Parrots N Stuff

Parrots N Stuff Parrots N Stuff is Strictly Birds & Supplies. It's Not A Petshop, It's For The Birds!

Good Morning Beautiful Bird Family! We have happy news to share.....We got all of our back ordered food and will be full...
03/08/2025

Good Morning Beautiful Bird Family! We have happy news to share.....We got all of our back ordered food and will be fully stocked this morning. We figured with the food showing up its also a good time to talk about diet and variety!!!!

One of the largest controversies in the bird world is diet. You hear some say chop only diet, pellet only diet, primarily seed diet, fruits and veggies only diet, and every mix in between.

When thinking about diet, and what we have seen over the 25+ years is that there is no one right answer. You have to look at each type of bird, individual personalities, likes, dislikes, and also at our own situations. Of course, someone with a lot of time and a lot of money can focus more on heavy chop diets, with all the different ingredients to formulate a healthy diet. However, the majority of people owning, and caring for pet birds are the average working person, with families, other responsibilities splitting their time, and other items dipping from their financial resources. In our store we talk a lot about individual circumstance. If you have a flighted bird we would look at that differently than if your bird is a perch potato! If your bird has only eaten seeds we will look at that differently than a bird who is only ever been on pellets.

I know that the majority of avian veterinarians really push Nutriberries, and/or pellet only diets. We will never undermine a veterinarian, however most of the time when I hear this its in talking about a bird who is on a full seed diet, so of course if it’s between a full seed diet or a pelleted diet with Nutriberries I would agree, but lets talk about variety!

The problem we have seen is that instead of offering as close to their natural diet as possible, and offering the variety they would see in the wild, we are taking that away and exchanging it for factory made, typically preserved with chemical, plain boring food. Another problem we often see is that people try so hard and so fast to transition their birds to pellets and often times their bird only eats enough to barely sustain (sometimes they don’t even do that), and the food bowl then becomes boring, and a bird is not eating to live but eating to strictly and only survive. We have seen birds come in here so thin and weak from transitioning to a pellet only diet, or even a chop only diet. The number one rule is to watch your bird, be patient, and remember tough love is ok, but there are limits to which we can do this. Below is a quote that I think resonates and makes a lot of sense:

“But the amount of processed food I give my birds hovers around five to ten per cent. The rest of my diet is cooked, sprouted and raw food and seeds offering the correct combinations of nutrients put there by Mother Nature, not the combinations formulated in the laboratory!” (By Malcolm Green BSc (Hons) Biological Sciences)



We can’t help but think, and from years of experience believe that the more natural, healthy diet full of variety is what will keep your birds living longer, looking better, and still offering the variety they deserve to have. Sure we have to watch the fat intake more than they would in the wild as most birds in doors don’t get the exercise needed (there are work around with this is as well, stay tuned for more info), but we can still feed in a way that excites the birds, keeps them working, offers them the variety, and quite honestly its fun. It’s fun to get involved, see what your bird loves and hates, throws, or decimates. Its fun to bond over food, to train with food, and to let your bird be a bird.

Now this is not to say we don’t believe in feeding pellets, we absolutely do, but we suggest feeding it in addition to a well-rounded diet.

In our store we focus on that variety. We focus on transitioning a bird in a healthy way. If they are a bird who has eaten seed-based food all their life, chances are they won't easily be transitioned immediately into the ideal diet. It's about trying to find that food that makes your bird click. Offering it in a way that makes it fun, showing them its good/safe to eat, and yes sometimes this means eating with your bird. Birds like to eat with you or other birds, after all they are a flock, and you are a part of that. Don’t give up, just keep trying, and do practice a little tough love, just in a safe way that is not depriving your bird for long amounts of time.

Also remember it is ok for a bird to have some seed. Usually the recommend amount is no more than 10%-20% of their diet. Lastly, no one is perfect, most birds don’t cooperate with everything we really want them to do, so make sure to have fun, don’t stress so much that it takes the fun out of owning a bird! Do the best you can, with the bird you have!



