Hagen Finch Staple Vme Seed, 3-Pound

My birds love this food, it’s good quality and not with all the added dyes and preservatives.

Birds enjoy this a lot. My bird lived it

Much better than the cheaper brands. Zero waste for zebra finches. I wish it came in something between 3 and 25 pounds. The packaging kept it fresh and it was clean. I am storing it in the refrigerator to keep it that way.

It was soooo disappointing when I finally bought this seed only to have my bird, who normally LOVES millet and canary seed, refuse to eat this, flicking his head and flinging the seed away as if he was highly irritated by it. I removed most of his other food sources for a few days hoping this would lessen his picky behavior. He only sampled a little of the millet out of it when he was very hungry (or should I say, Hangry?), but he still would flick his head as if something in this mix was causing physical irritation. The only thing I could think might be the issue was the orange oil Hagen uses as a natural preservative.I was so frustrated because I have spent hours reading labels, searching for a food mix that was as unprocessed and close to a bird's natural diet as possible. I had a lot of hope this brand was as close as I could come without just making my own.All that said, I wanted to give this a higher rating in spite of the bad results because this may be perfect for many small bird owners out there. I would so much rather see people feed THIS to their little pet birds than that ghastly processed, colored, dead frankenfood sold as "Bird food" when it should be labeled McDonald's style poison. (I'm sorry; Is that bigotted? Censor me, amazon.) And yeah, my reasoning is probably all off giving this 4 stars when my bird won't eat it; It's just....this SEEMS like such a good company and I don't want products like this to go off the market!One last note: If you think you can handle 25 lb.s, be prepared....is all I'm gonna say...25 lbs is a BOATLOAD of seed! If you only have one or two finches or budgies, please consider being ready to freeze this in smaller bags to keep it fresh. It's basically equivalent to buying an Apocalyptic supply of nourishment to last 8 years in human terms! You don't buy your 2025's food supply in 2017 expecting fresh-off-the-farm quality by then , now do you? Just saying. Birds don't want rancid seed anymore than we like our Southwestern Casserole with green fuzzies on it. Ok, I'm done with my rant.Update: Wait, I'm not done. I had an idea. MAYBE if you air out the seed you're going to feed your bird a day or two before you give it to them, the orange oil won't be so overpowering and it will be less irritating to the bird's senses. When I first opened the original Hagen bag, the orange oil was noticeable though not unpleasant to a human. I put a few tablespoons in a ziplock and this was what I took from to offer to my bird each day beside what I put in his dish. 2 days later, he ate from it without showing quite as much irritation and I noticed I could no longer detect any smell at all by then. Of course it could also have simply being his Advanced Millet Dependence was exhibiting itself after 48 hours of withdrawal symptoms... 😅😄😀😈

We raise three different varieties of finches. They all love the seed. It stays fresh, good variety of seed mixture and they're all happy and healthy.

This is my preferred brand of seeds for my finches. There are no “filler” seeds. The other brands have oat seeds which I have never had a finch eat in nearly 40 years of owning various types of finches. My birds have always knocked them out of their seed cup as well as the red and green dyed seeds that some brands include. It may cost more than other brands, but there is no waste. It is also 3 pounds as opposed to just 2 in other brands. The cost of buying it on Amazon is more than I was paying in my local pet store, but they have gone out of business and this is the only place that I have seen the Hagen brand.

Good mix of seeds for this price

I can't speak as to the flavor, but my zebra finch has no issue with it as he devours it by the cupful.The seed seems to be fresh as the husks don't fall off at the lightest touch and 3 pounds goes a long way with a bird that weighs an ounce or two. The package has a "zipper" but I put the seed into an airtight container anyway.Edited: I bought my first bag a few months back and wanted to re-order. The price has gone up substantially which is either a matter of the out-of-control inflation in this country or some other reason that I can't determine. In any case, I will still be placing the order as my finch is don't great with it.Second Edit: OK...now not only is Amazon out of stock on this product but the sole vendor is charging a ridiculous amount of money. I know that prices are always based on supply and demand but I am "demanding" another brand which I'm sure my finch will be quite happy with at half the price.