Budgies like bananas because they find them colorful, flavorful, and fun to peck at.
While budgies have fewer tastebuds than humans, they’re still able to appreciate the sweet flavor of this delicious fruit.
Budgies can safely eat all parts of the banana in moderation, including the peel.
Bananas are rich in vitamin B6, vitamin C, copper, manganese, and potassium. Also, pectin and resistant starch will improve a budgie’s digestion and assist with nutrient absorption.
Budgies can eat banana flesh, peels, chips, seeds, and even their leaves. Dried banana is the best choice, as the nutrients are heavily condensed.
Are Budgies Allowed Banana?
Bananas are a natural part of a budgie’s diet in the wild. Australia grows large banana crops throughout its tropical regions, some of which budgies have called home for millennia.
In particular, Queensland’s coastal region is well known for its banana production.
Although budgies mostly hail in the grasslands and more arid domains of the Great Dividing Ridge, they thrive in tropical environments. Here, bananas serve as a good source of vitamins, minerals, and water.
Budgies eat at all parts of the banana. From the leaves to the peels to the tasty flesh within, they understand that banana is flavorful and highly nutritious.
Budgies can be fed sliced banana or banana chunks as a treat every 1-2 weeks.
Is Banana Safe for Baby Budgies?
As banana is soft and mushy, traces will likely remain in the bridge of a young budgie’s upper beak.
This can harm the development of the beak, resulting in brachygnathia inferior (undershot jaw). As per the New Zealand Veterinary Journal, brachygnathia inferior can be hereditary.
So, clean out a baby budgie’s beak with a toothpick after consuming soft, starchy foods, like bananas.
How To Feed Budgies Banana
Understanding how to feed banana to your budgie is critical to enabling a budgie to enjoy this fruit.
Let’s explore the most common ways that owners give banana to budgies:
Sliced Banana
Banana is high in naturally occurring sugars.
As budgies have a high metabolism, they burn energy quickly. Banana-based snacks will keep energetic budgies active and alert. However, bananas are low in fat and protein.
If you want your budgie to enjoy the benefits of banana, slice the fruit up and hand-feed it in pieces. This enables you to retain control of how much banana your budgie is eating so that it doesn’t get fat.
Bananas are one of the most nutrient-dense fruits. One medium-sized banana contains about 105 calories. They also contain the following vitamins, minerals, and nutrients:
- Fiber
- Potassium
- Vitamin B6
- Vitamin C
- Manganese
- Magnesium
- Copper
- Iodine
Bananas are high in antioxidants, including:
- Phenolic compounds
- Carotenoids
- Biogenic amines
According to Food Chemistry, the antioxidants found in bananas can reduce the risk of chronic degenerative disorders.
Also, bananas can improve a budgie’s digestion, as they contain pectin (soluble fiber). In the digestive tract, it’ll soften the stool, reducing the likelihood of constipation.
Dried Banana Chips
A budgie can enjoy banana chips from a bowl in its cage.
However, you shouldn’t offer banana chips from supermarkets and health food stores. These may look like a wholesome snack, but they’ll contain preservatives and additives.
Instead, you can make banana chips at home. Here’s how to prepare them:
- Slice the banana thinly, about 1/8 of an inch
- Bake in an oven at 250 degrees Fahrenheit for 1.5 to 2 hours
- Flip them over halfway through
- Cool and serve
Banana Seeds
The small black dots in a banana are the seeds.
In wild banana varieties, these seeds are larger. However, the average banana has been domesticated to make the seeds as small as possible.
Banana seeds are tiny and immature, rendering them harmless.
Budgies can eat banana seeds, as they’re non-toxic and aren’t a choking risk. That’s good news since banana seeds are too small to remove without considerable effort.
Banana Peel
A banana peel is likely to capture the imagination of a budgie, mainly due to its bright yellow color. If you place a whole banana in the cage (not recommended), the budgie may peck and chew at the skin.
Banana peels are made of cellulose, a dietary fiber that aids indigestion.
However, not all banana peels are safe. They can be harmful when the fruit is sprayed with pesticides. Even when the banana is cleaned, the pesticide is often absorbed into the fruit’s skin.
According to Waterbirds, pesticides can negatively affect wild birds, including reproductive issues and death. Provide fully organic or home-grown banana peels to budgies.
Banana Leaves
Banana leaves can be added to a cage, as wild budgies often interact with the tree’s leaves.
This greenery has no nutritional value, but it’s something for budgies to play with. Also, by rubbing their beaks on the leaves, they’ll be able to wear down the excess and keep their beaks sharp.
Banana Bread
Many budgies enjoy the taste of bread or bread crumbs.
Add the scent and flavor of banana, and you have an appealing snack. Alas, budgies shouldn’t be fed bread as it’s just empty calories.
Bread, including banana bread, has no nutritional benefit for budgies. Your budgie will grow sluggish and gain weight after eating bread and may find itself too full to eat healthier foods.
Banana Milk
Banana-flavored milk is a popular treat for humans. In theory, it’s a way to add extra nutrients to a budgie’s diet, especially if it’s not drinking enough water.
Unfortunately, budgies are lactose intolerant as they lack the enzyme (lactase) that breaks down lactose, so milk will make your bird unwell.
If a budgie drinks banana milk, especially to excess, it could lead to an upset stomach and diarrhea.
How Often Can Budgies Eat Bananas?
No matter how you introduce bananas into your budgie’s diet, you’ll need to do so in moderation. You can make banana a weekly or bi-weekly addition to your budgie’s diet.
Banana is a safe food for budgies, and many birds love this fruit. Budgies encounter bananas in the wild, making them a safe addition to a pet budgie’s diet.
