If you have a pet parakeet, you should know that they don’t require a high-quality wild bird food. While they may occasionally eat insects in the wild, they aren’t in need of meat protein while in captivity. In fact, some keepers even feed their birds cooked chicken or fish every fortnight. Although it isn’t necessary to feed the birds raw meat, this protein can make them ill.
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Fruits
You’ll want to include fruit as part of your parakeet’s diet. However, avoid giving your bird any fruit that has seeds, as the pits may become choking hazards. Instead, offer your parakeet unpitted fruit. Make sure to remove the seeds first. The same goes for apples, bananas, and grapes. Besides, these types of fruit are generally considered safe for parakeets.
As for fruits, you should avoid dried fruit and packaged fruits, which contain preservatives and dyes. Instead, give your parakeets fresh fruits and vegetables, which are packed with vitamins and minerals. Some of the best fruit and vegetable choices for parakeets include bananas, grapes, avocados, mango, coconut, pineapple, and oranges. The key to giving your birds healthy food is to choose organic fruits, as non-organic fruits and vegetables can contain harmful pesticides.
Seeds
Seeds for parakeets are easy to find at your local pet store. You should also be able to find them in many premium bird seed blends. Try to find one that contains wild oats or canary grass, as these seeds are great for parakeets. They grow wild across the continental United States. Spinifex and canary grass seeds are available from seed exchanges.
Fruits and vegetables provide essential vitamins and minerals for your parakeet. Spinach, alfalfa sprouts, bananas, coconut, pineapple, dandelion leaves, and oranges are good choices. However, be careful not to give your parakeets raw or canned beans. Raw beans can contain harmful chemicals that can be lethal to birds. Alternatively, you can try to offer your parakeets the same five foods every day.
Pasta
Unlike budgies, parakeets can eat fruits. Fruits such as apples, pears, and strawberries are suitable for feeding your parakeet. However, some types of bread are harmful to your bird, including sandwich bread, which is packed with additives. Cooked oats are a healthier option for grains. If you prefer to feed your birds bread, it is best to avoid the salty variety and stick with whole grain bread.
As a rule of thumb, parakeets love tropical fruits. They also love small vegetables. They may reject food in different forms, but in captivity, you can provide them with a wide variety of foods. Some of these foods are listed below. You can mix fruits and vegetables with seeds or chopping them finely to make them more appealing to your parakeet.
Crackers
While you can give your bird a cracker from time to time, you should never make this the sole source of their food. These types of crackers are not suitable for wild birds due to their high sodium content. Instead, use crackers that are high in fiber and energy. You can also purchase “cream” crackers. Although they do not contain cream, these crackers contain dietary fibers from oats and wheat flour. However, you should limit the amount of these snacks to once a month.
However, crackers can be given to parakeets when broken into pieces. However, the salt found in crackers can affect their body’s ability to process them. Salt can result in kidney failure and excess production of uric acid. It can also cause musculoskeletal problems, which are accompanied by tremors, twitching, and loss of balance. Seizures may also occur.
Honey
In the wild, parakeets eat mostly seeds. You should offer them some grains and fresh fruits, which should make up about half of their diet. While threshed and fresh grain are good choices, pearl barley and rolled oats are not suitable. Parakeets also enjoy the texture of hard husks, which they will work through to get to the seeds.
Some people feed their budgerigars bread. This may be a great option for your parakeets, but keep in mind that bread does not always provide the best nutrition for your bird. To give your bird the best nutrition, choose whole grain bread instead of processed sandwich bread. Cooked oats are also a healthy choice. Try a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables to see which ones your parakeet prefers the most.
