Calcium & Your African Grey
By Tracy Schwarztrauber
In our store, a common statement said by people who have African Greys for a pet is ...
“ I need to supplement my Grey with calcium because I saw it on the internet or somebody told them that African Greys are calcium deficient and need extra calcium in their diet.” This unfortunately, is not always true and can do a lot more harm than good if the bird gets too much calcium. After doing some research, this is what I have come up with to help educate people in this area.
Calcium is the body’s most important mineral.
Birds have thin, hollow bones throughout most of their bodies. They do not have places to store calcium the way that mammals do. Low calcium levels in the blood can cause convulsions & even kill a bird. Too much protein or fat interferes with the body’s ability to absorb calcium. We do not recommend feeding a Grey seed diets for this reason. Feeding your Grey a pellet based diet as well as calcium rich foods, should regulate the levels of calcium in the blood, keeping the Grey from becoming deficient. Foods that contain calcium are:
Vegetables: Green Peas, broccoli, squash, carrots, baked sweet potatoes, collard greens, and kale.
Legumes: black- eyed peas, garbanzo beans, great northern beans, pintos & lima beans.
Grains: wheat bread, oatmeal.
Nuts: pistachios, almonds, filberts, and walnuts.
Small amounts of yogurt & low-fat cheese.
Vitamin C rich foods help the body absorb calcium. Foods that contain vitamin C are:
Broccoli, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, citrus fruits, kale, kiwi, strawberries, mango & dark green leafy vegetables. Raw spinach may interfere with calcium absorption and should be served moderately.
Greys should have a blood calcium level test at each annual health exam. Calcium levels can change over time and an annual measurement is necessary to ensure that the bird keeps his proper calcium level. If a birds diet does not consist of calcium rich foods, and he is diagnosed with low blood calcium, feeding foods listed above may be enough to bring the calcium levels back to normal. After several months of diet related calcium intake, a blood calcium level test can be ran to see if the diet is boosting the calcium levels.
If there is no change, then a supplement may be needed. We recommend consulting your avian vet before adding any extra supplement because large doses or unnecessary supplementation of calcium can be life threatening. If a supplement is needed, choose a laboratory grade calcium or liquid calcium. Proper diet is the key to maximum health for your African Grey!
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