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Author Topic: Harrison's, does anyone actually do this?  (Read 822 times)

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tkessel

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Harrison's, does anyone actually do this?
« on: August 02, 2010, 09:40:44 PM »
Now that Wuzzie is "converted" to Harrison's pellets, I wonder if any one here actually follows the following advice from Harrison's:

"It is not recommended to supplement with vitamins or other bird or animal food products. Supplementation should be limited to no more than 10% of the overall diet. Offer certified organic vegetables and fruits in small quantities; select dark yellow meaty or dark green leafy items such as sweet potatoes, carrots, pumpkin, winter squash, broccoli, parsley, spinach, mango or papaya.. "

No more than 10%?  Really?  Anyone using 90% to 100% Harrison's?  Are we just satisfying our needs to be involved in our companions' food choices, far beyond our companions' actual needs?

Not that it is wrong to want to make ourselves as well as our companions happy!  :D
Ted, Judy, Wuzzie (female CAG), Ben (male cockatiel)

Never lose hope in God's mercy.  - Rule of St. Benedict

ukgrey

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Re: Harrison's, does anyone actually do this?
« Reply #1 on: August 02, 2010, 09:49:18 PM »
Pellets have never been proven to be perfect for our fids.  The company will tell you that theirs is the best diet to get you to use it.  All the experienced and expert bird owners I know of will tell you a fresh food diet is best supplimented with pellets, not the opposite way around :)

tkessel

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Re: Harrison's, does anyone actually do this?
« Reply #2 on: August 03, 2010, 12:58:30 AM »
Pellets have never been proven to be perfect for our fids.  The company will tell you that theirs is the best diet to get you to use it.  All the experienced and expert bird owners I know of will tell you a fresh food diet is best supplimented with pellets, not the opposite way around :)

The Harrison's web site did have some "studies" which showed their product better than seeds (by measuring the health of CAGs, and comparing the ideal blood levels of both those on a seed and a Harrison's diet ).  I don't know if they could do a study with a primarily "fresh food diet" that would  be replicable by everyone.

That said, I understand what you are saying.  However, if I "supplement with pellets" Wuzzie will probably never eat them.  When I say she is "converted to pellets" I meant to say "After all other food is gone and she is absolutely certain she won't be able to bum any more food off us, then she eats them."  Today she held out till 7:30 pm. then ate 20 pellets in 45 minutes!

Although they are different animals of a much shorter life span, when I worked with lab rats 20-30 years ago, all we ever fed them was Purina Lab Chow.  The rats, which certainly can eat a variety of foods, were always in great health.

That said, about 20 years ago at work we had a Mynah bird on a pure pellet diet.  Can't remember what it was, but it didn't work:  I took the bird to an avian vet and he put the bird on a "brown rice-grapes-and-canned-cat food diet."   The bird immediately recovered and lived many years longer.

Just curious if anyone actually would follow Harrison's advice.

Tomorrow I take Wuzzie to the avian vet that helped me with the mynah long ago, and I'll see what he says.

He does sell Harrison's at his clinic.  :o
Ted, Judy, Wuzzie (female CAG), Ben (male cockatiel)

Never lose hope in God's mercy.  - Rule of St. Benedict

rawleyd

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Re: Harrison's, does anyone actually do this?
« Reply #3 on: August 03, 2010, 06:08:53 AM »
I have heard that seed diets are not good due to High Fat content, and not enough vitamins and minerals.
Fresh veggies daily, with an available pellet mix 24hrs a day seems to be the standard.
I wouldn't take a bird food company's advice to feed only pellets... just doesn't seem right.
I will stick with fresh vegetables and fruits daily.

ukgrey

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Re: Harrison's, does anyone actually do this?
« Reply #4 on: August 03, 2010, 09:34:22 AM »
I see what you're saying.  From what I've read nobody on here does that!  Maybe someone will dpeak up if they do.

Blue eats anything put in his cage pretty much, I'm kinda lucky on that score :) no problems feeding pellets and fresh stuff ::)

tkessel

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Re: Harrison's, does anyone actually do this?
« Reply #5 on: August 03, 2010, 06:14:16 PM »
Pellets have never been proven to be perfect for our fids.  The company will tell you that theirs is the best diet to get you to use it.  All the experienced and expert bird owners I know of will tell you a fresh food diet is best supplimented with pellets, not the opposite way around :)

Tomorrow I take Wuzzie to the avian vet that helped me with the mynah long ago, and I'll see what he says.

