A couple of weeks ago I gave my recipe for Classic Parrot Vittles Salad.It’s a huge hit at our Providence Exotic Bird Sanctuary, but we feed it “in addition to” their BirD-elicious! Origins Wild Diet formulated, laboratory-tested foods, not instead of.

We believe no such formulated diet exists as a “total and complete” diet for captive birds, and we feel the same way about our Origins Wild Diets. We believe for companion birds to flourish and thrive they need both a laboratory-tested formulated diet plus fresh, raw foods every day of their captive lives.

We decided to share what we do in our sanctuary to help our very own permanent residents achieve flourishing health and vitality. We call our mix the “Classic Parrot Vittles Salad” or “Parrot Vittles” or “Vittles Salad” for short. You will find our original recipe at the end of this article and the full recipe with instructions and explanations in our first post Waldorf Vittles Salad: The Parrot Way!

Today I want to share only one variation I made this week for our feathered residents. I’m not including amounts, only ingredients. I have included a photo so you can see how large I leave the chunks for our birds. Only you know what your flock likes in terms of the size of pieces; ours happen to like the larger chunks, even when it comes to the tender greens. (I also wrote an article about tender greens earlier this week, Tender Greens: Let Us Discuss Lettuce! You can read about the benefits of each green within the contents of that article.)

I’ve added sprouted Basmati rice to entice our Cockatoos (Basmati rice from California is known to be lower in arsenic than other varieties of rice), sprouted rice offers resistant starch and acts somewhat as a prebiotic helping to build healthy gut flora when fed in moderation, peas for the DAO they contribute which helps break down histamines in the system, sprouted millet is high in the amino acid “lysine” so very important for exotic birds and usually lacking in a captive diet, also high in tryptophan a calming amino acid, and sprouted mung beans for added protein, B vitamins and trace minerals. All of these sprouts are fairly low in histamines which make them a good all-around choice for birds who may suffer from food allergies.

Ingredients in this week’s Vittles Salad: (All organic)

Remember, we only use the very most tender part of the tender greens. Why? Those are the parts where we find the “hemicellulose” fiber, the soluble fiber good for the unique digestive tract of a parrot!
Red Leaf Lettuce
Dandelion Greens
Radicchio
Curly Parsley
Kiwano Melon (skin on)
Dragon Fruit (skin on)
Mango (skin on)
Brown Basmati rice (sprouted)
Peas (sprouted)
Millet (sprouted)
Mung Beans (sprouted)
All sprouts lightly coated with ½ organic Flax seed oil, ½ organic hemp seed oil and just a drizzle of High-oleic sunflower oil (one of my new favorite oils for the Omega 9 it offers)

Classic Parrot Vittles Salad (Just call it “Parrot Vittles” or “Vittles Salad” for short!)
3 cups Organic Mango
1 cup Mexican/Brazilian Papaya
1 cup cubed Organic zucchini
½ cup Organic Green Banana
¼ cup Organic Pineapple
½ cup Organic Coconut Flakes
¼  cup roughly ground “awakened” raw almonds
2 Tblsp. Roughly ground macadamia nuts
¼ cup Mung Beans
1/8 cup Sunflower Seed
1/8 cup Organic Cilantro
1 Tblsp. Organic Curly Parsley
1/3 cup Organic Flax Seeds
Creamy Dressing:
1/8 cup Organic Coconut Milk
1 Tbsp Organic Flax Oil:
1 Tbsp Organic Hemp Oil
1 Tsp Organic High-Oleic Sunflower Oil
1 Tbsp Organic Lemon Juice
*If you are using organic lemon, reserve some of the skin and make lemon zest to add to the completed salad!

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©8.24.16 Passion Tree House LLC