What Should I Feed My Cockatiel To Keep It Healthy?

Here is some extra information for you if you are wondering what should I feed my cockatiel to keep it healthy.

Luckily this is easy to do and it is one of the reasons cockatiels are such popular pets. They are low maintenance, easy to care for, and make very entertaining pets.

In fact, they can exist largely on a diet of dry seed and water. During recent years their nutritional needs have been more closely studied, and it is now evident that if you want to keep your cockatiel in top condition and achieve great breeding results, you need to offer them a wider range of foodstuffs.

Birdseed contains carbohydrates, fat, and protein, certain vitamins and minerals, as well as a variable percentage of water. Cockatiels in the wild forage on the ground and eat grass and seeds as a major part of their diet.

Similarly, our pets often get a seed mixture of plain canary seed and a variety of millet seeds. Groats, which is the dehusked form of oats is also a popular choice for breeding birds.

The above seed varieties do not offer a complete and balanced diet for cockatiels, and other foods are essential to compensate for the vitamin and protein deficiencies. The above seeds are cereal-based. You will need to give your cockatiel oil-based seeds as well.

Sunflower seed is an oil-based seed, that is rich in fat, low in carbohydrates, and a valuable source of protein and essential amino acids.

Other good additions to the basic seed mixture include hemp seed, which is a round brownish seed which is normally fed during the winter months, as the oil and mineral content is high. Too much hemp on the other hand can lead to obesity.

The best way to supplement your bird’s diet is to use fresh foods that are moist and can be eaten in their entirety. Banana’s, apple, carrots, and a variety of other fresh foods can be offered to your cockatiel. Most cockatiels will prefer green stuff, but few will resist a slice of sweet apple.

Try making your own homemade bird food.

Pellet foods are also good, but it may take a while for your cockatiel to get used to eating the pellets, and will rather go for the seed. The best way to go about getting your bird to eat the pellets is by reducing the amount of seed gradually and increasing the number of pellets.

Try to find a reliable supplier for your cockatiels seed. The fresher the seed the better. The old seed will lose a lot of its nutrients. The only way to check if the seed is fresh is to try and sprout it. Read about soaking your seed here. If it grows, it is fresh. Never store seeds for more than three months.

Please comment below if you have any other ideas on what should I feed my cockatiel, as I would like to see some more ideas.