Can Parakeets Eat Bread? (Is It Safe?)

I’ve been stuck in the house with an illness recently, and so I’ve been finding ways to fill my time with fun activities.

One that’s been very popular has been baking bread.

I’ve made all sorts of different kinds, and it’s become a new hobby of mind permanently.

I’ve enjoyed it a lot, but I almost always end up with more bread than I can eat. so, what to do with the extra bread?

Well, I usually feed leftover food to my parakeet—but is it safe for them to eat bread?

I decided to look into it.

Can parakeets eat bread?

In short, no. Very small, very occasional amounts of bread won’t harm a parakeet, but they won’t do it any good, either. Bread is not something that a parakeet’s digestive system is equipped to handle, so you should absolutely avoid feeding bread to your parakeet.

Bread is a human food, really.

There aren’t many animals that can eat it safely.

Even in us, it is very commonly the cause of digestive troubles.

As I said, it may be that small, occasional amounts are fine—but there are better, more nutritious things you can give your parakeet.

We would not advise feeding them bread.

Is bread bad for parakeets?

Yes, bread is bad for parakeets in lots of ways.

Though, as I said, small amounts can be fine, the simple fact is that bread is not something they would eat in the wild.

It’s a processed human food, and for that reason it can create a lot of problems for parakeets.

Any type of bread is derived from a form of dough, and all the substances contained within that dough have the possibility to cause your parakeet harm.

Whatever happens, if your parakeet eats a large amount of bread, some of it is almost certainly going to sit undigested in their gut.

This can cause pain, cramping and diarrhea.

Your bird may even become permanently sick if it eats too much.

Bread is tough to digest even for us, at times—a few crumbs may not cause this issue, but if it is tearing off bits of fresh bread, this is definitely too much.

Ultimately, bread may happen to be a treat that your parakeet enjoys.

However, I guarantee you will find other snacks that it prefers.

Balancing out their diet in this way is essential, but you should do it with fresh fruits and vegetables—not bread, or indeed any highly processed food.

Bread comes in a great many forms, though.

Are any of them safe for parakeets?

Can parakeets eat white bread?

If your parakeet is going to eat bread, it should be plain, white bread.

The simpler ingredients are less harsh on its insides, and either toasted or dry is fine.

Again, though, this is only as a very occasional treat.

My advice would be never to feed your parakeet white bread, no matter how much it appears to want it.

Though, as I said, small amounts may be safe, there are more appropriate snacks you can feed them.

Don’t let your parakeet eat bread if your can possibly avoid it.

Can parakeets eat brown bread?

Brown bread is a little more problematic, as the wholemeal flour is often a lot tougher.

This can make the already difficult to digest bread even harder to do so.

So, we would advise totally avoiding feeding your parakeet any kind of brown bread.

That said, there isn’t actually a huge amount of difference between white and brown bread—neither are particularly safe for a parakeet, and neither should be a go to treat for you.

Bread itself, then, is a no-go—there are much better options to treat your parakeet.

What about bread products, then?

Can parakeets eat bread crumbs?

There may in fact be a more considerable difference in something like bread crumbs.

Though, again, I would say right away that there are still better things to feed your parakeet, bread crumbs end up being much more like seeds—and thus much more palatable to a parakeet.

That said, they shouldn’t eat a lot. Bread crumbs are still bread, though tougher and staler.

There’s once again really no reason to feed your parakeet bread crumbs, unless it somehow really insists on it.

There are countless better treats which do not pose any digestive problems for your parakeet.

Avoid bread crumbs if you can.

So, if your parakeet, for whatever reason, seems to really, really enjoy eating bread, then you can give it a small amount every now and then as a treat.

However, the simple fact is that a bird’s digestive system is not equipped to deal with bread.

It will be tough to digest and even small amounts could cause your parakeet pain.

Just don’t do it!

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