You’re ready to snuggle into your couch to watch a movie and eat delicious salty and buttery popcorn. However, your cockatiel seems to have the same idea. You’d love to share your popcorn with your bird, but can you? Is popcorn a safe snack for your cockatiel? It absolutely is! However, the popcorn should be plain without any additives, and it should only be given as a treat in moderation. Here, we look at how much is enough and the best way to prepare the popcorn for your cockatiel. We also look at how not to prepare the popcorn. We want your cockatiel to enjoy popcorn, but in a healthy way.
All About Popcorn Popcorn comes from a specific type of corn. They are dried kernels with a tiny bit of water inside that grows when heated, which causes the kernel to explode with that fluffy popcorn goodness. It’s thought that popcorn has been around for over 5,000 years and hails from New Mexico. It took off in popularity during the Great Depression in the 1930s because it was cheap and easy to make (and delicious!). It continues to be one of the most popular snack foods in North America and Europe. You might be quite surprised to learn that popcorn is a whole grain food and is a high source of fiber. Only 100 grams of popped popcorn is 15 grams of fiber! It is also high in polyphenol antioxidants and is known to be a healthy snack. However, there are a few problems with popcorn. Problems With Popcorn Image Credit: Georgia Vagim, Unsplash Studies have shown that commercial microwave popcorn can have harmful effects. The perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) chemical is found in most packages of microwave popcorn and is associated with a number of health issues. This chemical is also used in the non-stick coating of Teflon pans. PFOA is connected to kidney and testicular cancer, low birth weight, thyroid problems, and ADHD. Microwave popcorn also sometimes contains diacetyl, which is used in artificial butter flavoring. Studies show that this chemical can cause lung disease and damage the airways of animals. Lastly, we tend to cover popcorn with unhealthy ingredients: sugar, caramel, cheese, butter, salt, and more. Many health problems can occur from excessive intake of these types of toppings. But what about cockatiels? Let’s take a brief look at the cockatiel’s typical diet.
A Cockatiel Diet The bulk of a domestic cockatiel’s diet consists of pellets that have been specially made for cockatiels. Pellets contain a large variety of different foods, such as grains, corn, fruit, vegetables, minerals, and vitamins, that have all been pressed into these tiny pellets. These should make up 75% to 80% of your tiel’s diet, with the rest of their diet typically being made up of fresh vegetables. Fruit is a healthy snack but should be considered a treat and only fed in small amounts once per day. Vegetables that are good for cockatiels include:
Peas
Corn
Zucchini
Bok choy
Carrots
Sweet potatoes
Romaine lettuce
Kale
Watercress
Good fruit choices include:
Apricots
Mangos
Oranges
Papayas
Strawberries
Pears
Cantaloupe
Kiwi
Watermelon
Peaches
But what about popcorn for cockatiels?
Cockatiels and Popcorn Image Credit: jggrz, Pixabay Popcorn can already be healthy with its high fiber content, but it’s also a source of protein, with 13 grams in 100 grams of popped popcorn. Popcorn also contains several vitamins and minerals, such as:
Iron
Zinc
Magnesium
Thiamin
Niacin
Pyridoxine
Potassium
Manganese
Copper
Phosphorus
However, the healthy aspects of popcorn can be completely counteracted when unhealthy toppings are added. Let’s look at the negatives of popcorn for your cockatiel.
The Downside of Popcorn for Cockatiels Image Credit: stevepb, Pixabay Popcorn is delicious to us, but that’s because we tend to add toppings that aren’t always healthy. These should be avoided at all costs when feeding popcorn to your cockatiel. Toppings Every seasoning and topping typically added to popcorn is bad for cockatiels. Salt, butter, popcorn seasonings, and sugary toppings are all unhealthy for your bird. If you feed your tiel too many fatty foods (which means popcorn with butter, but it can also happen with too many seeds in the diet), they can become overweight, which makes them susceptible to fatty liver disease. Microwave The microwave popcorn bags can contain PFOA (used in the non-stick coating found in cookware), which can be deadly for birds. In fact, if you leave a non-stick pan that contains PFOA on high heat, the fumes can prove fatal for birds. Additionally, microwave popcorn is full of artificial ingredients that contain salt and flavorings that aren’t good for your tiel. It’s safest to avoid giving your tiel any microwave popcorn at all. How Much Popcorn Can You Give Your Cockatiel?
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As healthy as popcorn can be, it should still only be given as an occasional treat, since pellets, fruits, and vegetables are what should make up the entirety of your bird’s meals. Treats and snacks should only be given to your cockatiel once a day and only one or two treats at a time. You can give your cockatiel a few popcorn kernels once or twice a week, provided that it’s air-popped and lacks any toppings. You can pop popcorn, pull out a few kernels for your tiel, and then add whatever toppings that you want to the rest. This way, you’re both happy!
Conclusion Air-popped popcorn without anything on it is just fine for your cockatiel, as long as you give your pet only one or two kernels a few times a week. Avoid microwave popcorn! You can make homemade and much healthier popcorn for yourself on the stove, but it still probably will contain oil, which your tiel definitely doesn’t need. If you are ever concerned about your cockatiel’s health or what treats and foods are okay and which aren’t, always speak to your avian vet. They can help alleviate any worries that you may have. You’ll be assured that you are taking excellent care of your cockatiel and will have them around for a long time.
Featured Image Credit by Couleur, Pixabay
You’re ready to snuggle into your couch to watch a movie and eat delicious salty and buttery popcorn. However, your cockatiel seems to have the same idea. You’d love to share your popcorn with your bird, but can you? Is popcorn a safe snack for your cockatiel?
