FINCHforum

Hi, I have 4 new zebras and none of the seem to be interested in ANY of the fresh food I'm offering :/ I've looked thru a lot of the posts on here and the link to finch information, but none of it will make them eat! I finely chop grated carrot, silverbeet leaves, zuchini, lebanese cucumber, add a little madiera cake and some hard boiled egg mix (shell included) and they don't touch it at all! I've tried offering whole vegies cut in half, ie cucumber or a whole silverbeet piece yet they show no interest. They eat seed I buy from the local petshop and drink water. Could they be eating the fresh food mix and I'm just not noticing it? What kind of portions should they be eating? I've only had them a week, would they be addapting to the different environment and that's why they aren't eating? Any advice/suggestions? Thanks in advance

I'm still new at this myself, but my zebras seem to like eating their fresh foods off a small flat plate on the bottom of the cage. They all really like the egg food, which I just finely chop up a boiled egg that has a bit of cornmeal chopped in with it to make it less moist. And I put the freshly chopped veggies next to it. I think some people make a mix with stuff in the egg food, but so far I like to keep the egg food simple.

My finches won't eat just any veggies. They like only Romaine lettuce torn up, broccoli florets, broken up, shredded carrots, not chopped, and sometimes they'll pick at graped hung from the top of the cage, but not often. I've tried other greens and veggies and they ignore those. Your finches may not be used to eating fresh food and need some time to adjust. I would sprinkle the seeds over the veggies and eggfood so they'll be tempted to try them. After a while, they should eat them fast.

I'd like to report that my darlings are eating fresh food this morning! Instead of mixing it all up I've separated the veges into little piles and put the egg in its own pile Bajoo has been singing aaaaall morning, I think he's happy he's become very protective of his nest tho and tells me off wen I come near to change the water and feed them. I can't see any eggs yet from Cinnamon but maybe they're on the way joy!! Something I'm doing is right!

jazii wrote:I'd like to report that my darlings are eating fresh food this morning! Instead of mixing it all up I've separated the veges into little piles and put the egg in its own pile Bajoo has been singing aaaaall morning, I think he's happy he's become very protective of his nest tho and tells me off wen I come near to change the water and feed them. I can't see any eggs yet from Cinnamon but maybe they're on the way joy!! Something I'm doing is right!

Nice job!

It is good you are getting them to eat the veggies. What goes over well at my house with all the birds is grated egg, shaved broccoli and grated carrot. They love romaine.

I personally would skip the madiera cake, it contains quiet a bit of sugar and butter/fat, to much for finches. Stick to seed, pellets, boiled egg, veggies. You can even try whole wheat bread toasted.

cindy wrote:It is good you are getting them to eat the veggies. What goes over well at my house with all the birds is grated egg, shaved broccoli and grated carrot. They love romaine.

I personally would skip the madiera cake, it contains quiet a bit of sugar and butter/fat, to much for finches. Stick to seed, pellets, boiled egg, veggies. You can even try whole wheat bread toasted.

Cindy, for the toasted bread, do you serve it in crumbs, little pieces, by the slice or how ?

some people cut it into squares or serve it whole. For the bigger flights you can serve it whole...for a pair you can give them a quarter, some people put a bit of grated egg on top.

cindy wrote:some people cut it into squares or serve it whole. For the bigger flights you can serve it whole...for a pair you can give them a quarter, some people put a bit of grated egg on top.

For some reason I have it stuck in my head that all the food pieces had to be beak size or smaller. That makes feeding easier. Thank you.

Thanx ill try the toast and broccoli tomorrow shopping day today so I can get some more of the vegies they like (silverbeet seems to be the fav) what does romaine look like? Could u pls post a pic so I can give it a try?

It is a dark leafy lettuce. Do not give them icebreg, it is mostly water and can give them loose stools. Vary you veggies from day to day.

This list will help you


http://www.finchinfo.com/diet/safe_toxi ... _foods.php

I have a dozen cages of zebras. Every cage eats cucumber. Most cages eat lettuce (generally Romaine). They became much better cucumber eaters after I started serving slices. I clip the cucumber slices in the cage with metal paper clips (like clothes pins). They eat the centre out and leave the skin.

I serve about every other day.

Yes, everyone loves hard boiled eggs! Some of this stuff can be so time consuming though. Eggs are kind of messy too (dishes need cleaning). Thus, I've found it much easier and more economical to buy egg food. Egg food isn't nearly as popular! Cages with young ones, use lots of it though.

Millet sprays are extremely popular! Young ones get soft food (seed soaked for a day). I always throw it away the next day. Some talk about saving it in the freezer. It only takes a moment to make a small dish though.

I served grated eggs, shaved broccoli and grated carrots on paper plates...gone in a wink of an eye and I collected the paper plates and tossed them in the trash!!! No dishes for me!!!!

Yes many birds won't try new food.
They do not recognize it as food.

I got some eating veggies and fresh egg by sprinkling seeds on it. They would eat the sees, and then sample the other stuff in the dish. Even today, when I sometimes forget to sprinkle the seeds on the veggies, they won't eat it. But the dish is always cleaned out when I sprinkle seeds on the veggies.

My finches dont care much for grated carrot.
They prefer greens. Their absolute favorite is Bok Choy! I just pull a few pieces apart and put them whole on a plate and let them go to town. Theres nothing left after about an hour.
They also like romaine lettuce, and the tops of broccoli.
Ive found they like their veggies in a seperate dish as opposed to being mixed in their egg food.