Smelly cuttlebone

[kyle]

I've put some powdered cuttlebone in the hard boiled eggs along with ground egg shell and millet. My birds never seem to touch the cuttlebone otherwise. I thought I would put it in their food. They LOVE spinach which they get at least twice a week and I've read how it depleats calcium. When I opened the package of cuttlebone it has a stinky fish smell. I'm wondering if it is ok for the birds? Can it harm them?

[debbie276]

cuttlebone is a squid-like cephalopod so the fishy smell would not surprise me.
Hard boiled eggs will give your birds the much needed vitamin D to absorb the calcium and the egg shells will give them their needed calcium.
Spinach should be fed in moderation.
Here's a good place to learn which foods give which nutrients:
http://www.finchinfo.com/diet/nutrients_and_sources.php

[dunker817]

Spinach doesn't absorb calcium on its own but the calcium in spinach and other green plants like collard greens is bound up with oxalic acid which prevents absorbtion. Greens have to be processed to break down the oxalic acids. Many other nutrients are also bound in oxalates. So eating many greens fresh is almost pointless. For my dogs I use carrot greens or dandelion greens.

[MiaCarter]

Cuttlebones do come from sea creatures, so they do have a slight fishy smell.

It's not typically strong - you can usually only detect it if you put your nose right up to the cuttle bone.

But it's possible yours are fresher than usual. I imagine the smell starts out rather strong and fades over time.

As long as they look clean and free of mold or any water damage, I think they should be just fine.

I also powder the cuttlebone over the eggs. Some like to eat directly off the cuttlebone; others only seem to get it when I sprinkle it on eggs or another favorite food. So I think it's just a matter of preference and personal needs.

[slwatson]

I'm glad I read this post and the responses...I wasn't sure if it was okay to grind my eggshells to powder and add to the eggs, because I don't want them to get too much calcium. They were more interested in my egg mixture with the powdered egg shell than with egg shell pieces.