When it comes to food, vegetables are one of the healthiest food for birds. But not all vegetables are healthy. Some vegetables like onions can cause esophagus, crop, ulcers, or even death. But what about cucumbers? Is it safe? Is it healthy and can birds eat cucumber? Here’s the short and detailed answer.
The Straightforward Answer…
Cucumbers are perfectly safe for birds to eat that offer a low-calorie and nutritious treat for birds. As far as its benefits, cucumber is full of positive features to birds. Not only they are low in sugar, salt, and fat but are also full of water. With 96% water, cucumbers are a perfect crunchy hydrating snack. With that, cucumbers offer lots of vitamins and minerals some of which are quite important for birds like vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, magnesium, potassium, manganese. That also helps birds with laying eggs.
Most people know cucumber as veggie but in fact, cucumbers are from the same family of watermelon (can birds eat watermelon) and pumpkins making it fruit according to WebMD. Not only birds but dogs, cats, squirrels, and even raccoons can eat cucumber without a problem. In fact, it’s pretty nutritious for them.
Can Birds Eat Cucumber? Is It Safe for Birds?
Many human foods are suitable for birds including cucumbers. More than just a salad, cucumbers are not only a treat for us but also for birds. Sliced or unsliced, mixed or unmixed, cucumber makes a great treat for birds. In hot summer days when water is scarce, cucumber, like watermelon can even help birds stay hydrated as its high water holdings.
Birds may favor and like to eat cucumber whenever you treat them but during the summer, birds will find it better and more enjoyable than cheese, biscuits, popcorn, or any other snacks. Not only in summer but cucumber also helps provide food and water to birds in winter during the winter when water is very cold or simply frozen. Remember to offer warm cucumber to birds in winter.
Which Birds Eat Cucumber? Do Wild Birds Eat Cucumber?
All species of birds that feed veggies can eat cucumber except carnivorous birds that eat meat like hawk (That also becomes prey sometimes). Not only urban birds, but wild birds also recognize and eat cucumber favorably which means birds have been consuming cucumber in the past and are in their natural diet without salt or any other materials.
Many people sprinkle salt or garlic or onion with cucumber to make it tastier for eating. However, they apply the same materials when feeding cucumbers to birds or any other animals which do more harm than good. That is also not in their natural diet eating cucumber or any other veg.
In the wild, birds eat fruits and veggies purely without any mixture and any food offered to birds should be feed without a mixture and in a proper amount no matter whether you are attracting birds to yard or just want to feed birds.
Aside from hydrating and reducing dryness from our eyes, cucumbers are a highly nutritious food for birds that makes birds happier, healthier, and lengthier life. But is there any risk associated with it and how safe and healthy is it to birds? Here are the answers.
What Are The Health Benefits of Cucumber?
As 20% of birds’ diets include veggies, you may be thinking why not feed cucumbers. But why cucumber? What does it do to birds health? Is it as beneficial to us as to birds? Here’s what you need to know.
Along with water, cucumber contains a decent amount of health benefits for a bird. What’s important is they are rich in vitamins, minerals like potassium, manganese, copper, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, B1, B5, and B6 just like meat. Including that, the water of the cucumber keeps hydrated and stay regular and prevent constipation.
The vitamin K in cucumber keeps blood and bones healthy while vitamin A takes care of the heart, lungs, kidneys, vision and immune system function properly. Plus, helps prevent osteoporosis, heart disease, and cancer. Lastly, putting it on skin or eyes helps remove dark circles, dryness, and tiredness. Here are the complete details of it.
No matter how much cucumbers are useful for birds, too much of any snack can cause unhappy health.
What Are The Risks of Feeding Cucumber?
As far as cucumber is pretty healthy, there are some risks associated with it.
One problem which can come up with cucumber is the pesticides with it. The skin of cucumber comes with natural wax which contains pesticides. Washing or peeling off the skin removes this problem and either you are eating or feeding cucumber to birds can now safely use it. While there aren’t any other extensive risks with it but excess usage and feeding will probably make problems.
Do Birds Eat Cucumber Skin?
Birds eat cucumber with and without skin but it’s highly recommended to wash or better peel off cucumber skins especially if you have bought cucumber from a store. With that though, birds can eat cucumber seeds without a problem instead it provides proteins.
which Type of Cucumber Do Birds Eat?
There are mainly two types of cucumbers. Slicing cucumbers are large, around 12 inches and have smooth skin. This is what people mostly use as fresh salad and come with a milder taste which also results in less burp. The pickling cucumbers are the small that is around 3 – 7 inches and come with bumps or spines on their skin.
In short, birds eat both of the cucumbers likely and with seeds.
What Things Can Be Added with Cucumber? Salt? Sugar? What?
Not every human food and food addition can be used for birds. As we eat cucumbers, we use to sprinkle salt which makes it tastier but not healthier. However, that is the same for birds. Adding salt, onion, garlic, oil or frying cucumber will make it do more harm than good. But what things can we add to it? The short answer is nothing.
Birds in the wild eat everything naturally which is the most healthy diet. No adding or lacking in cucumber is more helpful and every cucumber are equipped with water, salt, vitamins and minerals.
How to Feed Cucumbers to Birds?
There are many ways to feed cucumbers to birds, that can be with feeders and without.
- Peel The Skin: While washing may clean cucumber, but still would be associated with risks especially with cucumbers of store. That’s why it’s better to peel off the skin completely that would cut off the problems that come with it.
- Cut Into Pieces: When it comes to eating, birds eat cucumber without its cut. They use their beak to take a cut of it but it takes more struggle and difficulty to eat. You can either cut into slices or into small pieces however, cutting into pieces is easier for birds to eat. You can cut it into pieces either with a bleeder or a cutter. No need to cut into very small pieces.
- Feed cucumber to birds: You can feed cucumber to birds either by putting cucumber pieces into the bird feeder or cucumbers in a plate and putting in the yard.
With that though, birds can eat many more veggies than just cucumber-like peas, sweetcorn, carrots, potatoes, cranberries, and even rice and chia seeds.
