Eating healthy doesn't have to be difficult if you know what foods to feed.

The following is a list of Healthy Foods compiled by the members of Quakerparrots.com.

Please feel free to add your Healthy Food suggestions.

You can also refer to the Nutrition Table in the Quakerparrots.com article section.

Note: This list is based solely upon the personal experiences and opinions of the poster. Quakerparrots.com makes no guarantees about its accuracy or suitability for every bird, or its completeness.

Thanks Dee.

As Dee said, if there is something that is missing or should be added to the list, either healthy or toxic, chime in.

I was going to make a separate thread for toxic/harmful foods .. Just so someone reading doesn't confuse the two ..

Coconut FRESH right out of the shell. It has medicinal purposes as well.

Cinnamon sticks Again they have medicinal purposes

Fresh Garlic Very little (very little) once in a blue moon. Does have medicinal purposes but this one can be over dosed. You really have to be careful with garlic. (I do use it and my Conures loved it more then life itself)

Apple juice is a great anti fungal and will help clean out the crop and digestive system.

Plain Yogurt- Non flavored because it contains the least sugar. This product contains live cultures that can keep the gut flora in check. It can also clear sour crop.

Here's what mine love:

Organic Quinoa: grown in South America before the conquistadors arrived and tried to wipe it out. Considered a complete food as it contains almost everything one needs to survive.

Organic CousCous: a middle eastern grain product that has been used for centuries and is perfect for getting stuck all over a little lovebirds face

Dried organic Amarillo chilies: big hit, can be chewed, eaten, shredded and thrown by birds and stuffed into toys and cooked into food by Parronts.

Organic Strawberries: not only tasty, but it's great for either wiping your beak on your parronts white clothes, or for staining white eyepatches to scare the parront.

Almonds in the shell: Satisfies destruction needs to get it out of the shell, and followed by tasty nutty goodness.... also good for throwing

Curry Paste: mix into grain and veggie mixes to add an extra spicey flavor

Millet!! Yes, it is healthy.

Some people feel that millet isn't good for birds because it is fattening. But that couldn't be further from the truth!! Millet is a grain, and not a seed. It is a very healthy part of a parrot's diet. To read about millet and other healthy grains, Click~Here

Here are some links to natural and organic stuff to help our fids.......

Aloe

This one is on Grapefruit Seed Extract
GSE

And this one is on Organic Apple Cider Vinegar

ACV

I know I'm new here, but I'm a bit of a research geek, and have found a LOT of good information.

fresh fruits and veggies are also good for birds!

Yes, almost all fresh veggies are good for them, except avacado.

Fruits are also good, but, it is best to reserve fruits for feeding later in the evening. Like a kid with ice cream, they will fill up on the sweets, and not always eat their main diet.

Thanks for the healthy food list!!! Right now I can only get mine to eat Zupreem Avian Maintenance Fruit blend flavor pellets and dried fruit (pineapple, banana & papaya). I only use the dry fruits ofr treats for good behavior and to say good morning to them. How do I get them to eat other stuff? I've tried brocolli, carrots, & coconut. They won't touch any of it. I do try and spread some Healthy Toppings in with their pellets. Any suggestions on getting them to eat the real stuff?

Sometimes it is just finding HOW they want their veggies. Some like them, diced slivered , mashed , cooked, raw, just keep trying. Mine will eat raw veggies better than frozen or cooked. Slivered carrots better than sliced or chunked. My eclectus likes dried banana but wont eat raw. My grey likes raw but not dried. Just got to find their taste.They all like cooked sweet patatoe, mash some banana in it and then add some black walnuts..yummy, Somtimes it just takes getting them interested in trying new things. when i got my grey he was on an all seed diet. It wasnt long though (and after acting like a complete fool carrying on over everything that i put in the bowl like an idiot) how goood it was. he now trust that anything i say is mmmm goood ,must be and trys it.

my birdy likes her soft food.
I get a whole bunch of stuff together to make a large batch.
I boil till pasta is soft. The rice and beans will still be a little crunchy, so they wont so to complete mush.
whole wheat pasta (2 bags different shapes)
brown rice (2+ cups)
dried beans/ peas/ lentils (that have been soaked overnight)
(I use like 12 bean soup mix w/o spices)

then I add minced raw veggies
broccoli
carrots
corn on the cob nuggets
peas
green beans
jalepanos
bell peppers
and whatever else you want

I take half of the mixture and put it in a large tupperware container and then break the rest up into little 2-3 serving sizes and you can either use vacuum seal bags, baby food jars, or small tupperware. Then put all but 1 small container in the freezer. Put the remaining small container in the fridge.
I give her soft food every other day. So every four days or so I take one out of the freezer and put it in the fridge to defrost for the next day. When you start to get low on small serving sized containers defrost the big frozen container and break it into small containers. It keeps a good rotaion of fresh soft food for Reepecheep. Its kinda mushy but she likes it like that.
You can change according to the texture your birdy likes. For more chunks dont soak the beans overnight before you cook them and cut the veggies into larger pieces.


