O/T Help with Finch Question Please!

[Booda's Butt]

Hi everyone, I know this is a lovebird forum, but I'm not a member of any great Finch forum, and I have a question that needs answering to asap!

I have a pair of Zebra Finches, and their 3 babies (they just left the nest about 2 weeks ago - still unsexable). They eat millet and finch seed mix. I have tried putting egg, fresh greens, etc in there, and there was no interest.

I baked birdie bread for Cali and the other guys, and decided to put a slice in with the finches this morning, thinking it couldn't hurt. By the time I got home from work and checked on them (about 10:30 pm) all the bread was gone but all their crops looked EXTREMELY full. I have never seen this in finches and I'm really concerned. They seem fine otherwise, eating, chirping, etc.

This is what I put in the birdie bread:
corn muffin mix, milk, egg w/shell, apples, blueberries, mustard greens, turnip greens, jalapeno, carrots, handful of Parakeet sized Zupreem pellets, bit of seed and I think that's it - nothing harmful to birds, just fresh healthy foods.

Should I not have given the finches this bread?

[LoveBugs]

Good job in the baking!! It sounds mighty delicious!!!

I bake birdie bread for my birdies, and the lovies will only occasionally pick at it, since they are still seed junky, although will eat a pellet here and there, and pick at some fresh food now and then.

I also gave some to my finches, and I think they more like just threw it out of their cups, but if yours eat it, I think that's great! It should benefit them more than harm them, but that's just my opinion. ;)

(maybe it's just my baking? lol)

[linda040899]

Sounds like they really like the birdie bread but please eliminate the milk in future batches. Birds don't digest milk so I use apple juice instead. No harm done with just a little bit but this is not something you want to do on a regular basis. Other than that, they can have everything you put into the birdie bread.

[Paulette]

Hi Karin.....your birdie bread does sound wonderful....my zebras do enjoy shredded carrots/sweet potato.....sometimes I shred celery in it too. I also offer them hard boiled egg, but they like the carrots better....Ihave also given them shredded brocolli.....they will at least eat some of anything I put in, unlike my lovebirds....but they are coming around.

[Booda's Butt]

Linda - I only used 2 tsp of milk, I found the "basic" recipe for it on a senegal listserv I'm on, I'm actually not sure now that I think about it why they would even call for 2 tsp of milk - but you're right, I'll use juice next time. Thanks for pointing that out!

I was really just concerned because I had never seen the finches have their crops that full! I didn't know if there wasn't something in the bread that I shouldn't have given them or if I maybe shouldn't have given them the bread at all!

I feel better about it now, This morning their crops were still full enough where I could see the swelling, but I just got home from classes and they look better.

Thanks for the help guys! and the birdie bread was actually quite a success! I've never done bread before, but I have tried things like bird cookies, bird treat sticks, etc. and my birds never touched any of that before. The addition of Cali inspired me to try it out and lo and behold! all the birds will actually eat it!

My boyfriend was excessively giving me grief about it - I never cook or do the dishes, the kitchen is his realm, and I got a lot of complaints about loving the birds more than him since I don't seem to mind slaving over chopping lots of things up into tiny tiny morsels and slaving over a mixing bowl and hot oven for them - but not even take the time to make him grilled cheese!

[Janie]

Karin, I hear ya!!!! I have taken so much grief from my husband and son about cooking for the birds and not for them! :D

[linda040899]

Hi Karin,
I can relate to overstuffed crops! I had a Cocktiel who just loved pellets! He would literally gorge himself so that he looked very much like a handfed baby! First time I saw him like this, I thought he had a crop infection so I tried massaging the crop to lessen what the crop contained. To my surprise, the crop contained nothing but pellets!!! He digested them quite well but I found that I had to limit the amount of pellets I gave him after that! :)