The Vetafarm range at PeekAPaw covers bird nutrition, avian health care, reptile and small animal supplies, and a line of dog chews and toppers. Birds are the largest part of it — pellets, seed-based mixes, nectar diets, hand-rearing formulas, vitamins, probiotics, wormers, mite treatments and cage disinfectants — but the same range extends to guinea pigs, rabbits, rodents, ferrets, reptiles, poultry and a handful of wildlife species.
Bird diets: which pellet
Nutriblend is the core parrot pellet and comes in Mini, Small, Large and Breeder, so the pellet is sized to the bird rather than the other way around. Maintenance Diet Pellets, Paradise Pellets and Nutricore cover general feeding, while Parrot Essentials, South American Mix, Wild Earth and Macaw Nuts are the seed and nut based options for birds that will not take pellets. Nectar feeders have Forest Fusion, Nectar Pellets and Blossom Nectar. Finch & Budgie Crumbles is the small-bird diet, Insecta-Pro feeds insectivores, and Neocare Advanced Hand Rearing Formula, Poly Aid Plus and Crittacare Avian cover chicks and birds that are off their food.
Health care, hygiene and parasite control
The health side sorts into a few jobs. Calcium and vitamins: Calcivet, Soluvite D and Soluvite D Breeder, Adec Liquid, Triple C, D'Nutrical and Multivet Liquid with Moulting Aid. Gut support: Probotic, Synbiotic Avian Support and Synbiotic 180-S. Parasites: Wormout Gel, Pigeon and Bantam Wormout Tablets, Laying Hen Wormout Solution, Avimec, Coccivet and the Avian Insect Liquidator sprays. Hygiene: Avicare, Aviclens and Enclosure Clean for cages, drinkers and reptile enclosures, plus Power Shampoo and Dusting & Bathing Powder. Several of these are dosed in drinking water, and the rates differ by product and species, so read each label rather than assuming.
Beyond birds
The Origins line covers small animals — Rabbit Origins, Cavy Origins for guinea pigs, Rodent Origins, Ferret Origins and mini bales of lucerne and fescue hay. Reptile keepers have Multical Dust, Vitamin Drops, Shedding Mist, Booster and Enclosure Clean. Dogs have the Lovebites chews and toppers, including Dentashield, Flexjoint, Predamax, Liverpro, Synbiotic and B-Calm. There are also specialist diets for penguins, sea birds, echidnas and koalas.
Moving a seed-eating bird onto Vetafarm pellets such as Nutriblend is best done slowly. Mix the pellets into the familiar seed, then reduce the seed over several weeks while you watch that the bird is actually eating the pellets and not just picking out the seed. Weighing the bird regularly on a kitchen scale is the most reliable way to spot a bird that is not eating enough. An avian vet can advise on a conversion plan for an older or unwell bird.