I was also thinking about mixing ground flax seed into the mix before I feed it to her, but I am not sure if it is as good for QP's as it is for people and dogs. If anyone knows I would apreciate the advice.

Do I start freaking out now!!?!?!?! I just read a thread that says dried fruits are bad for Mr. Nibbles!!! I printed the list you linked us to. Where can I get more info on what to feed him, maybe meal ideas. What's the difference between organic and regular fresh fruits and veggies. Other than they tear up my actual babies?

You really work on feeding well! Yay! Flax seed is great. Some birds eat it better if it is ground up. Many people use small coffee grinders dedicated to grinding flax seed.
I use it with my fids. If you use flax seed oil as an additive, there is no need to add flax seed.

Yea! I bought some organic ground flax seed for my ratties and I am glad the Reepecheep can enjoy it too!

my quaker has recently discovered fresh peel'd water chestnuts .. juicy & crunchy ..

Dried fruits contain sulphur. Not good. Organic dried fruits do not contain sulphur. Good.

Hi, Hopefully you will read my reply. I would like to know what is best to use in your parrot's bath water. I read about the natural remedies on your list, but I don't know which one is best for the bath. Please let me know.

Thank you

Tampaclavin

My quaker loves plain oatmeal--no sugar no milk, just quaker oats and water microwaved. Is this good for him? He's one of those strange little birds that won't eat pellets, loves seeds (although I don't allow them very often), loves fruit but is light on the veggies.

Yep, plain oatmeal is just fine.

I have to wonder though, from your description of what he eats, what is his main food source? Parrots should have a main food source of either pellets or seeds. Something that is left in his cage 24 hours a day for him to eat. While seeds aren't the greatest option, it's better then nothing. Have you tried offering different types of pellets? A lot of pellet makers will send samples out for you to try, which beats buying brand after brand to try and find one your bird likes. Also, there is a great conversion method which is stickied at the top of this forum that works wonderful at converting a bird to a pelleted diet.

I learned about aloe the hard way. I Have 6 Rat Terriers and one was dinning on my huge aloe plant. I freaked and called the vet. He laughed and told me that must be why my guys are all so healthy. I let every one have a small dose ocasionally now. Cheese is a big debate, some say never some say often. I don't feed cheese regularly and never to the smaller birds, because the eat less and it,s harder to regulate thier diet than with an Amazon or such. I had a blue front that could smell sharp cheeder for a mile, and you had Better give him a HUNK.

I feed my QP about 1/4 teaspoon of light cottage cheese daily. He loves chicken and turkey also, but that seems unnatural to me :-) I make him corn muffins with creamed corn in them, and always include the egg shell. I bake them in mini muffins tins, so they are just the right size for him. He loves strawberries, kiwi, banana, but isn't fond of grapes, cherries, or oranges. He's pretty picky and either loves it right away, or hates it with the first bite, and won't try it a second time.

Of course you all know that Milk Thistle Seed cleans the liver but I have read many avian vet articles that say Schisandra berries are even better for the liver, not only in birds, but in humans as well.

Another thing that is good for the liver is Dandelion. If they are out of season, you can buy the leaves. It's suggested to give only a small amount til the system gets used to it. they can also eat the flowers when they are in season.

Another good plant for them is Purple Cone Flower. So many of us have them in our gardens. They can have the flower, the leaves and the stems (sparingly at first of course). Chickweed is anothething that's good for them. there is a whole list of herbs and flowers, but there is also a list of toxic flowers. Be careful.


EDIT: Oh SAN DEE, I just read an article that said some fruits are far too acid for birds and Kiwi was one of the worst. That's so odd with so many named Kiwi here.

My bird Nessie is a funny Qp
she is fussy about some things, she will eat:

Dried Goji Berries (an asian super berry, just keep an eye on their poo because she scared me half to death because her
poo turned red from the goji berry)
Dried Kiwi fruit (she will not eat fresh kiwi fruit for some reason)
Dried Mango (is her most beloved fruit and will not drop it)
Pumpkin seeds (she won't drop these either)
Almonds (she likes em but not her fav)
Pear (she loves and eats it from my hand)
Sweet potato (cooked, she thinks its great to mash around her face and then clean it off)
Brocoli (adores, her second fav vegie)
Bokchoy (her first fav vegie)