The brand of hand-feeding formula that I'm researching at the moment is manufactured by "Harrison's", a renowned, reputable brand of primarily-organic parrot food. For a while I've been considering their pelleted diet for Moody, as it does not contain meat and is very comparable to leading brands of waterfowl feed. It is more expensive, yes, but proper nutrition is worth more than money. It also contains all-organic, healthful ingredients, and a supplier in the province next to us is very willing to ship Harrison's to us. They're great and have been prompt to reply and enthusiastic about my interest in Harrison's. (As many bird owners have been!)
To get to the point, I've been very interested in two types of hand-feeding formula: "Harrison's Juvenile Hand-feeding Formula" and "Harrison's Neonate Hand-feeding Formula". The predominant comparisons between the two are that the Neonate formula is not organic, is more fine, and contains a much higher protein and fat percent. Before I hand-fed Toad and Muffin, my pigeons, I did a lot of research about crop milk and feeding techniques in pigeons. Crop milk, as many of you know, is very potent in vitamins and essential omega-3 fatty acids, protein and enzymes, making pigeon growth rapid and allowing the babies to flourish, being especially potent for the first week of the babies' lives, before seeds are introduced to the diet.
The Neonate diet contains 26% protein, which is quite high in comparison with other formulas such as "Kaytee". I believe that the higher levels of protein may be extremely beneficial for baby pigeons. However, as many of you already are doing, additional ingredients should be added to the diet, and for newborns, avian-specific probiotics should be added.
I believe that Harrison's is much more reputable than "Kaytee", which, to be quite frank, is not the best hand-feeding formula on the market for a handful of reasons, one of them being the inconsistent ingredients.
Corn products, (including corn bran, corn germ, corn gluten, ground corn, etc.) are quite risky to feed. There is no legal definition of "corn" alone in animal feed, so it may be any combination of products. While corn may be fed to pigeons and other birds in smaller amounts, it's quite high in fat and protein and is one of the main feeds fed to factory-farmed animals in the attempt to keep them overlarge. Corn products can also be high in certain sugars/starch depending on the product. Additionally, some corn is contaminated with deadly aflatoxin which can cause liver failure and death, especially in old corn. This is exactly why expiration date on all hand-feeding formulas and bird diets is absolutely essential to health.
Fungus in old corn is not uncommon; in fact, I have heard of someone that lost many birds, all within 9 days, due to old corn. Corn and peanuts can contain this fungi, though peanuts do not, at least in my knowledge, contain Aflatoxin. The expiration date and the quality of the manufacturer and product should be deemed proper before any food is given.
Comparing Harrison's ingredients to "Kaytee" also reveals many potential problems with "Kaytee" and many advantages in the alternative.
Comparing Ingredients
Harrison's Neonate Formula:
Ingredients:
Soy protein isolate, Hi-oleic sunflower oil, Corn starch, Sugar, Calcium carbonate, Potassium chloride, Di-calcium phosphate, Phosphatidylcholine, Vitamin supplement (vitamin A acetate, vitamin D3, dl-alpha tocopheryl acetate, vitamin B12, riboflavin, d-calcium pantothenate, niacin, pyridoxine hydrochloride, d-biotin, thiamine mononitrate, folic acid, zinc sulfate, manganese sulfate, copper sulfate, sodium selenite, calcium carbonate, vegetable oil, Methonine, Vitamin E.
Dry Mix Guaranteed Analysis:
Crude protein (min.) 26%,
crude fat (min.) 14%,
crude fiber (max.)
1%, moisture (max.) 10%
Some of these words are quite fancy, so I will be using wikipedia to basically translate these odd words into words that sound more like "English" to my inexperienced ears.
Hi-oleic sunflower oil - First thought is, "Okay, so it's sunflower oil". But the "hi-oleic" part of it made me a bit suspicious. A quick search on wikipedia tells me that hi-oleic oils are, in fact, unsaturated fatty acids, comprising 55-80% of olive oil. That said, they are healthy and beneficial to the health of the bird. Likely, a good source of omega-3 fatty acids, which are so important for baby birds.
If you scroll down to the little diagrams on this page in the section chemistry, you will see the difference between oleic acid and elaidic acid.
