Cockatiel · Greens & herbs
Can cockatiels eat spinach?
Yes, in small amounts. Spinach is safe for cockatiels, but its oxalate binds calcium, and cockatiels are prone to calcium deficiency and egg-binding, so keep it an occasional green.
- Portion
- One or two leaves, or about 2 teaspoons chopped
- How often
- Once or twice a week, mixed with other greens
- Sugar
- 0.4 g / 100 g
How to serve it
- Rinse well
- Chop into small pieces or offer a whole leaf
- Serve raw or plainly steamed
- Make lower-oxalate greens such as kale, romaine and dandelion the everyday choice
Why
Risks. Oxalic acid in spinach binds calcium, so little of its calcium is usable. Calcium deficiency is particularly common in cockatiels and can lead to weakness, seizures and egg-binding in laying hens, so spinach should not be relied on as a calcium source or fed every day.
Benefits. Spinach adds beta-carotene, vitamin K, folate and iron to the diet.
Questions owners ask 2
Should I avoid spinach if my cockatiel hen is laying eggs?
Keep it occasional and focus on a pellet-based diet. Chronic egg laying drains calcium, and cockatiels are prone to egg-binding, so ask your avian vet about her calcium needs.
Is spinach a good calcium source for cockatiels?
Not really. It contains calcium, but oxalate binds much of it. Pellets and lower-oxalate greens are more dependable.
Spinach: nutrition per 100 g
| Water | 91.4 g |
|---|---|
| Energy | 23 kcal |
| Sugars | 0.4 g |
| Fat | 0.4 g |
| Protein | 2.9 g |
| Fibre | 2.2 g |
| Calcium | 99 mg |
| Phosphorus | 49 mg |
| Calcium : phosphorus | 2.02 : 1 |
| Sodium | 79 mg |
| Vitamin A (RAE) | 469 µg |
| Vitamin C | 28.1 mg |
“Spinach, raw”, USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy, FDC 168462). Public domain.
Sources & method 4
The sources below discuss spinach 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.
- Fruits and Vegetables in Birds' Diets — VCA Animal Hospitals
- Feeding Pet Cockatiels — VCA Animal Hospitals
- Calcium in the Avian Patient — LafeberVet (Christal Pollock, DVM, DABVP Avian Practice)
- Where Avian Nutrition and Health Intersect (Diet-related Disease in Pet Birds) — University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine (Judilee C. Marrow, DVM, DACZM)
