Cockatiel Diet

Cockatiel Diet

Cockatiel diet information to give your bird optimum nutrition.

Cockatiels love to eat food with you. They are ideally suited to eat from your plate. This is a great opportunity to bond with your bird because when you feed them, they will be a lot more attached to you. However, before you feed your bird just about anything, you need to be informed about the right cockatiel diet.

Some foods are actually poisenous for your baby bird and the last thing you want to do is kill it with the wrong diet. Our birds are always sharing meal times with us and if you are the sort of person who loves to eat in peace and quiet, cockatiels are not the ideal bird to do so. You can train them to be part of the dining table without making a mess of it though.

It is all about authority. The sooner you show your cockatiels who is in charge, the more they will behave in the future. This can be done in a gentle manner and certainly doesn't involve screaming and shouting.

A must have to get your cockatiel fed is pellet seed mix from your pet store. We recommend you buy a good brand that has been optimized with vitamins and minerals from a reputable seller. Our cockatiels eat a mixture of a seed based diet and fresh vegetables, steamed vegetables, pasta, rice, fresh fruit, mash, bread, nuts (in moderation), crackers, fish, red meat, chicken, small amounts of hard cheeses (in very small amounts and only when they breed to help them with their calcium levels.

They also have a cuttle fish bone in their bird cage and a calcium bell. Calcium is in fact essential for cockatiels and they should always have access to it, regardless whether they are male or female, breed or not breed.

Troughout the year we also supplement our birds drinking water (normal tap water) alternatively with vitamin drops and calcium ( when the chicks lay eggs especially).

When you feed your baby cockatiels be sure to check the temperature of the foods, especially if you feed them with things like pasta, mash, rice and steamed vegetables. You can do that by touching the food to your lips for a second or two. If it burns you, then it will burn your bird and cause him to get scarred in his throat.So be careful!

Forbidden foods for a cockatiel diet

Cockatiels must never, under any cirumstances be fed the following foods as they are deadly for them:

• Avocado
• Fats, like butter and oil and fast food stuff
• Alcohol
• Chocolate
• House plants (many are poisenous for your bird so keep them off the plants at all times - don't take chances!)
• Sugar, sweet foods, cakes, candy
• Salt (too much salt can kill them, especially salt crystals since they like to pick things up on the table of floor.
• Paint (many old homes contain lead paint which will kill your bird! We realize paint is not part of the bird's diet but it is important enough to be mentioned here anyway.

Pet bird care for your cockatiel birds starts with your cockatiel diet. When your babies get the right nutrition, they will make you the happiest bird owner in the world!