He does sell Harrison's at his clinic.  :o

The vet's recommendations: some tests, so that was expected.  He removed the rings from both Wuzzie and Ben, and as far as Harrison's, he thinks "about 60%, with the rest primarily raw vegetables high in anti-oxidents, and only a few seeds, and not too much friut.  Use seeds primarily as a reward.  By using Harrison's, and following the recommended foods from the web site, you are already better than 90% of the people I see."
Ted, Judy, Wuzzie (female CAG), Ben (male cockatiel)

Never lose hope in God's mercy.  - Rule of St. Benedict

ukgrey

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Re: Harrison's, does anyone actually do this?
« Reply #6 on: August 03, 2010, 07:01:53 PM »
Congrats to you :) its always good to hear a grey owner doing something to get a vets approval :)

feika

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Re: Harrison's, does anyone actually do this?
« Reply #7 on: August 03, 2010, 09:09:36 PM »
That is very kind of you Ted to actually analyse the authencity and realiability of what is being written on Harrison's and let us all know about it.

tkessel

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Re: Harrison's, does anyone actually do this?
« Reply #8 on: August 04, 2010, 01:22:12 AM »
Got a call from the vet this afternoon.  Both birds are doing very well.   Blood work revealed normal white and red blood cell counts, OK protein levels, OK calcium levels.  Kidney functions OK, no problems in the digestive system (poop analysis) or respiratory tract.   ;D ;D ;D ;D

Ted, Judy, Wuzzie (female CAG), Ben (male cockatiel)

Never lose hope in God's mercy.  - Rule of St. Benedict

karine

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Re: Harrison's, does anyone actually do this?
« Reply #9 on: August 04, 2010, 02:21:48 AM »
I used to consult with Leslie Moran who is a..... wellness coach? Holistic Healer? Animal dietician? She is well known here in the States for her work with animals. She is also a writer for Parrots magazine.
She recommends mostly fresh fruits, veggies, pulses, sprouts for the main diet. Pellets next in moderation, then seeds as a treat (about 1 tablespoon per day for the Greys). So for the pellets, I feed Harrison's High Potency Coarse (15gr in the morning and 15gr in the evening). I used to give pellets in abundance but Sophie would not eat anything else, so now she'll eat : in order of preference, seeds that she gets only once a day(1 tbsp), then pellets, then fruits, then veggies/sprouts. If I give too many pellets and seeds, she won't eat any fresh foods.

tkessel

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Re: Harrison's, does anyone actually do this?
« Reply #10 on: August 04, 2010, 09:13:06 PM »
karine,

That is pretty close to what I am trying to get started with Wuzzie: 3 tbs (about 30 pellets) of High Potency, 1 tbs mixed seeds is my baseline, and then add the fresh veggies and a bit of fruit and table food.  Today Wuzzie rejected the fresh food, but it is only 5 pm, so maybe she will relent.  The fresh veggies and fruit she has rejected today are ones that she has eaten before, so, as happens frequently, this may not be the day she wants to eat them.  ;)

I did catch her eating a few high potency pellets earlier, so she may stop holding out until evening to eat them.   8)

I also bought some of the Harrison's Power Treats, and offered a few to Wuzzie, and crushed one for Ben.  So far, neither bird thinks they are a "treat" :o, and they eat the high potency instead!    ::)
Ted, Judy, Wuzzie (female CAG), Ben (male cockatiel)

Never lose hope in God's mercy.  - Rule of St. Benedict

jbaxter

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Re: Harrison's, does anyone actually do this?
« Reply #11 on: August 05, 2010, 11:46:46 AM »
My two-year-old boy, Jeremy, loves his High Potency Harrisons' organic pellets - which I feed ad-lib. He also gets freshly-cooked pulses every day and a few extra treats: grapes, apple, cheese, monkey nuts (human quality) and plenty of fresh water. He's been on this diet for over twelve months now and is in wonderful condition.  :)

When I used to feed the same but with seeds instead of pellets his feathers were not *nearly* as sleek and glossy as they are now. Moreover he has plenty of vitality, aways seems perfectly happy, talks up a storm at least four times per day and is friendly with everyone (and with the very minimum of biting).

Cheers,
Julie

tkessel

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Re: Harrison's, does anyone actually do this?
« Reply #12 on: August 05, 2010, 02:37:46 PM »
Julie,

Thanks for the encouragement about the High Potency pellets!   :)  - Ted
Ted, Judy, Wuzzie (female CAG), Ben (male cockatiel)

Never lose hope in God's mercy.  - Rule of St. Benedict

jbaxter

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Re: Harrison's, does anyone actually do this?
« Reply #13 on: August 05, 2010, 03:37:10 PM »
You're welcome, Ted. I think they're *GREAT*! And so easy when you like to take your CAG on holiday with you, as we do.  ;D 8)

Cheers,
Julie

Chickadee Lee

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Re: Harrison's, does anyone actually do this?
« Reply #14 on: August 06, 2010, 03:04:02 AM »
*Sigh*  Sounds like another sales-pitch to sell more of their pellet mix. ;D ;D ;D