If you are wanting help, advice, etc. on getting your bird on a better diet let us know! We are always here and have over 60 types of food (most of which contain vital nutrients and probiotics, plus all of the goodies, to try and find that winning food to offer in addition to fresh fruits, veggies, chop, pellets, etc. GET THAT VARIETY IN THERE!

Good morning, and happy Snow Day!  We are open today, and we want to apologize that we have been short-handed this week....
02/07/2025

Good morning, and happy Snow Day! We are open today, and we want to apologize that we have been short-handed this week. Misty has been out, so if we've taken longer to respond to messages, longer wait times in store, etc, we apologize and appreciate your patience!

We are open today (Saturday, December 28th) until 6 pm and then will be closed through the 1st of January and back to no...
12/28/2024

We are open today (Saturday, December 28th) until 6 pm and then will be closed through the 1st of January and back to normal hours on Thursday, January 2nd! Have a happy and safe New Year!

It was a Merry belated Christmas, and our food order arrived today! We have a few back orders, but we have plenty of foo...
12/27/2024

It was a Merry belated Christmas, and our food order arrived today!

We have a few back orders, but we have plenty of food and backups available! !

While you're out and about finishing up your Christmas shopping,  don't forget to stop in today (Friday)or tomorrow (Sat...
12/20/2024

While you're out and about finishing up your Christmas shopping, don't forget to stop in today (Friday)or tomorrow (Saturday).

Next week, we will be closed Sunday through Thursday and back open at 11 am Friday morning.

For all the last-minute Christmas shoppers: Gift cards are on sale, and the more you buy, the more you get!
12/14/2024

For all the last-minute Christmas shoppers:

Gift cards are on sale, and the more you buy, the more you get!

Happy Saturday! As we get closer to Christmas you may be thinking about getting your feathered friends a gift, well we h...
12/14/2024

Happy Saturday! As we get closer to Christmas you may be thinking about getting your feathered friends a gift, well we have a table with toys and treats that are 10% off as well as gift cards that offer some extra spending money with your purchase! We are open until 6pm today! Come take a peck 🦜❤️

We’re ready for ya! Here’s our sale table! Come check it out 🫣😁
12/13/2024

We’re ready for ya! Here’s our sale table! Come check it out 🫣😁

Its the Holiday season and a time we like to reflect on those in the community that are a tremendous blessing. What the ...
12/03/2024

Its the Holiday season and a time we like to reflect on those in the community that are a tremendous blessing. What the Flock Rescue has come in, and over the course of a year they've done incredible things for our community. With that being said we would like to make them our main focus for holiday giving, and help collect much needed funds for their rescue so they can continue to help all of the birds in need. You can donate in store, or follow the link below to put money on an account for What the Flock to use on supplies, grooming, food, etc. 100% of the money collected goes to What the Flock! You will also find a link directly to their page.

https://parrotsnstuff.com/bird-rescue/

https://www.facebook.com/p/What-The-Flock-Rescue-61551343431680/

Good morning, we wanted to give everyone a heads up that though we will be open today, we may be pulled in a few directi...
11/26/2024

Good morning, we wanted to give everyone a heads up that though we will be open today, we may be pulled in a few directions or running a little slowly. Melody's pride and joy, Teddy (her dog) passed away overnight, so Kalea and I (Misty) will be running the store, but I'm still a little slow recovering from surgery. We will be opening at our normal 11am time, but grooming will not start until 1pm instead of our normal 12 pm. Thank you all for your love and patience!

We had the amazing opportunity to help a publishing company on a Budgie book they wrote.  They did an excellent job writ...
11/13/2024

We had the amazing opportunity to help a publishing company on a Budgie book they wrote.

They did an excellent job writing the book and reaching out to "bird experts" to compile very real experiences and a true guide to Budgie ownership.

Whether you're considering getting a Budgie or have had a Budgie for years, this book could be a wonderful tool for you.

We have paperbacks in the store for $19.95 each!

"birdbook

For all of our rat people....Our amazing sticker lady created these adorable pi-rats!
11/05/2024

For all of our rat people....

