Caique Diet
What to feed your caique? On this page we will explore a multitude of options avialable to you, for the health and well-being of your fid. Also input from other caique owners, and articles on feeding and nutrition. Dive right in!
Today there are just as many opionins of the proper way to feed your birds, as there are products! As of now, the most popular diet for companion parrots is a formulated diet that comes in pellet form. There are so many brands to choose from, how do you know which is best for your bird? Lets look at the most common brands, and those most commonly used amoung pet bird owners.
Harrisons is one of the most popular organic brand of pellets. Vets endorse it, breeders use it, pet owners rave about it. Harrisons is not available in any store- you can locate it either online, or through your local veterinarian. One thing that Harrisons Pellets says on the back of the packaging- is that fresh fruits, vegetables, cooked foods, etc should be limited when feeding your bird a Harrisons diet. No pellet is a complete diet, and while you should not suppliment a pellet diet with extra vitamins, (unless so recommended by your avian vet)- please continue to feed leafy greens, fruits, veggies and cooked foods to your bird.
Roudybush is another popular brand of pellets amoung avian enthusiasts. It is what I personally use for my birds. "The main ingredients in our Maintenance and Breeder diets are corn, wheat, peanut meal, and soy meal. To that we have added vitamin and mineral supplements, and an all natural preservative" The preservative used in their foods is Rosemary Extract, which is non-harmful to our fids. The pellets have no added dyes for color.
Kaytee is one of the most commonly found brands- it is stocked in every Petco and Petsmart in the USA. Kaytee makes a variety of food, including pelleted forumulas for parrots. They have recently come out with an organic version of their pellets- but they are not as easy to find as the Rainbow Exact.
The Rainbow Exact Kaytee Pellets contain a large amount of sucrose, additives and preservatives, including ethoxyquin (we will get to that in a bit). I had my birds on Kaytee Organic forumula for a while before switching to Roudybush- I spent more money on Kaytee then Roudybush. How is that possible? The way Kaytee pellets are made, they are extruded- or puffed out when cooked. When Roudybush pellets are made, they are compressed- the ingredients are combined and smashed together in pellet form. Pellets that are cooked the way Kaytee pellets are, is equivalent to eating Cheetos chips. The birds have to eat a lot of pellets before they get full.
Zupreem is another readily available pellet. Zupreem makes pellets in different formulas- they have organic, as well as fruity, and Avian Entree's for the owners that like to mix things up a little. Zupreem fruity forumula is alot like Fruit Loops for kids- bright colors, fruit flavors, lots of sugar. The pellets even smell fruity! The organic forumula is much better- not as many additives, naturally flavored, but still a high amount of sugar.
Pretty Bird is relatively common, can be bought at local petstores. Some of their formulas are enhanced with dyes, some are natural. I have never fed this brand of pellet to my birds.
For comparison of different brands of pelleted foods, consult this chart from Artemis Aviaries which deals with the comparison of a majority of the pelleted brands. * cockatiel and lovebird sized formulas
Additives in Pelleted formulas
Let's talk about the additives in pellets.
Ethoxyquin: Is listed and identified as a harsh hazardous chemical by OSHA. It was originally used to preserve rubber. This is not allowed in human food and some feel it is not a chemical that they want in their bird food. The FDA has asked manufacturers for voluntary reduction in its use in pet foods and is in the process of deciding whether or not to ban the use of it altogether. Bird’s bodies can not get rid of it like a dog or cat and it then builds up and causes problems. Ethoxyquin promotes kidney carcinogenesis, significantly increases the incidence of stomach tumors, enhanced bladder carcinogenesis and urinary bladder carcinogenesis. Cancers of this type are the most lethal and fastest acting, the swiftest effects being seen among animals.
Artificial Colors: Most people are aware of toxic side effects of artificial colors and flavors from coal tar derivatives such as Red #40, a possible carcinogen, and Yellow #6, which causes sensitivity to fatal viruses in animals. Artificial colors DO cause yellow feather discoloration in Eclectus.
BHT/BHA: These petroleum products are used to stabilize fats in foods. In the process of metabolizing BHA and BHT, chemical changes occur in the body. These changes have caused reduced growth rates and they inhibit white blood cell stimulation. In pets, they can exhibit reactions such as skin blisters, hemorrhaging of the eye, weakness, discomfort in breathing, a reduction of the body's own antioxidant enzyme, glutathione peroxidase and may cause cancer. According to Dr. Wendell Belfield, DVM, a practicing vet for some 26 years, both BHA and BHT are known to cause liver and kidney dysfunction and are banned in some European countries.
Propylene Glycol: Used as a de-icing fluid for airplanes, this chemical is added to food and skin products to maintain texture and moisture as well as inhibiting bacteria growth in products. It also inhibits the growth of friendly bacteria in the digestive system by decreasing the amount of moisture in the intestinal tract leading to constipation and cancer. It can affect the liver and kidneys and causes the destruction of red blood cells.
Salt: Added as a preservative, salt can irritate the stomach lining, cause increased thirst and aggravate heart and kidney problems through fluid retention.
Sodium Nitrite: Used in the curing of meats, this substance participates in a chemical reaction in the body that becomes carcinogenic. It is used also in pet foods to add color.
