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Why The Wrong Parrot Diet Can Kill Your Bird

By: Nora Caterino Giving your parrot the wrong bird diet can result in the death of your feathered friend. Yes, this is a fact. Feeding your parrot the right bird diet, however, can help ensure health and longevity for your beloved bird. Only in the last few decades has research revealed which foods are deadly to parrots and which are the best choices for them.

If a parrot's diet contains good, healthy foods, many of the larger species can live to be 100 years of age or more. Even small parrots such as cockatiels will live much longer than expect. When psittacine birds were first kept as pet, people thought their life expectancy was short, only 10 years or so. This was because the bird diet being offered did not contain the nutrients required for the parrot to thrive.

Deadly Bird Diet Choices

While there are many parrot diet choices which humans consume that are healthy for the parrot, there are a few which are absolutely deadly! The "seven deadly parrot diet foods" include: spoiled or moldy foods, raw meat, eggs that haven't been cooked thoroughly, seeds or pits from fruits, avocado, alcohol, and chocolate. There are a few other foods over which there is controversy as to whether they are safe for bird diets or not, but most of those foods are not items parrots relish. Examples of those questionable foods include garlic and onions.

Parrot Diet Items You Should Limit

There are some foods which people eat that a parrot can safely consume a tiny bit of without any problem, but which should be limited in the parrot diet. In large quantities, these foods can harm your bird's health. You may note these are also foods that a human should not eat in large amounts for their own health, too.

Any food that is high in fat must be limited in the parrots diet. When living in the wild, parrots consume little fat. Think of your pet bird diet as you would consider feeding a little child of three or four years. Sure, you might allow a young child one cookie or a few chips, but you would limit the quantity. The same goes for your parrots diet. One or two bites of these foods is okay once in a while but do not allow it to become a habit. Foods in this group include: fried foods, any foods with added butter, ice cream, and cake or cookies. Use moderation as your guide.

Salt is another important item to limit in parrots diets. People should not over-consume salt either, but if you consider how small the parrot body is, you can see what a little salt can be harmful. When cooking any vegetables or other foods, remove a small amount to share with your parrot before adding any seasoning. In this group of foods are: salted meats such as bacon or ham, popcorn with salt, vegetables cooked with salt, and many types of pre-packaged foods such as microwave-ready entrees.

Sugary foods are poor choices for a bird diet. Just like children, birds can learn to crave sweets if allowed. It is safe to permit a parrot to taste a bite or perhaps two of sugary foods, it is crucial to restrict quantities. Sugary foods include: sweetened soft drinks, some cereals, candy, sweetened fruit juice, ice cream, and cookies.

Good Parrot Diet Choices

You may wonder what foods are good to include in your parrot diet. The answer is, basically, everything not listed above! A bird diet should include lots of different foods in order to ensure that a wide range of vitamins and nutrients are consumed. The more choices your parrot diet includes, the better health your parrot will enjoy and the longer life span your companion parrot can expect.

Fruits and vegetables are great parrot diet choices, either raw or gently cooked. Cooked eggs, cheese, pasta, rice, potatoes (except potato chips or fried potatoes), noodles, bits of meat or fish, and other human foods are good for you bird. Parrots only need a very small amount of meat, so offer just a bite or two; some parrots do love a bone with a few bits of meat left on it to chew and to dig out the marrow which is quite nutritious.

Article Source: http://www.lifeweightloss.com

About the author: Mississippi 'Bird Lady' finally exposes her proven bird diet, biting and feather plucking techniques to easily get a happy, sociable and healthy parrot in your home.
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