I have a small female budgie who, when we got her over a year ago, was used to millet based seed feeds. I'm worried about her health because I've heard a lot about how seed based bird feed isn't healthy, and that pellet diets are a lot better. However try as I might, she won't eat it. She's so picky, (she only eats spinach and apples as far as fruit goes too). I tried gradually introducing several types of pellet food to her regular food, but she just leaves it there. I tried leaving her with it for a few days, but she threw a fit and tore up her whole cage looking for un-shelled millet and seeds. I'm not sure what to do. D:

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I have no experience of converting Budgies from seed to Pellets, but I have converted two African Greys, With the first one no way was he going to eat the pellets, but he did take to eating, Beans Peas Pulses and Veg mashed up, he liked it, so I ground up the pellets and mixed in the Mash, and over time accepted the pellets and now eats them no problem, The second was fed a highly coloured pellet but as I read that the best pellets for greys was another brand, it took me 11 days to convert. so now they are readily eating pellets.

They have different kinds of pellets.

My cockateil ate seeds for YEARS and YEARS I tried switching her to pellets so many times...just like you tried mixing, tried leaving it in there thinking she would get hungry eventually.

I always tried the fruity colorful ones though... recently I discovered they have the natural colored ones. Like a pale yellow color.

I also tried feeding them to her out of my lips... wierd i know... but she will eat anything i offer to her out of my mouth Not sure if you are bonded enough with the budgie to try this?

I also mixed in a few sizes so that it looks like a seed assortment (kind of)

Took less than 2 days to get her to eat the natural colored ones. Now I even throw un a handful of seeds as a treat every once in a while.

Good Luck! its a hard road.. but pellet is definitally better for them in the long run!

Funny...I've been feeding seed to birds for over 50 years...and I've bred thousands.

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thats pretty cool

I have a Quaker parrot. I give him pellet diet, and then I give him a mix of beans, and veggies. I give him the beans and veggie mix in the afternoon and take it out at night.

focus on getting her trying new veg and sprouting seeds & grasses instead
feeding either a pellet or seed diet both need to be high quailty and along side a good veg diet
we feed about 90% live foods with a fix of harrinsons & trill in the evening

How can a seed based diet be 'Unhealthy'? It is their naural diet along with other fruits and veg.
But then again maybe that's why we say 'Sick as a parrot.'
Take a look a this.
http://www.provet.co.uk/Petfacts/hea...giefeeding.htm
And many more web sites and books telling the same story.

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Not everything that goes up comes back down. Your age for example.
My pets (sorry I can't upload any pics yet)
Cats
Candy (12) Neo and Simba (10) Del Boy (7))
Cockatiels
Undertaker (My OH's choice)(10) Souxsie(10) Sid(9) Rimmer and LIster(1) Ruhbarb and Custard(hatched july 2010)
Rats
Frosty and Jack(1)
Gerbil
Pepper(almost6) Pepper sadly no longer with us RIP pepper.
Its almost a zoo at home,but we love them all.