Cockatiel · Vegetables
Can cockatiels eat cauliflower?
Yes. Cauliflower is safe for cockatiels as part of a varied vegetable mix, though it is less nutritious than broccoli and darker vegetables.
- Portion
- A few small florets, about a tablespoon (15 ml) chopped
- How often
- A few times a week, rotated with other vegetables
- Sugar
- 1.9 g / 100 g
How to serve it
- Rinse the cauliflower
- Cut into small florets; include some green leaves
- Offer raw or lightly steamed and cooled, plain
- Take away leftovers after a couple of hours
Why
Risks. Low in carotenoids compared with orange and dark green vegetables. Like other brassicas it contains goitrogens, so rotate it rather than feeding large amounts daily.
Benefits. It adds crunch and variety, and the University of Florida veterinary hospital lists it among suitable vegetables.
Questions owners ask 1
Raw or cooked cauliflower for cockatiels?
Either is fine. Raw keeps more nutrients; lightly steamed and cooled can be easier for some birds to accept.
Cauliflower: nutrition per 100 g
| Water | 92.1 g |
|---|---|
| Energy | 25 kcal |
| Sugars | 1.9 g |
| Fat | 0.3 g |
| Protein | 1.9 g |
| Fibre | 2 g |
| Calcium | 22 mg |
| Phosphorus | 44 mg |
| Calcium : phosphorus | 0.5 : 1 |
| Sodium | 30 mg |
| Vitamin A (RAE) | 0 µg |
| Vitamin C | 48.2 mg |
“Cauliflower, raw”, USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy, FDC 169986). Public domain.
Sources & method 3
The sources below discuss cauliflower for cockatiels (or for pet birds generally). Confidence: medium. Rated on the JOMIZOO Feeding Scale; when good sources disagree we choose the more cautious level.
- How to care for your pet bird — University of Florida Small Animal Hospital, College of Veterinary Medicine
- Avian Goiter (Thyroid Hyperplasia or Dysplasia) — University of Florida IFAS Extension
- Cockatiel Care Sheet (Maria Zayas, DVM) — PetMD