It absolutely is! However, the popcorn should be plain without any additives, and it should only be given as a treat in moderation.
Here, we look at how much is enough and the best way to prepare the popcorn for your cockatiel. We also look at how not to prepare the popcorn. We want your cockatiel to enjoy popcorn, but in a healthy way.
All About Popcorn
Popcorn comes from a specific type of corn. They are dried kernels with a tiny bit of water inside that grows when heated, which causes the kernel to explode with that fluffy popcorn goodness.
It’s thought that popcorn has been around for over 5,000 years and hails from New Mexico. It took off in popularity during the Great Depression in the 1930s because it was cheap and easy to make (and delicious!). It continues to be one of the most popular snack foods in North America and Europe.
You might be quite surprised to learn that popcorn is a whole grain food and is a high source of fiber. Only 100 grams of popped popcorn is 15 grams of fiber! It is also high in polyphenol antioxidants and is known to be a healthy snack.
However, there are a few problems with popcorn.
Problems With Popcorn
Studies have shown that commercial microwave popcorn can have harmful effects. The perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) chemical is found in most packages of microwave popcorn and is associated with a number of health issues. This chemical is also used in the non-stick coating of Teflon pans.
PFOA is connected to kidney and testicular cancer, low birth weight, thyroid problems, and ADHD.
Microwave popcorn also sometimes contains diacetyl, which is used in artificial butter flavoring. Studies show that this chemical can cause lung disease and damage the airways of animals.
Lastly, we tend to cover popcorn with unhealthy ingredients: sugar, caramel, cheese, butter, salt, and more. Many health problems can occur from excessive intake of these types of toppings.
But what about cockatiels? Let’s take a brief look at the cockatiel’s typical diet.
A Cockatiel Diet
The bulk of a domestic cockatiel’s diet consists of pellets that have been specially made for cockatiels. Pellets contain a large variety of different foods, such as grains, corn, fruit, vegetables, minerals, and vitamins, that have all been pressed into these tiny pellets.
These should make up 75% to 80% of your tiel’s diet, with the rest of their diet typically being made up of fresh vegetables. Fruit is a healthy snack but should be considered a treat and only fed in small amounts once per day.
Vegetables that are good for cockatiels include:
Peas
Corn
Zucchini
Bok choy
Carrots
Sweet potatoes
Romaine lettuce
Kale
Watercress
Good fruit choices include:
- Peas
- Corn
- Zucchini
- Bok choy
- Carrots
- Sweet potatoes
- Romaine lettuce
- Kale
- Watercress
Apricots
Mangos
Oranges
Papayas
Strawberries
Pears
Cantaloupe
Kiwi
Watermelon
Peaches
But what about popcorn for cockatiels?
- Apricots
- Mangos
- Oranges
- Papayas
- Strawberries
- Pears
- Cantaloupe
- Kiwi
- Watermelon
- Peaches
Cockatiels and Popcorn
Popcorn can already be healthy with its high fiber content, but it’s also a source of protein, with 13 grams in 100 grams of popped popcorn. Popcorn also contains several vitamins and minerals, such as:
Iron
Zinc
Magnesium
Thiamin
Niacin
Pyridoxine
Potassium
Manganese
Copper
Phosphorus
However, the healthy aspects of popcorn can be completely counteracted when unhealthy toppings are added. Let’s look at the negatives of popcorn for your cockatiel.
- Iron
- Zinc
- Magnesium
- Thiamin
- Niacin
- Pyridoxine
- Potassium
- Manganese
- Copper
- Phosphorus
The Downside of Popcorn for Cockatiels
Popcorn is delicious to us, but that’s because we tend to add toppings that aren’t always healthy. These should be avoided at all costs when feeding popcorn to your cockatiel.
Toppings
Every seasoning and topping typically added to popcorn is bad for cockatiels. Salt, butter, popcorn seasonings, and sugary toppings are all unhealthy for your bird.
If you feed your tiel too many fatty foods (which means popcorn with butter, but it can also happen with too many seeds in the diet), they can become overweight, which makes them susceptible to fatty liver disease.
Microwave
The microwave popcorn bags can contain PFOA (used in the non-stick coating found in cookware), which can be deadly for birds. In fact, if you leave a non-stick pan that contains PFOA on high heat, the fumes can prove fatal for birds.
Additionally, microwave popcorn is full of artificial ingredients that contain salt and flavorings that aren’t good for your tiel. It’s safest to avoid giving your tiel any microwave popcorn at all.
How Much Popcorn Can You Give Your Cockatiel?
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As healthy as popcorn can be, it should still only be given as an occasional treat, since pellets, fruits, and vegetables are what should make up the entirety of your bird’s meals. Treats and snacks should only be given to your cockatiel once a day and only one or two treats at a time.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by pets_everything💞 (@pets.luver_)
A post shared by pets_everything💞 (@pets.luver_)
View this post on Instagram
View this post on Instagram
You can give your cockatiel a few popcorn kernels once or twice a week, provided that it’s air-popped and lacks any toppings. You can pop popcorn, pull out a few kernels for your tiel, and then add whatever toppings that you want to the rest. This way, you’re both happy!
Conclusion
Air-popped popcorn without anything on it is just fine for your cockatiel, as long as you give your pet only one or two kernels a few times a week. Avoid microwave popcorn! You can make homemade and much healthier popcorn for yourself on the stove, but it still probably will contain oil, which your tiel definitely doesn’t need.
If you are ever concerned about your cockatiel’s health or what treats and foods are okay and which aren’t, always speak to your avian vet. They can help alleviate any worries that you may have. You’ll be assured that you are taking excellent care of your cockatiel and will have them around for a long time.
Featured Image Credit by Couleur, Pixabay
