Kaytee Fiesta Parakeet Food - Premium Nutritious Bird Seed Mix for Parakeets, Budgies & Small Parrots - Perfect for Daily Feeding & Treats

This is long- sorryFirst of all, I’ve been feeding our three parakeets this food for 8 months now. You need to check for mold and smell the seeds for freshness- any company. The seeds can get damp in a warehouse if not sealed properly. I also order from chewy (they put the bag of seeds in another bag and then on a box to send. )Anyway, you should not feed your parakeet an all seed diet. I don’t care how good the seed are. I also mix add fresh lettuce (not iceburg) and carrots chopped, but not everyday. Unfortunately one of my female parakeets developed an external tumor growing from her oil gland. It was small and unmonitored it daily. It started to grow fast because she was picking at it. It grew large and bulbous looking. I made an appointment to an avian vet, but had to wait a long time to get her in. Finally she was seen and the doctor said it was a tumor. Sometimes they can be cancerous. It was hanging on like a stem on a flower. She was very uncomfortable with the weight on her backside. I felt bad. I had to wait another month to get her in watching for changes in the tumor growth. Anyway, they put her under and removed it. Great vet. She had to wear a fabricated collar around her neck for almost 2 weeks, she wouldn’t bite the stitches. I also had to administer pain medicine and antibiotics. Have you ever tried catching a bird and putting meds in the mouth? It is not fun. I know most people would say, it’s just a parakeet” and not spend the money, but she is a family member and I didn’t want to see her in this condition.It cost me $388.00 for the operation and because I want to know if it was cancerous. It came back negative. It’s a common tumor developed from an all seed diet and lacking in vitamin A. I was told by the vet that eating an all seed diet is like eating fast food all the time. High in fat. Seeds loose can their vitamins which were added. She suggested mixing in a brand called Zupreem (you can order on Amazon) They are tiny pellets you can introduce slowly to your parakeet. They are full nutrition instead of an all seed diet. I bought a bag and slowly I introducing them. I won’t take the seeds away because they will starve if they don’t want to eat the pellets. It’s a slow introduction. Kaylee seeds are excellent because they do provide a variety mix. There are pellets in the seeds but a different type. My birds don’t eat them.They do seem to live the Zupreem pellets.Not all parakeets develop tumors, but it can happen. You can look up these tumors on the oil gland. :)I like this brand because it has a good mix of dried items. None of my three parakeets have been sick from these seeds. However, I would suggest to freeze the seeds for several days ( don’t allow moisture ) because I now have flying moths around my house. They are harmless to the birds and people, but annoying and make little cocoons in your corners high up. The caterpillars- once in a warm room- will hatch and craw up to make a cocoon. The birds love eating them if they see them in their dish. After all, a lot of bird seeds have the caterpillar eggs but many don’t hatch. Extra protein and they are birds - right? Some seed have insect larvae and some brands don’t. I’m going to call the company to tell them.Don’t let this deter you. The seeds are great and then it’s love them, but don’t stay with an all seeds dietWith inflation what it is right now, I am mixing this in with a less expensive brand of bird seed to extend it.I spent a lot of time researching parakeet food. This one came highly recommended. However, my parakeet picks out what he likes. He flicks about 3/4 out onto the floorThere are some hard cracker-like disks, almost dime-sized) in the food, which my parakeet doesn’t touch. Easy enough, I just pick them out of his daily seed. The seeds smell a lot like treat seed mix and little Stevie loves it!My parakeets seem to enjoy itMy budgie loves this mix. Smells very fresh.It is worth buying this one time if you have lot of birds as this is value for money package.It makes it easier for me