Do you have plenty of parrot food and don’t know what to do with it?
Or do you want to start feeding your ducks with food for parrots?
Whatever the case, read more to find out if your ducks can and should eat parrot food.
Grown ducks can eat parrot food in small amounts, but if you start giving them this food daily, it can lead to an imbalance in their diet.
And if you start giving this food to your ducklings, you risk their future development and well-being.
Before We Start
To be clear, parrot food is not poisonous for ducks, and it is perfectly safe for them to taste as an occasional snack.
However, the needs of your ducks (especially ducklings) are much different than parrot’s needs.
And the balance of protein, fiber, vitamins, and minerals is not good enough for a duck’s development.
What’s in Parrot Food?
There are all kinds of mixes, but in most parrots food, you will see:
- sunflower and safflower seeds
- corn
- wheat
- split peas
- pumpkin seeds
- flax seeds
- fruits
- vegetables
- and more!
You can be sure that these ingredients are perfectly safe for grown ducks.
Once your ducks are grown, you can start using feed with slightly lower protein content. The goal is to avoid issues such as the Angel Wing.
In most parrot feed, there is around 15% protein, which is good enough for grown ducks.
However, some parrot’s food has only 5% protein, and calcium is less than 0.5%, which is alarmingly low, especially for laying ducks and ducklings.
Benefits of Parrot food
All the seeds, fruit, and vegetables will help your ducks grow.
Depending on the type of parrot food you have, fiber will range from 3% to 18%. Fat will range from around 4% to 16%.
There are vitamins A, B, K, and even omega-3 fatty acids.
So, all the ingredients are safe and healthy for your ducks.
Keep In Mind – If you start feeding your ducks with this type of food on a daily basis, that is not what you can consider a balanced diet.
If you run out of your duck’s pellets, feeding them for a couple of days with parrot food is okay.
But it would be best if you let your ducks eat the food that is made for them. Parrots are birds with totally different nutritional needs.
And you will agree we can’t give the same food to parrots (closed in their cage) and your ducks (running around the entire day).
How Much Parrot Food Ducks Can Eat?
The ratio of ingredients, protein, fat, and vitamins in parrot food is not well balanced for ducks.
If you have too much parrot food, you can mix it with duck pellets (max 20%). But never buy parrot food to start feeding ducks with it.
Also, when it comes to your wallet, it is not cost-effective at all. If you want to save money, buy commercial food for ducks and then use treats to cut costs.
Works Better – You can supplement the duck’s diet if you have some greens in abundance. But that should only make up 15 to 20% of the duck diet.
In case you are giving them fruit only 10%. Plenty of natural sugars in fruit (like strawberries or watermelon) can cause stomach upsets if you give them too much.
Can Ducklings Eat Parrot Food?
As you probably know, niacin (vitamin B3) is essential for growing ducks.
This vitamin help grows healthy and strong legs and joints. The protein level is also crucial in the diet of ducklings.
And most of the parrot’s food is not even close to that amount. Ducklings need food with a protein level of around 20%.
Most parrot food has between 3 % and 16% protein. Also, the amount of vitamins and minerals is not even close to the level your ducklings need.
Final Thoughts
To conclude, parrot food is lower in protein, and the ratio of vitamins, minerals, fiber, and fat is not as balanced as commercial duck feed.
So even though ducks can eat parrot food, you should not be giving them regularly.
When it comes to ducklings, you should stick to food created for them: Rich in niacin, protein, well-balanced vitamins, and minerals.
However, parrot’s food won’t hurt as an occasional snack. But make sure you don’t give them too much.