Umbrella Cockatoo and tomatoes

[Bluecrush]

Hello
My cockatoo is extremely picky when it comes to fruit and I find that she only likes 2-3 types. I’ve been giving cherry tomatoes twice a day and grapes which she loves. She seems to only scoop out the inside of the tomatoes which isn’t much but doesn’t eat the skin. Recently I’ve read about how it’s unsafe to give cherry tomatoes. Is this true?

 

[rocky'smom]

I don't give tomatoes to my tiel. They are too acidic jmho

Can Birds Eat Tomatoes?

Find out what veterinarians say about feeding tomatoes to birds.

be.chewy.com

 

[Toy]

Tomatoes are high acid & grapes are high iron. They should not be fed daily, but only occasionally. You should be trying to feed veggies instead. Carrots, peas, red/green/yellow/orange peppers, etc. Sweet potatoes & white potatoes should be cooked (nuke a few minutes) before feeding. Parrots generally will not eat the skin off any veggie or fruit. 27 Vegetables Parrots Can Eat (And Why!)

 

[Pixiebeak]

I feed tomatoes twice a week ish..they love them like crazy! But I want to be careful. I've got 6 in my flock and I only dice up one of the multi color heritage which are about cherry tomatoe size, for them all to share. So they only get one or to beak full.

They love them so much...I'm really interested in finding out more definitive research

 

[Pixiebeak]

Hello
My cockatoo is extremely picky when it comes to fruit and I find that she only likes 2-3 types. I’ve been giving cherry tomatoes twice a day and grapes which she loves. She seems to only scoop out the inside of the tomatoes which isn’t much but doesn’t eat the skin. Recently I’ve read about how it’s unsafe to give cherry tomatoes. Is this true?

Don't give up on getting more variety in. Took my Penny 2 years to eat romaine lettuce ! Now it's one of her favorites and she eats it every day.

She finally tried it when I was eating a salad and she was stealing goodies from it. So I handed her a tiny finger nail piece of lettuce. She ate it and kept eating. But at first only if shredded fine. I mostly offer whole leaves and bigger hunks of vegetables . So never knew her secret would be shredded. Thankfully after months she was willing to nibble from whole leaves.

Have you tried cooked sweet potatoes served warm? I haven't had a parrot yet in my flock who could resist them! Including my budgies.

If you don't mind waste at first. Use broccoli or carrots as perches. Or turn large hunks of stuff into forage toys hide seed or nut in them.

Or try steam diced veggies in chic pea pasta or quinoa

 

[Mizzely]

While tomatoes are technically acidic, they are similar pH to other fruits we feed like cherries, oranges, etc, and actually LESS acidic than blueberries, pomegranate, raspberries, and strawberries.

They are safe in moderation... However they are a nightshade and none of the stem should ever be fed.

pH of Fresh Fruits - Master List

pH of Fresh Fruits - Master List

www.pickyourown.org

I've never seen grapes as high in iron, but raisins are because they are more concentrated by weight. They are however high in vitamin C which can increase iron absorption. They are also high in sugar.

 

[Shezbug]

I actually do feed tomato but I would not feed it daily. Grapes, although they are a huge favorite with my Macaw I limit them to one or two a week only as they are high in sugar.

 

[Mizzely]

My bird took three YEARS to most veggies. For him the ticket was large chunks. Like, whole fruits and veggies wherever possible. Don't give a baby carrot, give half a whole carrot with the root stump still, as an example

 

[Icey]

My cockatoo loves her veggies, rice, pasta potato, and fruit, but she has never had a tomato.

 

[Bluecrush]

Don't give up on getting more variety in. Took my Penny 2 years to eat romaine lettuce ! Now it's one of her favorites and she eats it every day.

She finally tried it when I was eating a salad and she was stealing goodies from it. So I handed her a tiny finger nail piece of lettuce. She ate it and kept eating. But at first only if shredded fine. I mostly offer whole leaves and bigger hunks of vegetables . So never knew her secret would be shredded. Thankfully after months she was willing to nibble from whole leaves.

Have you tried cooked sweet potatoes served warm? I haven't had a parrot yet in my flock who could resist them! Including my budgies.

If you don't mind waste at first. Use broccoli or carrots as perches. Or turn large hunks of stuff into forage toys hide seed or nut in them.

Or try steam diced veggies in chic pea pasta or quinoa

I haven’t tried sweet potatoes but I definitely will now thank you for the suggestions. She always steals lettuce off my subs but I think it’s mostly because of the condiments on them.

 

[Aviphile]

I feed tomatoes all the time. Spaghetti, lasagna and meatloaf are family favorites. Sweet potato with butter and cinnamon every birdy eats.

 

[Sarahmoluccan]

I think read somewhere that tomatoes were easilier to digest for parrots if they are cook? @Mizzely do you have any idea if this true? I did find Zane like spaghetti sauce and pizza sauce. Echo likes pizza too. But Echo is always trying swipe cheese off me. No matter what I'm eating he always wants things he's not supposed to have

 

[Mizzely]

I think read somewhere that tomatoes were easilier to digest for parrots if they are cook? @Mizzely do you have any idea if this true? I did find Zane like spaghetti sauce and pizza sauce. Echo likes pizza too. But Echo is always trying swipe cheese off me. No matter what I'm eating he always wants things he's not supposed to have

Tomatoes I believe do offer more benefits when cooked

 

[Aviphile]

I feed then in cooked foods but I also feed them right out of the garden both unripe green tomatoes and ripe red tomatoes along with tomatillo tomatoes. Here are some little tiger strip tomatoes from my garden.