It need not be a deciduous
tree. One of the things that Loro Parque provides nearly all its birds is a
bough of a pine native to the Flowers are also among the foods you may provide for entertainment. In the wild, flowers may comprise a significant portion of a caique’s diet. Some of the guides to South American birds compiled by professional ornithologists list the foods they have observed the birds eating. Flowers are usually listed among the items eaten. One reason for this is to secure nectar as mentioned above. But even flowers that do not produce much nectar are appreciated. I sometimes provide nasturtium and squash blossoms. You may also provide some of the same flowers given to lories. Schroeder (2002), who is well known for his expertise on lories, has listed a number including citrus blossoms, the yellow florets of broccoli, pansies, violets, rosemary blossoms, budding sunflowers, young dandelion blooms, roses, and monarda blooms. He recommends not giving apple blossoms or tomato blooms. In general, any blossom that can be consumed by people is probably safe for your bird. So, add a flower or two from your garden to liven up your bird’s life. Treats. Caiques are especially fond of certain foods. Among their most favored treats are sunflower seeds, nuts, dried banana slices, and chicken bones. Nearly every caique likes these. Caiques, however, sometimes develop individual tastes. Several of mine have a great fondness for cheese and prefer it to other foods. Andy, one of my pets, has a great fondness for carrots in just about every way they are prepared whether cooked or raw. In addition, there are numerous commercial treats. Caiques like them, but with so many cheaper treats available, I find little reason to buy them. Washing foods. There are a number of food borne pathogens and you can greatly reduce exposure to them by simply washing them. Among the human pathogens encountered on fresh produce are salmonella, E. coli, and hepatitis A. Obviously you cannot wash things like pellets and seed, but you can wash vegetables and fruits. There are a number of products sold for this purpose. These include Fit, Veggie Wash, and Organiclean. However, these are not any more effective than using regular tap water (Burros, 2003). Here are some pointers on how to wash produce. First, never wash produce before storing it. This spreads the bacteria and accelerates spoilage. Buy leafy produce such as lettuce and cabbage with their outer leaves still attached. Contaminants mostly occurs on the outer leaves and these can be removed prior to serving. Scrub firm produce such as apples, peppers, etc. under running water. Do the same for root vegetables, but use a vegetable brush. Rinse delicate produce such as berries in a colander with at least two changes of water swirling during each wash. Finally, do not forget to wash produce with rinds such as melons and squash since their flesh can be contaminated when you cut into them. Follow these same rules for both people and our birds. The serving bowl. Do not forget the serving bowls, especially the ones used for the fruits and vegetables. These must be cleaned every day. I use stainless steel and plastic containers that attach to the inside of cage or sit on the cage floor. These can be easily washed and disinfected. I like to put them through the dishwasher every few days. If you cannot do this, soak them a few minutes in 10% sodium hypochlorite bleach, e.g. Clorox®, and be sure to rinse them well afterwards. Those used for dry foods do not need cleaning as often. Some stores sell galvanized feeders that hook on the side of the cage. Avoid using these for water and especially acidic fruits and vegetables. The zinc in the galvanized surface is toxic and will leach. These are acceptable for dry foods. You may use ceramic and pottery bowls, but avoid ones made in foreign countries. These often leach lead. If you suspect lead is present in one of your feeding containers, test it with a lead test kit available at your local hardware. Feeding times. Parrots will eat nearly any time in the day, but in the wild they forage more frequently in the early morning and in the evening just before dusk (Hilty, 1994). I offer my birds a treat the first thing in the morning. Pecans or walnuts are a special favorite, but nearly any kind of food that the parrot is fond of may be offered. Shortly afterwards, I provide my birds with their fresh fruits and vegetables and remove them in the evening. I allow them access to pellets at all times, but I check them once a day to see how much they have consumed or whether they have become fouled. I add more if they are low and replace them if they have been fouled. If fouling is a frequent occurrence, relocate the dish. I provide a safflower based seed mix to my pet birds when they are out with me in the evening, but I limit them to a tablespoon or two. Treats are usually welcomed anytime, but care should be taken not to over indulge them. Treats are an important aid in socializing your bird and should be used to create a special relationship. To summarize, I recommend that a formulated pellet diet form the basis of your pet bird’s diet. Any of the commercial products will do, although I think they like the multicolored ones best. I provide seeds as a treat when they are out of their cage. I never feed a sunflower based seed mix, since they would eat them to the exclusion of the other seeds. Sunflower seeds and nuts can be used as a special treat though. Caiques are very fond of fruits, cooked meats, and, to a lesser extent, vegetables. All my birds are fed a variety of fruits and vegetables, and a very small hunk of cheese on a daily basis. Except for grapes, which are available all year, I let the season determine what fruits and vegetables to feed. In the winter, I give citrus and papaya; in the summer, fresh sweet corn and berries; etc. I also offer my pet birds ginger ale or other sweet caffeine free beverage when out on their stand. They also get occasional bits of human food straight from the table. I feel a strict pellet diet is far too boring for a caique, and supplementing them with fruits, vegetable and other foods is an important source of environmental enrichment. In short, feed your bird the formulated diets to keep it in good health and the other foods to make its life more interesting.
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