Aussie Finch Forum

I found this and thought it very interesting .



http://www.thecanarysnest.com/calcium/index.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Very interesting Deb. Disappointing to hear that they don't get enough calcium from the everyday sources...

Interesting article as you suggested.

I am always interested with supplements on food. Would it not be wated when the bird husks the food or is it only put on sift fod and fruit etc.?

MadOzzie

I would assume its to be put on soft food which poses the problem of fussy eaters rejecting the soft food with the calcium .

Seed will absorb liquids if left for a day , thats how some breeders get cod liver oil or breeding aid into their birds .

When I do use liquid calcium it goes into the water for aviary birds and straight into the beak for hand reareds .

Big problem is its not cheap to buy so you kinda have to find the most economical way to get it into the birds .

jusdeb wrote:I Seed will absorb liquids if left for a day , thats how some breeders get cod liver oil or breeding aid into their birds .
....

Big problem is its not cheap to buy so you kinda have to find the most economical way to get it into the birds .

Deb,

The above quotes hit the problem I was raising. As the husk is bigger than the seed and on the outside, there would be a lot of expensive husks on the floor of the aviary. I would thinbk the husk would have to be saturated before it flows through to the seed.

MadOzzie

Interesting that he says people are not giving their birds enough calcium. Then quotes the sympoms that prove this. Symptoms I am sure many of us do not have. Because our birds are getting enough calcium. In nature birds do not get supliments. They get what they need naturally. So if we feed a diet high in greens which is what most wild birds seek first then our birds will get a fairly healthy diet. AND if someone has one of the problems associated with calcium deficency it is time to give a suplement for a short time to bolster reserves.
LML

Good point Ozzie and yes these supplements are very expensive . Even when put in water I always make up more than needed only to throw it away .

Thanks for the article Deb.

I have maintained for a long time that Cuttlefish is about as beneficial to birds as cardboard, but people just like the look of it I think??

Anyway, the main issue this article misses is WHAT ABOUT THE COCKBIRDS???

It is one thing to mass medicate your birds for worms, but for calcium it is another ball game.

By putting water soluable calcium in the water or on the food EVERYONE gets it - not just the hens.

Too much calcium for cockbirds can upset their liver among other things.

Obviously hens requirements are differnt to cocks, so we need to approach it differntly.

In all honestly I have pondered this issue for years and I can say the BEST product I have found by a long shot is Polly's Calcium Mix - created by non other than Marcus Pollard and John Butler. By using Polly's - the BIRDS choose who gets the calcium hit.

and the birds really do love it!

Find out more here: http://www.cliftonfinchaviaries.org/cfa ... t/grit.htm

The best thing about this article is that it does make you think ...
Looking at the pollys mix now , trouble is freighting anythin to here is costly ...but...liquid calcium d3 is also costly .