Yes, cockatiels can eat tomatoes, but you should only give the ripe ones. Tomatoes are nutritious, packed in vitamins and minerals that are healthy for cockatiels. Still, you should avoid giving the unripe ones, as well as the green parts. All green parts of tomatoes are lethal for cockatiels if eaten.
Tomatoes are easily accessible to most groceries and supermarkets. Further, it offers a lot of health benefits for us and our pets.
Thus, it can be quite tempting always to include such. However, before doing so, you should note some things about tomatoes to ensure your pet is safe.
Let’s get into it!
Contents
Are tomatoes good for cockatiels?
Tomatoes are good for cockatiels in many ways. Ripe tomatoes are rich in vitamins and minerals that are healthy for cockatiels.
Let’s take a look at these nutrition facts. According to HealthLine, a hundred grams of raw tomato contains:
- 18 Calories
- 95% is water
- 0.9 grams of protein
- 3.9 grams of carbohydrates
- 2.6 grams of sugar
- 1.2 grams of fiber
- 0.2 grams of fat
Water takes up a significant percentage of a tomato’s composition, with 95% of its total. The other 5% consists mostly of other nutrients.
Nutrients from tomatoes only take a small percentage. These nutrients are still beneficial to cockatiels if appropriately fed.
One thing to consider in tomatoes is fiber, which can aid your pet’s digestion.
Fresh tomatoes are lower in carbohydrates. Thus, if you are to pick tomatoes for your cockatiel, be sure to get the fresh ones.
Still, be mindful not to give green ones, as it can be harmful to your pet.
Aside from that, tomatoes are rich in the following vitamins and minerals:
- Vitamin C (which boosts immunity)
- Potassium (which aids blood regulation)
- Vitamin K1 (which improves bone health)
- Vitamin B9 (which improves cell function)
Although highly nutritious, tomatoes shouldn’t form a big part of your cockatiel’s meal.
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How many tomatoes can cockatiels eat?
Although tomatoes are highly nutritious, it still shouldn’t form a big part of their diet. If you are feeding tomatoes to your cockatiel, limit it to 9-12 grams only.
Tomatoes, along with other vegetables, should only take up to 30% of a cockatiel’s daily meal.
Since cockatiels eat an average of 30-40 grams of food per day, it would be best to mix tomatoes and other vegetables into pellets.
Like all other birds and animals, they should have a balanced diet consisting of a few other foods.
A significant percentage of their meal should be pellets, making up a total of 60% of their daily diet. The remaining 10% should be for snacks or treats such as nuts, seeds, and fruits.
Balance is always crucial to a good diet for cockatiels. For this reason, you should limit tomatoes to less than 9-12 grams per day.
Further, it would be best if you didn’t feed tomatoes as the only vegetable. Consider getting a variety of options like lettuce, cabbage, and others.
Risks of feeding your cockatiel tomatoes
When feeding tomatoes to your cockatiel, you should be aware of the following risks to avoid.
Unripe tomatoes can be harmful.
First, unripe tomatoes can cause harm to your pet. When a tomato plant’s fruit still has green parts in it, it is much more acidic. Thus, giving green tomatoes can cause an upset stomach.
For this reason, it would be best to avoid giving green tomatoes to your pet bird.
Tomatoes’ green tops, leaves, and stems are toxic.
Tomatoes come from the nightshade family of plants. Thus, the green tops, leaves, and stems of tomatoes contain solanine.
This component is toxic to birds and other pets, and that includes cockatiels.
For this reason, it would be best to prevent your pet from accessing any tomato plants. To ensure that the tomatoes you feed are safe, cook it first before feeding.
Cooking the tomatoes helps in destroying toxic components. Still, don’t include the green parts of tomatoes when cooking.
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Do cockatiels like eating tomatoes?
Tomatoes are not the usual vegetable a cockatiel would eat. Nevertheless, these birds would happily munch on one if you offer them some.
Still, always keep in mind that tomatoes are not the primary food for your pet, so avoid overfeeding your pet with such.
You can mix it with other food you offer, but don’t give too many tomatoes to your pet.
What vegetables and fruits can cockatiels eat?
Aside from tomatoes, there are other fruits and vegetables that you can give your cockatiel. If you’re in your first days or weeks of caring for your bird, here is a list of fruits you can offer:
- Kiwi
- Papaya
- Blueberries
- Cucumber
- Grapes
- Apples (remove seeds)
- Banana
- Pomegranate
- Cherries
- Oranges
You can also feed your bird the following vegetables:
- Romaine
- Leaf Lettuce
- Kale
- Sweet Potato
- Celery & Celery Leaves
- Winter Squash
- String Beans
- Peanuts
- Corn on the cob
- Peas
- Carrots
- Zucchinis
- Broccoli
When feeding vegetables, it’s important to give into bite-size pieces to make it easier to eat. Further, it would be best to wash everything first.
Cooking, such as steaming or boiling, may also help to soften and moisten the veggies. For tomatoes, cooking ensures that it’s free from toxic components.
In general, you can feed any vegetable or fruit you can find in the market. Be careful, though, as some may contain seeds and parts that can be harmful.
Summary
Cockatiels can eat tomatoes, as long as it’s ripe. Although highly nutritious, tomatoes can still cause harm to your pet if you offer the green parts.
To ensure your pet’s safety, only feed the ripe tomatoes and cook it first. Avoid feeding unripe ones and the green tops, and prevent your pet from accessing a tomato plant.
Tomatoes should only form a small portion of your cockatiel’s diet. Thus, always make sure you don’t give more than the right amount.
Resources
HealthLine’s Nutrition Facts on Tomatoes
Image Credits:
- Photo by Vince Lee on Unsplash
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lutino_Cockatiel_in_Faint_Sunlight.jpg
