It’s impossible to get a true diagnosis for a sick bird, unless you go to a vet. And it has to be an avian or exotic animal veterinarian, or you might still be in the dark.However, there are a few supplements for bird health that you can use when they’re ill. These products give them…
You may have read, as I have, that some greens contain oxalates, therefore they should not be fed to your birds. But greens are so important to their overall diet, let’s not dismiss them if we don’t have to. The ones we’re going to discuss do have an effect on finch diets. Lady Gouldians can be given foods…
Why Shouldn’t I Give my Finches Lettuce? This question comes up a lot. I found that I have “NO LETTUCE” posted here, but deemed it “OK to feed” here and here. So let’s talk about lettuce. First, we have different kinds – iceberg, butter, leaf lettuce, and so on. For this article I’m going to put iceberg by itself,…
I just answered a question on a post, about egg food and babies – and I thought it was important enough to put out here where others could see it. The lady has some babies in a nest and wondered if the grains and millet she was feeding were sufficient. I like to provide a little extra protein for these…
I generally recommend products like Guardian Angel or Thrive when birds are ill. I feel like those give them strength to fight through the illness – often that plus heat will get them through a rough patch. If you don’t have access to one of these, the next in line is pedialyte. That’s something parents are familiar with – it’s…
I often get asked questions about sick birds, and I always suggest getting a professional diagnosis and prescription from the veterinarian. But then the person in question wants to do “more.” It is very hard to wait the 48 hours or so that it takes to start seeing improvement. I get that. There are a…
You’ve probably noticed by now that most bird supplements suggest adding them to water. You may think that’s a great way to do it, since surely they drink water every day, right? I used to think that way too. But later on I saw problems with this method. For one thing, by observing your birds…
This question comes up a lot, and it’s very valid. Supplements, like all good things can be overdone so it’s important to be aware of how much your bird is already getting versus how much (more) you want to give him. Let’s take calcium as an example. All pet birds need calcium all year around…
In the human diet world, we see “carbohydrate” as a bad word. We think carbs are responsible for excess fat, and we want to eliminate them altogether. In the finch/pet bird world, carbohydrates are useful. They’re where our birds get the energy to fly. Their bodies convert carbs into simple sugars. Some carbs are not…
If you’ve read the paperback version of Feeding Finches, you’d probably appreciate “real” links to the items mentioned in the book. Here they are! Foods Grains and Seeds – Suppliers Good for Sprouting Nuts and Legumes Sites of Interest **If you find an outdated link, I’d be happy to know about it. Use the contact…