You asked, Can budgies eat cilantro? and instead of budgies, some ask Can parakeets eat cilantro?
Cilantro, AKA parsley, is an herb commonly used as a condiment in the kitchen, usually the leaves and the stems. Although it is a very popular vegetable for seasonings, it is rarely used as direct food for birds, such as budgies.
However, can budgies eat cilantro? As asked by my American friends, can parakeets eat cilantro? can cilantro offer many health benefits when eaten?
Before we answer the question, like usual, let’s dive in a bit deeper and discuss some of the cilantro’s properties.
Health benefits of Cilantro
You can feed cilantro leaves and stems, both semi-matured and matured ones, to parrots and birds in general. However, because cilantro contains some essential oils in its composition, it is slightly toxic.
Consuming it in large quantities can cause liver damage, headaches, drowsiness, and nausea, but birds, by nature, should not be allowed to eat such an excessive amount.
Cilantro contains medicinal properties, and cilantro is used to treat various ailments such as stomach cramps, colic, and headaches.
The seeds and leaves have antiseptic properties and are very useful against Salmonella. Salmonella infection in birds mainly manifests as diarrhea, which can quickly become life-threatening.
Diarrhea can have many causes, so a veterinarian must always be consulted, and a stool sample obtained to find out the exact cause of diarrhea.
In the case of birds, diarrhea is usually associated with Salmonella infection, which is why a diagnosis must be considered.
Should you feed cilantro to your budgies?
Many other vegetables have better nutritional qualities than cilantro. However, it’s understandable that a pet owner decides to feed cilantro to parrots or any other bird, primarily because cilantro has many recognized medicinal values, especially for alleviating Salmonella in birds.
Herbs, like vegetables, always provide a lot of nutrition and are available almost wherever you go, are natural and inexpensive.
However, there is a dilemma in that most culinary herbs contain essential oils, so they can become toxic as food for birds, which has created a reputation.
Budgies and other pet birds like to eat plants with tender leaves. Some culinary herbs have very fine leaves and are also very aromatic.
This makes them an absolute pleasure for birds.
They are easy to cultivate in gardens, balconies, and even windowsills. Potted plants are also produced commercially in grocery stores.
Can budgies eat cilantro?
Yes, It’s perfectly safe to want to feed or to feed your parakeet (budgie) some parsley or cilantro occasionally, and you will not put your birdie in danger; Only excessive quantities can be toxic.
It is always recommended to choose non-organically grown herbs to ensure that the plants are not contaminated with pesticides.
It is vital to consider some details about culinary herbs that are offered to birds as food.
Due to their strong odors, birds usually do not accept plants as food immediately; they need time to build a taste for them before they get used to them and enjoy them happily.
The most crucial aspect of its consumption is to take precautions about the quantity you feed them with.
Feed only tiny amounts of these plants, as they are rich in essential oils and may irritate the mucous membranes of birds if consumed in larger doses.
During our research at petcaneat.com, we read discovered that plants, such as parsley, which is in the same genus as cilantro, are toxic to birds, and these plants do contain potentially harmful substances.
However, these substances form only a tiny part of the material composition of these plants, and it needs to be clear: for a bird to be poisoned by parsley or cilantro, it must have eaten a sizeable amount during a short period.
Can Budgies Eat Cilantro for it Benefits?
What are the benefits and properties of parsley for parrots?
Cilantro is a nutrient-rich herbal food that provides a good source of micronutrients even when used in small proportions and is a natural anti-parasitic and relaxant.
Approximately 10 grams of cilantro will provide
- 56 mg of vitamin C
- 340 ug of beta-carotene
- 124 mg of calcium
- 48 mg phosphorus
- 4 mg iron
- 446 mg potassium
- 3 mg selenium
- Only 27 calories
Can budgies eat cilantro if it’s safe? ?
It is known that cilantro contains essential oils that can be toxic to birds, especially if consumed in large amounts.
That being said, according to the FDA, cilantro is perfectly safe to consume but only in moderation and not too frequent.
But obviously, the FDA is referring to human consumption, and you have to take into account the ratio of the size and weight of a bird-like parrot, which weighs about 30-40 grams on average.
The toxic components of cilantro are believed to be linalool and furanocoumarins, substances that are responsible for the distinct, characteristic smell of cilantro.
Linalool is a naturally occurring substance in many plants and vegetables and is safe to use and consume, but only in moderate amounts.
This element is widely used in food as a flavoring agent.
Some plants, such as cilantro, produce linalool. They act as the plant’s defense mechanism against insects because of their insecticidal properties.
Furanocoumarins are chemical compounds found in cilantro. They are phototoxic, i.e., they are toxic compounds but only in the presence of light.
They are also a defense mechanism developed by cilantro against herbivores and pathogens, an element more commonly found in celery, another vegetable belonging to the cilantro family.
Can budgies eat cilantro in large doses?
As a general rule for feeding vegetables to birds, especially mixed diets that contain some vegetables, only offer food 8-10% of the bird’s total weight; in most cases, this usually sums up to about 4 or 3 grams, but this refers to a.
In conclusion, eating cilantro leaves once or twice a week will not harm your budgie; however, offering cilantro or using it as a daily food will harm them sooner than later.