Corn Starch - As I have discussed the danger of corn products, I will say that, of course, here is an exception. Corn starch in this formula is not meant to be a nutritional supplement but rather, is used to bind the ingredients together, as it would in a pudding. Also, Harrison's uses primarily organic ingredients. Though this formula does not contain organic ingredients, there is likely a reason. Their high standard for avian nutrition is not to be taken lightly, from what I've heard, so this would hardly be a concern.
Sugar - Though this term is not at all fancy, it can be misleading. This sugar is likely used as a source of energy. Many of us give electrolytes to neonatal birds; a mixture containing salts and sugar. This "sugar" is likely referring to "...any monosaccharide or disaccharide. Monosaccharides (also called "simple sugars"), such as glucose, store chemical energy which biological cells convert to other types of energy" (sugar - Wikipedia).
Phosphatidylcholine - It's hard to put this into a few words, I would say, so here is the definition on Wikipedia for anyone interested in what this ingredient is.
dl-alpha tocopheryl acetate - Source of vitamin E.
pyridoxine hydrochloride - Vitamin B6 and, more importantly, pyridoxine. Here is a citation from Wikipedia on the importance of Pyridoxine.
"Pyridoxine assists in the balancing of sodium and potassium as well as promoting red blood cell production. It is linked to cardiovascular health by decreasing the formation of homocysteine. It has been suggested that Pyridoxine might help children with learning difficulties, and may also prevent dandruff, eczema, and psoriasis. In addition, pyridoxine can help balance hormonal changes in women and aid in immune system. Lack of pyridoxine may cause anemia, nerve damage, seizures, skin problems, and sores in the mouth."
I would imagine this nutrient would be especially great for parrots, who undergo a lot of hormonal difficulties. Also, feather-plucking, common in some species of parrots, is especially problematic with specific species due to health and nutrient-related issues. As it helps eczema, a skin irritation, and dandruff, which is basically dry, flaky skin, I assume that the plucking of feathers in parrots due to nutrient deficiencies would be greatly reduced, just from feeding this formula while the babies are young.
Methonine - The results on Wikipedia are difficult to understand, but from what I have read, Methonine is an amino acid, which are said to be the "building blocks of protein". Hence why the formula is so high in protein.
Now that we've covered the somewhat exhausting list of nutrients and have (at least in my case) expanded our knowledge on the power of nutrients in any given formula, it's time to move on to the next formula.
(This will be continued in a separate post)
To get to the point, I've been very interested in two types of hand-feeding formula: "Harrison's Juvenile Hand-feeding Formula" and "Harrison's Neonate Hand-feeding Formula". The predominant comparisons between the two are that the Neonate formula is not organic, is more fine, and contains a much higher protein and fat percent. Before I hand-fed Toad and Muffin, my pigeons, I did a lot of research about crop milk and feeding techniques in pigeons. Crop milk, as many of you know, is very potent in vitamins and essential omega-3 fatty acids, protein and enzymes, making pigeon growth rapid and allowing the babies to flourish, being especially potent for the first week of the babies' lives, before seeds are introduced to the diet.
The Neonate diet contains 26% protein, which is quite high in comparison with other formulas such as "Kaytee". I believe that the higher levels of protein may be extremely beneficial for baby pigeons. However, as many of you already are doing, additional ingredients should be added to the diet, and for newborns, avian-specific probiotics should be added.
I believe that Harrison's is much more reputable than "Kaytee", which, to be quite frank, is not the best hand-feeding formula on the market for a handful of reasons, one of them being the inconsistent ingredients.
Corn products, (including corn bran, corn germ, corn gluten, ground corn, etc.) are quite risky to feed. There is no legal definition of "corn" alone in animal feed, so it may be any combination of products. While corn may be fed to pigeons and other birds in smaller amounts, it's quite high in fat and protein and is one of the main feeds fed to factory-farmed animals in the attempt to keep them overlarge. Corn products can also be high in certain sugars/starch depending on the product. Additionally, some corn is contaminated with deadly aflatoxin which can cause liver failure and death, especially in old corn. This is exactly why expiration date on all hand-feeding formulas and bird diets is absolutely essential to health.
