Seven Layer Salad
by Pamela Clark
...this is a method for feeding a large variety of fresh fruits and
vegetables with relative ease. I originally learned about this method of feeding
from Jamie McLeod, who owns the Menagerie in Summerland, CA and I have modified
it over the years for feeding my own flock.
Layered Fresh Food Mix and Diet Conversion
The longer I work with birds, both my own and those of my consulting clients,
the stronger grows my belief that many behavior and health problems are a direct
result of poor diet. It is true that no one yet knows the optimal diet for each
species. However, certain health problems are emerging in parrots who eat either
a 100% pelleted diet, or a diet devoid of fresh foods. It stands to reason that
a parrot species that evolved to enjoy the best health eating fresh, raw foods
plucked from nature would also enjoy the best health in captivity if fed a large
portion of the diet in fresh foods as well. The following instructions will
allow you to feed a fresh diet with minimal effort and convert any bird with as
little trauma as possible to a fresh food diet. This diet has several
advantages, not the least of which is that I can feed fresh foods to over 40
birds on a daily basis, while only chopping fruits and vegetables once a week.
Once a week, I layer in plastic storage containers (I use seven 2-gallon
containers since I'm feeding so many birds) the following:
Layer 1 (bottom layer) - chopped greens, which are varied each week. One
week, I'll use collard greens and parsley and mustard greens, and the next I
might use Swiss chard, kale and dandelion greens.
Layer 2 - chopped (1/4 to 1/2 inch cubes) green vegetables, including any of
the following: Brussels sprouts, zucchini and other summer squash, jicama, red
or green peppers, fresh hot peppers, chayote squash, green beans, fresh peas,
cucumber, celery, anise root, etc.
Layer 3 - chopped broccoli and shredded carrots
Layer 4 - dry, uncooked pasta. This will absorb some of the moisture from the
mix and soften nicely.
Layer 5 - cooked beans. I usually buy one of the 13 or 17 bean soup mixes,
which I soak overnight, rinse, and then bring to a boil and cook for about 25
minutes, then drain.
Layer 6 - a mixture of chopped apples, oranges and whole grapes
Layer 7 - frozen mixed vegetables.
The containers are then placed in the refrigerator (don't freeze).
Issues of freshness: this mix stays fresh in these tubs for up to
seven days for three reasons. First, layered salads stay fresher longer. Second,
the orange juice filters down and slightly acidifies that mix. The frozen mixed
vegetables placed on top super-cool the mix immediately (cold air sinks/warm air
rises). I do also wash all the fruits, vegetables and greens with Oxyfresh
Cleansing Gele, which not only gets them clean but has some anti-bacterial
action.
Use: each morning, I empty out one container into a large mixing bowl.
At that point, I usually add other foods that might not either hold up, or stay
fresh in the layered mix, such as: soft fruits (blueberries, peaches, plums,
kiwi fruits, melon, etc), sprouts, or cooked grains (amaranth, quinoa, brown
rice, barley, etc). Sometimes, in order to generate a little excitement, I'll
sneak in a package of pine nuts or walnut pieces. Usually, I feed nuts
separately, but I like to use this fresh mix to surprise the parrots as well.
Once everything from the tub is completely mixed together, I put into another
large bowl - eight scoops of this fruit and veggie mix, one scoop of a very
clean, high quality seed mix and one scoop of pellets (either Foundation
Formula, Scenic Diet, or Harrison's High Potency). This is then mixed together
and fed to the birds.
This recipe can be adapted for any number of birds with a little creativity,
by reducing either the number or size of the containers used or both. For just
one bird, you can create two small containers. One container will keep for about
three days, even after being opened and mixed up.
Advantages:
1. There's no need to chop fresh foods every day.
2. Parrots are very visual creatures. If you stick a bird feeder outside, it
will take the wild birds at least two weeks to start to feed from it. When
fruits and vegetables are fed singly, or in large pieces, or in small
combinations, and you add something new, it is likely to be rejected solely on
the basis of the fact that it is visually unfamiliar. When you feed a mix like
this, you can put anything into it and it will be accepted because the
appearance of the mix hasn't changed overall.
3. This mix is exciting for the birds, and allows them a foraging experience.
They never know what they're going to find in their food dishes and show
considerable interest when I feed them. A huge amount of variety can be
achieved. Greens and the types of vegetables used vary from week to week. The
pasta shapes are varied (alphabet, whole wheat, elbow, etc.). You can use other
types of citrus instead of oranges, including grapefruit, lemons, tangerines,
etc. Instead of grapes, you can substitute fresh blueberries and pitted ripe
cherries, or fresh cranberries. Instead of the 17-bean mix, you can use a soak
and cook mix. Instead of grated carrots, you can use cooked and chopped sweet
potato or winter squash. The possible variety is endless. I also vary the type
of seed I use. I buy the Volkman's brand, since it is so clean, but will use
Hookbill Super one day, and Parrot Super the next, or sometimes canary seed, or
a combination of seeds from the health food store (sesame, pumpkin, etc).
4. Parrots that won't eat pellets, often will when they are combined into
this mix as directed above because (1) they are part of an exciting mix, and (2)
they will be slightly softened by absorbing some of the moisture from the mix.
5. I leave this in the cages from 7:00 PM until 4:00 PM, which you can't do
with mixes that have been frozen or cooked. Since the majority of the foods are
neither cooked nor frozen, they stay fresher longer. Bacterial growth is
increased by temperature, moisture, and the breakdown of cell walls. This mix
tends to be relatively dry, because the pasta and pellets absorb the vast
majority of the moisture. Further the cell walls in the fruits and vegetables
are largely intact because they have not been broken down by either freezing or
cooking. In hot weather, it tends to desiccate rather than spoil.
And lastly,
6. Seed junkies can easily by converted to a fresh
food diet using this mix and a methodical approach, which I will outline below.
Converting a hard-core seed junkie to a fresh food diet:
1. Begin with four dishes in the cage - pellets of choice (no dyes or
preservatives hopefully), a high quality seed mix, water and the fresh food mix.
The latter will not be eaten for several weeks. Get over it. Serve this twice a
day, in the AM and in the late afternoon or evening, for the sole purpose of
creating a pattern of feeding and allowing the bird to get used to looking at
it. Note: the fresh food mix should have a ratio of 50% seed and 50% fresh foods
(pellets optional).
2. The day you see the bird exploring the fresh food mix in order to eat the
seed out of it, you make the following change: In the morning, you remove the
seed dish and have only three dishes in the cage - pellets, water and the fresh
mix. In the evening, you again feed the fresh food mix, but give the seed dish
back. We don't want a bird undergoing diet conversion to be hungry. A hungry,
anxious bird does not make behavioral changes gracefully.
3. The day you see the bird with a piece of fresh food in his mouth, or
observe that he has eaten some of it, then you eliminate the seed dish
completely. From that point onward, you provide only three dishes - water,
pellets, and the fresh mix that is 50% seed and 50% fresh foods.
4. A month later, and on each succeeding month, you decrease the amount of
seed in the mix until it is down to between 10 - 20% of the mix. So, for
instance, if you remove the seed dish on February 1, then on March 1, you will
begin to feed a mix that is 40% seed and 60% fresh mix. On April 1, you will
begin to feed 30% seed and 70% fresh foods. And so on.
I've converted many parrots who previously ate only seed very successfully
using this method, including a 20-year-old Moluccan Cockatoo. The amount of seed
can be decreased more quickly if the parrot is really eating the fresh foods
well.
|