Can Parrots Eat Meat? (Benefits & Hazards)

Parrots are not omnivores, nor herbivores, and mostly they are Granivorous Animals, so they eat seeds and grains as their major source of nutrients that they need in their daily meals. But there is a small variety of parrots who don’t depend on the Granivorous diet system. Eclectus is an example of a frugivorous parrot.

So, Can parrots eat meat?

Yes, parrots can eat meat safely, and in the wild, they eat insects and worms occasionally. However, parrots are not omnivores animals, and they can’t thrive on eating only meat, so serving meat must only be as a snack and in moderation from time to time.

Omnivores are the animals that thrive mostly on eating meat like falcons, lions, and tigers.

Also Read: Can Parrots Eat Mango?

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Benefits Your Parrot Will Get Eating Meat

Meat can offer a lot of the important nutrients that your parrot’s body needs daily, and protein is one of them. Yes, Birds need protein within their diets, they need it in small quantities, and usually, they get their adequate portion of it from vegetarian sources.

Meat also can make it up for birds, including parrots, to get their needed portion of protein. As mentioned, parrots in the wild get protein from insects and worms, besides plants and seeds. Also, meat is a major source of 5 of the B vitamins that are very important to parrots to have optimum health.

Vitamin A Also Exists in meat, and it helps your parrots to maintain their Eyes, bones, and immune system. The lack of Vitamin A for parrots can cause many health problems, so it’s recommended for parrots to have a rich Vitamin A diet system.

How Much Meat Should Your Parrot Eat

As you know, meat is high in calories, and over-serving to your parrot can cause your parrot to gain unneeded weight. Besides That, every type of animal has a different amount of calories within its flesh, and every part of its body also has a different amount of calories, so there is no specific general number on how many calories are in this chunk of meat or that.

Unless you know what kind of meat you got, pork, beef, chicken, etc, and what part of the animal body the meat came from. With this information, it’s going to be quite easy to calculate how many calories are in any kind of meat. So, it’s very important to ask the Butcher about the specification of the piece you are buying, in case you somehow wanted to give you parrots meat in their daily meals.


And depending on your parrot’s size, and the calorie requirements, you can know how much meat is good for your parrot, and how much meat is bad. For example, large parrots like macaws need 200-220 calories a day, so you should calculate how many calories are in that meat chunk before serving it to your bird.

The best thing is to ask a veterinarian to help you figure out how many calories your parrot needs. Parrots differ regarding their adequate portions of calories, even within the same Breed of Parrots.

And at certain times, like molting and breeding, the parrots will require you to add higher levels of nutrients to their meal, so, it’s hard to determine how many calories your parrot needs, especially when you add a new ingredient to his meals, thus professional Advice is always important.

Thus, and after knowing the calorie needed for your parrot, you can make your measurement and know how much meat is enough for your feathery pet.

This part is for you if you want to add meat as an ingredient to your parrot’s daily meals. But as a treat, you can give your parrots small bites of meat from time to time without worrying about it.

How To Prepare Meat For Your Parrot

With moderation, almost every kind of meat you would eat or buy from the market is safe for parrots to eat, chicken meat, beef, lamb, or pork, etc.

Moderation not just in quantities, but also in the way you serve the meat for your parrot, Fried, Cured, and Heavily Seasoned chunks of meats are not a good choice, because of the harms and toxins that may pose a threat against your bird.

Boiling, grilling, or baking the meat before serving are the best choices you have when you intend you let your parrots have some pieces of meat.

For me, and when I give my parrots any kind of meat, it’s probably going to be leftovers from a meal I made for lunch or dinner.

Of course, I use pepper and spices when I cook, but when I intend to serve meat to my parrot, I make sure that I washed the chunk properly, to the extent that any spice colors on the meat are gone.

And then I taste it, to see if there was any strong seasoning flavor is still there, and in most cases, the taste will turn to be bland and the meat will be safer for my parrot, I Also do the same when I give my cat some of my cooked meat.

So, every type of meat is safe for parrots, but you should serve moderate portions and not be overcooked, fried, or cured.

Also, it’s better to prepare the meat at home and avoid the restaurant as you don’t know what ingredients they use while cooking.

What About Raw Meat?

It’s a good question to ask, is raw meat a good choice for parrots?, And the answer is no, raw meat is bad for parrots because of the strong muscle fibers, and the bacteria that might be inside the raw meat, these bacteria could cause your bird some serious health problems.

Not to mention the taste, some parrots may tolerate the taste of raw meat, but others may hate it and won’t eat it. Fresh Raw fish meat could suit some parrots, though.

Will The Parrot Eat The Bones?

Most parrots will not eat the bones of chicken or any other type of meat, but they may feel interested in bones when you give them to them.
They may think that there is something delicious inside, so they will keep cracking and picking it until they realize that there is nothing special inside.

So, the answer is no, parrots will not eat the bone.

Are There Any Negatives of Parrots Eating Meat?

Actually, there are some concerns you have to take in mind when you feed your parrot some meat regularly, and they are;

  • Meat is high in unneeded Calories.
  • A lot of saturated harmful fats.
  • a lot of unneeded protein.
  • Meat may contain germs and bacteria.
  • Meat is not the natural food for parrots.
  • it’s a little bit hard to know how much meat is enough.
  • some parrots will get used to and they will refuse seeds and veggies.

Conclusion

And in conclusion, moderation, when you feed your parrot some meat, is the key to avoiding any health or behavioral risks.

Health risks are many when you give meat to your parrot. Too much protein can cause damage to your parrot’s kidney. Too much fat can harm the bird’s liver, the bacteria and germs have their own types of risks.

Besides that, the behavioral problems that meat could cause to your parrot. For Example, some parrots will love and enjoy meat to the extent that they won’t accept seeds and other ingredients comprised in their natural diet. Which is a big problem.

Remember, the problem is when you decide to serve meat as an ingredient within your parrot’s meals; you have to observe and see if your parrot is developing a feeding behavioral disorder.

If you notice that, cut the meat and never include it in your bird’s diet. My final recommendation regarding parrots eating meat is to use small chunks of meat as treats, and by doing this, you are avoiding many serious risks and problems.