Volkman Avian Science Super Bird Seed 4 lb

Most bird seed on a supermarket shelf is one mix in twelve different bags. Volkman's Avian Science Super range is the opposite: twelve genuinely different blends, each built on a base seed that suits the bird it is for.

Small birds get a millet base. Medium and large hookbills get safflower. Canaries get canary grass seed; finches get a millet, canary and nyjer mix. Then the dried fruit, vegetables and nuts change on top of that. A macaw blend has in-shell almonds and dates in it. A parakeet blend does not, because a budgie cannot open an almond.

Volkman Pet Products has been milling in California's Central Valley since 1863 and is still family owned. Bags are CO₂-flushed for freshness and date-coded; stored sealed, cool and dark, the shelf life is 18 months from packing.

Which blend for your bird

Why a "No Sunflower" cockatiel mix

Sunflower seed is the crisps of the bird world. It is high in fat, birds love it, and given the choice they will eat it and leave everything else — which is how a cockatiel ends up overweight on a mix that was balanced in the bag. The No Sunflower blend removes the temptation entirely: millet, safflower, oat groats, canary grass seed, corn, buckwheat, wheat, flax, with dried papaya, carrot, coconut, peppers and spinach flakes. No sunflower, no nuts. Fat drops from 10.5% to 9.5%, and more importantly the bird eats the whole mix instead of picking.

The Hookbill blend is the same idea for a larger bird.

Guaranteed analysis

A note on the four blends missing from that table. Volkman's website currently shows the Canary, Parrot, Parrotlet and African Grey blends carrying an identical analysis — 14.5% protein, 22% fat — which does not square with their ingredient lists. A canary mix built on canary grass seed and canola is not 22% fat. It looks like a copy-and-paste slip on their site rather than a real figure, so rather than reprint numbers we think are wrong, we have left those four out and asked Volkman to confirm. The panel printed on the bag you receive is the authoritative one, and we will publish the corrected figures here as soon as we have them.

Ingredients

Parrot (representative of the safflower-based hookbill blends): safflower seed, corn, pumpkin seed, sunflower seed, wheat, in-shell peanuts, buckwheat, banana, barley, mixed feed nuts, papaya, dehydrated carrot, dehydrated peas, oat groats, coconut, peppers, dried apple, safflower oil, orange oil, sugar, citric acid, vegetable and fruit juice for colour, banana flavour, coconut oil, calcium, sulfur dioxide and sodium metabisulfite as preservatives, FD&C Red No. 40, Blue No. 1, Yellow No. 5 and No. 6, vegetable oil.

Cockatiel No Sunflower: millet, safflower seed, oat groats, canary grass seed, corn, buckwheat, wheat, flax seed, dried papaya, dehydrated carrot, dried coconut, dehydrated peppers, dried spinach flakes, orange oil, sugar, citric acid, vegetable and fruit juice for colouring, FD&C colours, sodium metabisulfite.

Worth knowing: most blends in this range contain FD&C food colouring. Some owners do not mind; some feel strongly about it. If you would rather avoid artificial colour, the Parrotlet blend here is coloured with vegetable and fruit juice only — and our Volkman Soak & Simmer, Gourmet Eggfood and the wild bird mixes contain no colours at all. We would rather tell you that than let you find out from the back of the bag.

Feeding

Volkman's published direction for the range is simply: feed free choice, with plenty of fresh clean water available at all times. Store cool and dry.

Our own practical note: a seed diet works best alongside fresh vegetables, and a bird on seed alone will usually be short of vitamin A and calcium over time. Ask your avian vet whether your bird should be on a formulated pellet as part of the diet — the answer for a lot of birds is yes.

Questions we get asked

Avian Science or Featherglow?
Avian Science is the species-specific seed line — twelve blends, no vitamin pellet in most of them. Featherglow is Volkman's fortified tier, with vitaminised pellets blended through the seed, and it also covers cooked foods, treats and eggfood. If you want the mix matched precisely to your species, Avian Science. If you want the fortification, Featherglow.

My bird just eats the sunflower.
Every bird does, given the option. Buy the No Sunflower or Hookbill blend and the problem disappears.

How long does 4 lb last?
Roughly two months for one cockatiel, two to three weeks for a macaw.

How do I know the bag is fresh?
Volkman date-code every bag with a five-digit Julian code — two digits of year, then the day of the year. Shelf life is 18 months from that date, sealed and cool.

Shipping is free on every order, worldwide, and every parcel ships with a tracking number. You'll get the tracking link by email as soon as your order leaves us. Insured shipping is available at checkout for $4.95 if you'd like added cover.

Most orders arrive within 7 to 14 business days. The estimate shown above this section is for your location.

Returns are open for 45 days. If something isn't right, email support@farooze.com and we'll sort it out. Full details in our shipping policy and refund policy.