Sugar and other Sweeteners: The most common sweeteners in pet/bird foods are beet sugar, corn sugar, molasses and sucrose. They are used as preservatives and have the side effect of creating sugar addicts in pets. They require almost no digestion and are rapidly absorbed into the blood stream. These will provide sugar highs (just as humans experience) and subsequent lows (moodiness), inhibit the proper growth of friendly intestinal bacteria and they virtually shut down the digestive system while being processed. Sugar can also contribute to diabetes and hypoglycemia, cataract development, obesity and arthritis.
Go to your cupboard and get your pellets out and find out how many of these additives are in the brand you buy. If there is something else on the ingredients list and you don't know what it is, FIND OUT.
Do your research or ask questions of someone who can find out for you. Did you see the natural ingredients on your pellet ingredients list? Why not feed those items in their fresh, natural state instead?
How do YOUR pellets stack up? (This list may need updating...check labels!)
Abba = ethoxyquin, artificial color, artificial flavor
Avian Special Needs = fish solubles, mineral oil
Avi-Sci =ethoxyquin
Breeders Blend=artificial flavors, salt
Hagen =salt
Harrison's = salt
Kaytee =ethoxyquin, artificial color, salt, BHT or BHA
Kaytee now has an organic forumula that is E free and no artificial colorants
Kellogg =ethoxyquin, artificial flavor, salt
Lafeber Pellets=ethoxyquin Now E free
Lefeber Nutriberries=ethoxyquin, propylene glycol
Now E free
L&M Pellets=ethoxyquin, artificial color, artificial flavor
Pretty Bird Pellets=ethoxyquin, artificial flavor, salt, added sugar, BHT or BHA
Roudybush Pellets=ethoxyquin Now E free
Scenic=salt
ZuPreem=artificial flavor, BHT or BHA now BHT/BHA free
most pellets that have switched over to an E free forumula replaced ethoxyquin with Rosemary extract. Pellets that are now E free are so noted.
Source- Author Unkown, updated by CC site owner.
Now you might be asking yourself- why would anyone ever feed their birds pellets, if they are as full of adverse ingredients as they are said to be? If you pick a good pellet, with little to no additives, dye free, and naturally preserved- then pellets are benefical. Pellets are convenient for the owner- no more seed husks to fool around with. Also, pellets have the same amount of nutrition in every bite, whereas seed the bird can pick and choose which seed they want to eat, so they might not be getting all the nutrition possible, no matter what quality the seed.
What is this Ethoxyquin I keep hearing about? Ethoxyquin, or referred to as "E", is a preservative observed and identified as a hazardeous substance by the OSHA. It was originally used to preserve rubber. Here is part of an article that talks about pets and Ethoxyquin-
The bad boy on the label ==> Ethoxyquin
The U. S. Dept. of Agriculture for toxicology information lists ethoxyquin in their Farm Chemical Hand-Book as a pesticide, used in fruit scald control. It is also used as a rubber preservative. It is FDA approved for use as an antioxidant for carotenes vitamin A and E and the prevention of the development of organic peroxides.
It is approved at 150 ppm in paprika and chili powder, and because it is used as a preservative in livestock feed, the following residue allowances in human consumed animal products as follows: 5 ppm in or on the uncooked fat of meat from animals except poultry; 3 ppm in or on the uncooked liver and fat of poultry, 0.5 ppm in or on the uncooked muscle meat of animals, 0.5 ppm in poultry eggs, and zero in milk.
The above information brings up the question why the FDA allows such a small amount of ethoxyquin residue (5 to .5 ppm) in human consumed foods yet allows such high amounts (150 ppm) to be used in pet food and livestock feeds?
In the case of the dog, pound for pound, a dog is consuming up to 300 times more ethoxyquin than allowed for people. (depending upon the weight) Also many dog food manufacturers are not always listing it as an ingredient on the packaging, but sometimes merely print "E".
Check your dog or cat food label to see what the pet food you are using is being preserved with.
Monsanto's (the manufacturer) own cautionary warnings in using and handling this product: They warn that it may cause allergic skin reactions, irritation to the eyes and skin. They advise that workers must wear eye and respiratory protection. The container of ethoxyquin has a very prominent skull and crossbones with POISON written in capital letters.
Ethoxyquin is listed and identified as a hazardous chemical under the criteria of the OSHA Hazard Communication Standard (29 CFR 1910, 1220).
The Chemical Toxicology of Commercial Products says that ethoxyquin has a toxic rating of 3 (on a scale of 1 to 6, with 6 being super toxic requiring less than 7 drops to produce death). At that level it can slowly develop depression, con-vulsions, coma and death; skin irritation and liver damage.
In a recent study by The Department Of Pathology, Nagoya City University Medical School Japan, it was found: ethoxyquin promoted kidney carcinogenesis. Also, it significantly increased incidence of stomach tumors and enhanced bladder carcinogesis.
The FDA maintains it is safe, yet have asked pet food manufacturers to "voluntarily" lower the levels to 75 PPM.
Source- Pet Care Tips
Personally, I do not feed my animals anything with "E" in the label. Fortunatly, many companies as of late have been switching their formulas and preserving them naturally- most commonly with Rosemary Extract.
