Alexandrine parrots, named in honor of Alexander the Great, have been prized as pets for more than 2,000 years for their lively, affectionate nature and pleasing green coloration. In their natural habitat---jungles and mangrove flats---they eat a varied diet of seeds, fruits, flowers, nuts and leaf buds. The diet of your pet Alexandrine parrot should reflect that diversity. By supplying a good diet, you'll ensure your parrot doesn't suffer the plucked feathers, overgrown beak and blindness that afflict poorly nourished birds.
Seed and Pellets
Provide a mix of high-quality seed and commercial pelleted parrot feed. Commercial birdseed alone---usually a blend of millet, oats and sunflower seeds---is too low in calcium and vitamin A and too high in fat to form the mainstay of your bird's diet. Also, birdseed has the drawback of allowing your parrot to pick out only its favorite seed and leave the rest, which is not possible with pelleted feed because the ingredients are mixed. A good formula for feeding is 25 percent seed and 50 percent pellets, with the remaining 25 percent made up of assorted fresh foods.
Provide a cuttlebone, shell grit, crushed oyster shells or a calcium block to ensure that the bird gets enough calcium.
Fruits, Vegetables, Flowers
Offer your bird a wide variety of healthy treats to replicate its natural diet as closely as possible. Chunks of apple, banana, peach, melon and orange pieces are good, as are tropical fruits such as mango, papaya and kiwi. Offer vegetables such as broccoli, celery and corn, as well as dark leafy vegetables such as collard greens, dandelion greens and watercress. Don't overlook fresh-picked, edible flowers, such as the blossoms of dandelions, violets, impatiens and pansies, but first make sure they haven't been sprayed with toxic pesticides.
Alexandrine parrots are generally enthusiastic and adventurous eaters, but if your bird balks at a new delicacy you want it to eat, there are tricks you can use. Take advantage of your parrot's natural attraction to yellow and orange by offering it the blossoms of yellow pansies first, or try putting a mango chunk in a cup of favorite food. Weave green leafy vegetables into the bars of the cage above the bird's head to stimulate its foraging instinct. Sprinkling the leaves with water drops can pique the bird's interest. If your parrot snubs corn, try offering it corn on the cob, which most parrots love to gnaw on. If it rejects a food, switch up the texture or temperature. For instance, mash a banana and warm it slightly, or liquefy papaya slices into juice.
Warnings and Precautions
Many foods that seem harmless, or even healthy, are toxic for parrots. Chocolate, avocados, green beans, mushrooms and rhubarb top the list, as do unshelled peanuts---due to the aspergillis fungus---any uncooked beans, and any food high in salt, sugar or fat. Limit sunflower seeds to three a day; in larger amounts, they can cause fatty liver. Feed dairy products only in very small amounts, as birds are lactose intolerant. Sometimes, a hazard is concealed in a healthy food. Apple seeds contain cyanide in amounts that could harm a bird, and fruit pits such as peach stones are a choking hazard. Of course, caffeine and alcohol are off-limits.
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