Fungus in old corn is not uncommon; in fact, I have heard of someone that lost many birds, all within 9 days, due to old corn. Corn and peanuts can contain this fungi, though peanuts do not, at least in my knowledge, contain Aflatoxin. The expiration date and the quality of the manufacturer and product should be deemed proper before any food is given.
Comparing Harrison's ingredients to "Kaytee" also reveals many potential problems with "Kaytee" and many advantages in the alternative.
Comparing Ingredients
Harrison's Neonate Formula:
Ingredients:
Soy protein isolate, Hi-oleic sunflower oil, Corn starch, Sugar, Calcium carbonate, Potassium chloride, Di-calcium phosphate, Phosphatidylcholine, Vitamin supplement (vitamin A acetate, vitamin D3, dl-alpha tocopheryl acetate, vitamin B12, riboflavin, d-calcium pantothenate, niacin, pyridoxine hydrochloride, d-biotin, thiamine mononitrate, folic acid, zinc sulfate, manganese sulfate, copper sulfate, sodium selenite, calcium carbonate, vegetable oil, Methonine, Vitamin E.
Dry Mix Guaranteed Analysis:
Crude protein (min.) 26%,
crude fat (min.) 14%,
crude fiber (max.)
1%, moisture (max.) 10%
Some of these words are quite fancy, so I will be using wikipedia to basically translate these odd words into words that sound more like "English" to my inexperienced ears.
Hi-oleic sunflower oil - First thought is, "Okay, so it's sunflower oil". But the "hi-oleic" part of it made me a bit suspicious. A quick search on wikipedia tells me that hi-oleic oils are, in fact, unsaturated fatty acids, comprising 55-80% of olive oil. That said, they are healthy and beneficial to the health of the bird. Likely, a good source of omega-3 fatty acids, which are so important for baby birds.
If you scroll down to the little diagrams on this page in the section chemistry, you will see the difference between oleic acid and elaidic acid.
Corn Starch - As I have discussed the danger of corn products, I will say that, of course, here is an exception. Corn starch in this formula is not meant to be a nutritional supplement but rather, is used to bind the ingredients together, as it would in a pudding. Also, Harrison's uses primarily organic ingredients. Though this formula does not contain organic ingredients, there is likely a reason. Their high standard for avian nutrition is not to be taken lightly, from what I've heard, so this would hardly be a concern.
Sugar - Though this term is not at all fancy, it can be misleading. This sugar is likely used as a source of energy. Many of us give electrolytes to neonatal birds; a mixture containing salts and sugar. This "sugar" is likely referring to "...any monosaccharide or disaccharide. Monosaccharides (also called "simple sugars"), such as glucose, store chemical energy which biological cells convert to other types of energy" (sugar - Wikipedia).
Phosphatidylcholine - It's hard to put this into a few words, I would say, so here is the definition on Wikipedia for anyone interested in what this ingredient is.
dl-alpha tocopheryl acetate - Source of vitamin E.
pyridoxine hydrochloride - Vitamin B6 and, more importantly, pyridoxine. Here is a citation from Wikipedia on the importance of Pyridoxine.
"Pyridoxine assists in the balancing of sodium and potassium as well as promoting red blood cell production. It is linked to cardiovascular health by decreasing the formation of homocysteine. It has been suggested that Pyridoxine might help children with learning difficulties, and may also prevent dandruff, eczema, and psoriasis. In addition, pyridoxine can help balance hormonal changes in women and aid in immune system. Lack of pyridoxine may cause anemia, nerve damage, seizures, skin problems, and sores in the mouth."
I would imagine this nutrient would be especially great for parrots, who undergo a lot of hormonal difficulties. Also, feather-plucking, common in some species of parrots, is especially problematic with specific species due to health and nutrient-related issues. As it helps eczema, a skin irritation, and dandruff, which is basically dry, flaky skin, I assume that the plucking of feathers in parrots due to nutrient deficiencies would be greatly reduced, just from feeding this formula while the babies are young.
Methonine - The results on Wikipedia are difficult to understand, but from what I have read, Methonine is an amino acid, which are said to be the "building blocks of protein". Hence why the formula is so high in protein.
Now that we've covered the somewhat exhausting list of nutrients and have (at least in my case) expanded our knowledge on the power of nutrients in any given formula, it's time to move on to the next formula.
(This will be continued in a separate post)
