Although we all try very hard to feed our birds the best possible foods, there are times when they may get into something which we didn’t plan on them eating. We may even feed them something because we didn’t know it was dangerous. Here are some dangerous foods to keep away from your bird.
Alcoholic Beverages
Avoid it completely; consumption can lead to brain damage and death. Inhalation of ethanol should also be avoided as this can also cause intoxication and death.
Avocado
Avoid completely; consumption is known to have caused death within hours.
Caffeine
Includes caffeinated beverages, coffee grounds, and tea bags or iced tea crystals. See symptoms and treatment below under chocolate.
Chocolate
Avoid completely; consumption of small quantities can cause rapid onset of hyperactivity, vomiting, diarrhea, heartbeat irregularities, seizures, and death. The active ingredients causing problems are theophylline and caffeine; the higher the concentration in the chocolate, the more rapid the progression. Usually, the less sugar present in the chocolate, the higher the concentration of toxic active ingredients. If you suspect your bird has ingested chocolate, administer 1 cc of Pepto Bismol and rush your bird to an avian veterinarian.
Fat
Avoid feeding high-fat foods; excess fat over time can cause fatty liver disease, obesity, diarrhea, and oily feather texture. Excess fat in the diet can also interfere with the absorption of other nutrients, such as calcium.
Rhubarb Leaves
Avoid completely; consumption will cause death.
Salt
Consumption can cause excessive drinking and urinating, depression, neurologic hyperactivity, tremors, and death. When necropsied, birds with excessive consumption of salt have a great deal of fluid buildup in the brain and are hemorrhaging.
Remember, a bird eating one potato chip with salt is comparable to our eating 50 chips!
