animalobsessed
Welcome to the forum
I agree with
Finnie Icearstorm
Flight Feathers
Dont feed them fruit everyday. A 1-2x a week fruit treat is fine. Too much sugar isn't good for anyone ;)
Finches need, crave and want.....seeds. It's what they eat in the wild. It should be the main component of their diet.
Pellets contain vitamins but its introduced in a way like Fruit-Loops or Co-co Puff cereals. Would you consider this a primary healthy diet for a human? corn, soybean meal, wheat flour, oat groats, cane molasses, dried whole egg, canola oil,
dicalcium phosphate , ground limestone, iodized salt, citric acid, dl-methionine (an essential amino acid), l-lysine (an essential amino acid), vitamin A supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, vitamin E supplement, ascorbic acid,
Lets look at the calcium ingredient in pellets (dicalcium phosphate) and I will quote:
"Dicalcium phosphate is a calcium supplement commonly found in prepared breakfast cereals, in pharmaceuticals as an
inert ingredient to bind tablets, and in toothpastes." However, too much dicalcium phosphate However, too much dicalcium phosphate, or dicalcium phosphate taken in conjunction with other medications, can have negative consequences "(we dont KNOW what medications/supplements this pertains to)
Inert is KEY word here =
Chemically INACTIVE
synonyms: unmoving, motionless, immobile, inanimate, still, stationary, static
What this may mean is the "calcium" ingredient is THERE, but its not an ACTIVE ingredient and combined with some mystery ingredients may cause problems. A guaranteed way to get pure calcium to your finches is eggshells (calcium) ground into boiled eggs (vitD). I've praised it in the past many times for many of us that keep indoor finches that dont have access to natural sunlight.
1. A good mixture of healthy finch seed mix
2. Access to a supply of calcium/Vit D 3-4 times a week if finches kept
indoors without full spectrum light via crushed shells and boiled egg (given while breeding or molting) or liquid calcium/vitamin d (used as directed!!!).
3 Leafy greens like kale, swiss chard, broccolli heads.
lovezebs Elana has a wonderful list of healthy produce for finches with their nutrients.
4. Forage foods that help finches exercise. Some have created forage boxes filled with stones, grasses & twigs (cleaned free from pests). This is fantastic for exercise and a good mental work-out. I myself make sure I hang my millet sprigs from the ceilings of my flights loosely so my finches have to balance, swing like monkeys and pull HARD to get a nibble. I do it by safely fastening the millet with clothespins in a way that causes the millet to be free to swing in a pendulum type motion. Keep the finches safety in mind and make sure the clothespin is on the outside of the flight and will not harm them in any way.
5.
Cuttlebone is always present at all times. My hens know when they need it always before I do. And a hen chewing a cuttlebone like a starving hyena for over a day, is a SURE SIGN your hen is going to lay eggs. So it helps the hen, and signals me "Eggs!!! incoming!!"
6. Pellets or vitamin drops can be offered if you think there is something in your finches diet they lack, but you may not be able to offer. I use liquid multi-vitamins 3 times a week . My finches will not eat pellets. Since your finches eat pellets, I would give them a dish of their normal brand of pellets instead of daily to 2x times a week in a dish next to their normal food if you are going to introduce any other chemical supplements.
This in no way guarantees perfect nutrition or health. Heck we cant even guarantee that in humans.