[vista]

Just read it in the new copy of BIRDS that the best feed should be composed of sprouting beans. Healthier and more nutritious. Any comments to the contrary or vice versa.

 

[ohiogsp]

Is this what is called germinated? You get the seed to start growing then stop it? It is the difference between barley and malted barley right?

 

[vista]

Is this what is called germinated? You get the seed to start growing then stop it? It is the difference between barley and malted barley right?

Ya, 'germinated'. That is right. I had experienced it with mongo beans when I was in my teens. It took three days for them to germinate as large as the sprouting beans I saw in the magazine. I placed them all in a jar of water. After two or three days they 'germinate'. Anyway, the subject of that BIRD articles are parrots, parakeets, and the like. I took 'pigeon' also as a bird like the parrot that is why I posted it. Sorry, I don't know anything about barley....

 

[Lovebirds]

You can germinate seeds for your pigeons. I usually do some for mine, and most of them love them. Last year, for whatever reason, my new young birds wouldn't touch them.......was kinda strange, but in the previous years, my birds loved them.
What I do is buy some lentils........fill a mason jar about 1/4 full and cover with water then put a cover over the top of the jar. I use a pair of knee-hi panty hose. Let it sit over night. Next morning, I strain the lentils and pour out the water. Set the jar in a dark place on it's side. Every day for three days, I wash, rinse and strain the lentils twice a day. About the 3rd or 4th day, you've got growth and it's just the right size for the birds. I put a few in a dish out in the aviary and let them eat and the ones they throw, will wind up on the ground rather than in the poopy floor.
The germinated lentils can be put in a baggy and refridgerated for about 5 days or so. Before I give any to the birds, I always rinse them off.
Here's the site I got this from;
http://www.racingbirds.com/remedies7.html