I have been talking to several bird breeders over the last few weeks and it seems there is some confusion about what sort of supplement is PROSPERITY™.
For many years the historical term “Egg and Biscuit” has been used for a very digestible mixture suitable for breeding birds who in turn feed this mixture to their chicks. The egg is represented as the high protein component, a highly digestible ingredient for young birds that need this high protein during the early stages of their growth and development. Similarly, the biscuit component is the highly digestible carbohydrate and fat component, again to provide energy for the young bird’s growth and development. However, from my observations looking at a range of egg and biscuit products in pet shops the amount of egg included is small and the biscuit component is replaced with grain by-products such as pollard and a token amount of biscuit and they fall short of providing any critical nutrients of significance required by birds during their early stages of growth. The quality of these products varies significantly.
Our understanding of captive birds’ daily nutrient requirements at various stages of development and their physiological states has improved significantly over the years, particularly the individual amino acid requirements needed for good tissue growth and feather development during young birds’ early growth and development. Most passerine and psittacine birds grow up to ten times faster than the fastest growing broiler chicken and therefore needs a large amount of protein (essential amino acids) to achieve these levels of growth.
PROSPERITY™ is a replacement for the traditional and historical Egg and Biscuit” products. However, it is more than a replacement. It does contain whole egg protein and highly digestible carbohydrate sources plus additional essential nutrients required by the fast-growing birds for rapid growth and feather development, not present in the egg protein or carbohydrate sources. It also contains calcium and phosphorus in the correct balance to ensure proper skeletal development, the frame of the bird upon which tissue and feathers are built. It also contains components to assist the bird to cope with disease challenges as well as building natural immunity.
PROSPERITY™ is a complete food for young chicks and it DOES NOT need to be diluted with other ingredients. If you do dilute it with ingredients that do not contain this same level of these nutrients, you will unbalance the nutrients.
During breeding, it can be fed ad-libitum, mixed with water (to make it crumbly) in a finger draw or flat dish. Feed it as it is to your breeding birds and continue to feed the breeding birds until the young birds reach their mature body weight. In addition, ensure the birds have access to a suitable feed mix with TummyRite Plus added to the seed. The take-home message is:
PROSPERITY™ is the new Egg and Biscuit, but with more added essential nutrients and additional components to assist the bird to cope with disease challenges and build natural immunity.