Our amazing sticker lady created these adorable pi-rats!

10/31/2024
We've got new fun stickers, and plenty of them!
10/18/2024

We've got new fun stickers, and plenty of them!

I'm a little late to the game, but we have been nominated for 2024 Boise Favorites!!!! Check out https://www.voteboisefa...
10/11/2024

I'm a little late to the game, but we have been nominated for 2024 Boise Favorites!!!! Check out https://www.voteboisefavorites.com/ to vote and support your favorites!

Vote once a day from October 7th through October 25th!

This is a "you get what you pay for" post, but I promise it is not a sales pitch post! More and more I am seeing cages f...
10/10/2024

This is a "you get what you pay for" post, but I promise it is not a sales pitch post!

More and more I am seeing cages full of extremely unsafe toys and hardware, and foods that are basically like a bird eating fast food daily. I started to do some research, and found that there are very inexpensive toys and food plastered all over the internet (and in some stores) , but the reason they are so inexpensive, is because they are cutting corners, and selling dangerous toys and supplies, high fat foods with filler ingredients and heavily preserved (chemicals), etc. I have included pictures of some of these unsafe toys and supplies, and will list out the problems below.

Wording reminder: Just because a description online (especially from non bird specific/educated places) states it is bird safe, does not automatically guarantee it is. Always read the description, and if in doubt, just don't get it!

Hooks
There are 2 main problems. First. the metals being used, unless it specifically states stainless steel, nickel plated steel, aluminum it is likely toxic. Second, the type of hooks that are being used are typically not the pear links that close all the way. The ones being used are clips that have a gap, and a bird can easily become stuck or punctured.

Wire & Chain
A good quality wire or chain that is parrot safe is not the cheapest! As stated above be sure the metals used are only stainless steel, nickel plated steel, and aluminum.

Paint & Coloring
Rule of thumb, anything painted is usually not safe, and not worth risking it. Make sure the coloration in your parrots toys are food grade food coloring only.

Wood
On almost all perches, and wood items I found online there was no actual description of what type of wood it was, only that it was supposedly bird safe or natural. Natural does not equal safe! There are very few safe woods, and a huge list of toxic woods. You can visit planned Parrot Hood's website for a list!

Bells
Jingle bells (the most dangerous bells) should never be used for your birds. Most are painted and an unsafe metal, and the holes in the jingle bells are very dangerous. There are also a lot of bells made of copper that I see out there, and while copper is more controversial as to whether it is safe or not, we recommend just not risking it.

Food
Just because the food package claims it is a fully fortified, high nutrient, or a complete diet for a bird, does not mean that is true or what is actually healthy for a bird. If it is a seed based diet, its still a seed based diet just with some added vitamins, which does not equal a well rounded or healthy diet. The other problem is that often times when ordered online, they are not monitored, which means the food could have been recalled and not pulled off the shelf, it could be expired, or buggy (its natural to have bugs, but some foods I have seen sold online are beyond buggy!) and typically food online has a no return policy because it is a perishable item.

Please remember that birds are such different animals, that things affect them far quicker, and different than us or other animals. The reason bird supplies can be so pricey is because in order to be as safe as possible, high quality materials, hardware, and ingredients must be used. Spending more money initially to get the safe items, will likely save you thousands in the future, or save your birds life.

A lot of people think that just because we are a specialty store, we are going to be priced too high. We have items in our store to fit pretty much anyone's budget, and we are always more than happy to help you. We try as hard as we can to keep the prices as low as possible, even though there are just some things we cannot compete with others on, we always try our best!

08/30/2024

We will be open today (Friday) 11am to 6pm, but closed tomorrow for the holiday weekend!

Come see the cutest little critters ever!

Address

7121 W Overland Road
Boise, ID
83709

Opening Hours

Tuesday 11am - 6pm
Wednesday 11am - 6pm
Thursday 11am - 6pm
Friday 11am - 6pm
Saturday 11am - 6pm

Telephone

+12083442801

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