Parrots in the wild spend up to 70% of waking hours foraging - providing foraging enrichment in captivity is one of the most important welfare interventions available to parrot owners.
Foraging enrichment is arguably the single most important welfare improvement available to companion parrot owners. The contrast between wild foraging - problem-solving, physical activity, social foraging and varied diet discovery - and a bowl of food instantly available represents a profound deprivation of natural behaviour. This deprivation directly drives feather destructive behaviour, aggression and repetitive behaviours. Implementing foraging enrichment requires creativity and daily commitment but is cost-effective and dramatically improves parrot quality of life. Rotating novel foraging challenges maintains engagement and mimics the unpredictability of wild foraging.