Why Providing Quality Bird Seed Year-Round Is Important
With the advent of high quality pellets for our birds, people are focusing less on the seed component of their diets. However, our feathered friends still need seed to provide essential nutrients that are crucial for their health and well-being.
Quality Seed
Ensuring you purchase high quality seed for your birds is still very important as they are more likely to have a higher nutritional content and be free from contaminants when compared to a low quality product. The seed should include a variety that is suitable for your specific breed of parrot (the image above shows an example for larger parrots). Supplying them with a wide range will also keep them entertained and happy as they find new foods to try. When you are looking for a decent seed mix make sure it is not dusty, it doesn't look old, and doesn't have an odd smell. Generally, if your bird seed smells fresh and looks good enough for a person to eat, you are on the right track.
Weight Management
An imbalanced seed diet can often lead to obesity and liver issues for parrots, so make sure they receive a good balanced meal without overfeeding them on high-fat seeds. You can try sprouting some of the high-fat seed types, as long as you are careful to prevent bacteria issues. Reducing the availability of high-fat seed helps a great deal in maintaining your birds ideal weight range, especially if your parrot has limited mobility or is elderly.
A Boredom Buster
Our parrots require not only physical activities, but also mental stimulation. Using a variety of good quality seed as part of their diet can help keep them engaged and prevent boredom. You wouldn't want to eat the same meal every day of your life and neither does your feathered friend. Giving them a variety of seed options along with their pellets, fresh fruit and vegetables can help reduce boredom.
Price
The pricing of premium seed is where a lot of people draw the line and decide they will go with a budget brand. I've seen some outrageous prices of supposed premium mix and the only thing premium about the product was the price. Times are tough, there is no doubt about that. You can certainly shop around and try to find deals, however, also remember that seed is only a part of your parrots diet. A 500 gram pack of quality bird seed can last quite a while when it is supplemented with the correct pellets, fruit, and vegetables.
When you are researching online for a good seed mix and aren't having much luck, try talking with a local bird feed stockist in your area. I have found that smaller stockists can usually spend more time answering questions you may have on the content of the seed mix. They often have parrots of their own and actually use the products they sell.