[Joeyd]

Piko has always been on the same type of food, I switch it up sometimes but this past summer he just started becoming addicted to sunflower seeds and has been neglecting almost every other seed. The good thing is that I have been able to give him fresh greens and he still eats his millet spray.

He used to love Goldenfeast foods but I saw that they got bought out and there have been a lot of complaints of the quality now so I haven’t rebought that. Right now his main brand I get is Sunburst Gourmet Blend. I’m wondering if I should go back to Volkman since I do have to buy new food for him this week and wanted to check what stuff any of you might suggest.

 

[Joeyd]

Sunflower seeds are very good for birds until they are consuming too much. Have you just tried weaning him off them? Maybe start by giving him half of amount he normally eats, then gradually reduce the amount over time? You can also go cold turkey with him and stop giving them entirely except for treats. It would be rare for a bird to die from hunger. A bird will eventually eat if they get hungry. Maybe you can add a little of his other treats to replace the sunflower seeds, (hemp or chia) then gradually remove them.

Sorry, I am not much of a help suggesting seed mixes. I have basically used Higgin Safflower Gold, but Pugsley does not like safflower, so like you, I am needing to look for something else. Just be sure to read the ingredients when looking for another seed mix. Do not buy any seed mix with peanuts. Reports suggest that our birds should not eat peanuts due to possible aflatoxins. Have you ever thought about sprouting? You can sprout sunflower seeds. Soaking them in water starts them germinating, which uses all the fat reserves in the seeds making them healthier.

Yeah I did the weaning part and it did help but he still manages to not eat a lot of his food. Maybe he’s bored of this brand. So I bought Volksman food for him, so I’ll see how that goes. And WOW did prices go up!!!

Next I need to find a good place for millet spray since that’s almost done.

I really want to give him that Goldenfeast blend he loved, but the old bags aren’t around anymore and I still really have to see how their new stuff is.

 

[Joeyd]

I know, it stinks that Goldenfeast was bought out and the new owners didn't keep the original recipes. I won't buy it anymore either. They ruined it. This morning I noticed that there were bugs in The Safflower Gold bag. That is the first time that it has ever happened to me. Ughh..I may try making my own seed mix again. So how is Piko doing? How old is he now?

Yeah it stinks. I loved it for the smell alone, it smelled fantastic! I’m looking up some new food since Amazon screwed up my order. The big thing is that Piko also wastes a lot of the Food. I don’t know if he just gave up on trying to bite the bigger seeds/pellets but I would say at least 50% of the food he doesn’t eat. So I’m trying out a different brand.

Piko is ok. I’m sort of in another situation with him since he loves to be outside, once it’s cold again it’s pretty obvious that he isn’t the biggest fan of staying inside the house. I tried since he was young with toys and all sorts of things but he just never got into them . But he loves to stay on the couch and look out the window a lot.

I can tell he needs more stuff to do but I can’t seem to find out what he wants to play with,etc. So far not much luck with that. I’m afraid that as the years go on if I can’t find anything he might start plucking.

 

[Joeyd]

Update, I did get Piko off of Sunflower seeds. He absolutely loves Zupreeem Smart Selects for small Birds.
He also seems to have a love/hate relationship with greens. Sometimes he will devour Broccoli, then other times he won’t touch A single bit of it.