 Hello everyone, my name is Marlene McCombin and this here is Leo and we want to welcome you to my channel. This series is called Parrot Care 101 and in this video we're gonna go over 10 foods that are toxic to your parrots. Number one, you guys probably know this but do you know why? Avocado. The leaves of an avocado plant contain a fatty like acid called person. And its main job is to kill the fungus in the plant. Now when that's ingested by a bird, your bird can have heart failure, breathing difficulty, general weakness and even sudden death. Now here's the interesting thing about birds with avocado. Yes, you may have seen situations where your bird has ingested avocado or other people's birds in pictures and video and been fine. The reason is because we don't know enough about avocado. There are so many different types and kinds of avocado and we're not experts. So if you walk into a store tomorrow and you're shown two avocados, will you know the difference? You may or may not and we don't know which ones affect the birds and which ones don't. So it's best to make sure in general your bird never comes in contact with avocado because you never want it to be that one time. Number two, alcohol. Alcohol is toxic to your birds. Besides for the fact that you're probably thinking, of course I'm not going to give my birds alcohol, you also want to be on guard. Remember to not leave half empty alcoholic beverages out or beer or cans around where the bird can open it themselves. Many a Friday night after some drinks that little alcohol left in a glass. You want to make sure it's emptied, washed out and put in the dishwasher. Because come next morning when you forgot what you did last night, birds are curious. They want to drink whatever they have. It could look like water. It could look like juice. So just be extra safe and remember to clean up your alcohol because these are essentially your little kids. Number three, chocolate. This is a tricky one. I don't know how it does matter what bird you have or how you eat. Your bird is going to figure out by your face that when you eat that chocolate, it's going to be after it. So you have got to be very careful. Not only to make sure you don't share it with your bird, but also that you don't leave it out as well, just like the alcohol. Not only does chocolate contain caffeine, but it also contains theobromine, which is toxic to your bird. It can cause vomiting, diarrhea, seizures, you name it. So it's best to keep the chocolate away from your parents. Number four, caffeine. Again, your bird is going to figure it out real quick and you want to keep that caffeine away from your birds. Guys, your birds have such little hearts and caffeine can just speed up their heart rate so fast that it's dangerous for your bird. But if you do want to share something nice and warm with your bird, why not try an herbal tea? Actually, in our store, we have an entire line of herbal teas for your bird. They're avian teas that you can share with your feathered friends and they are so good. So it's always a good idea to have them on hand and ready so that you can drink your tea with your bird. Number five, know your seeds and pits. Now you guys know most fruits are absolutely safe for your birds, but did you know that some of the seeds in fruits are actually dangerous to your birds? For example, the seeds in apples have a cyanide that is cardiac toxic for your birds. Interestingly enough, the seeds of grape, squash, berries and pumpkins are safe for your birds, which is why I want you guys to get to know your seeds and just check first. Number six, salt. Now, before you go off getting worried, did I give my bird some salt today? Your bird is not going to die immediately from some salty chip or pretzel that it got a hold of, but rather, you want to make sure that you're keeping your bird's diet healthy because even just a small amount of salt can upset the electrolyte and fluid balance in your bird's body. So over time, your bird can be prone to fatty liver disease, even gout. I have seen a bird have gout from salty foods. His feet were just completely blown up and it was a really sad thing to see. So just make sure that you're providing the healthiest diet you can for your birds. Number seven, fatty foods. This should go without saying, but you guys always want to be conscious that you're providing the healthiest diet you can for your birds with mostly vegetables, some fruit. You want to avoid those sugars, but fatty foods you have to be very careful with. You may have a bird that came from another family that just loves a different kind of diet and you want to make sure you change that for your bird and here's why. A diet high in fat is going to create high cholesterol in your bird and it's also going to be a main cause of fatty liver disease. If your bird is overweight, they become at risk for heart disease, fatty liver disease and just their overall quality of life will degrade. So just make sure that you pay attention to what you're feeding your birds. Number eight, onions and garlic. Now, sometimes people think birds and other animals won't go for things that are bad for them, but it's just absolutely not true. I have seen my birds reach for onions or garlic while we're cooking and you definitely don't want to let them do that. Onions and garlic contain a sulfur-like component. This can cause ulcers and can also rupture red blood cells, making them prone to anemia and other diseases. So you just want to make sure you don't get your bird hooked on something or allow them to have something that will cause long-term adverse effects. Number nine, xylitol. If you don't know what this is, it's basically an artificial sweetener that a lot of people put in diet foods or to try and be healthy. Side note about me, guys. I can taste that from a mile away and I always call it poison. And to me, it tastes like poison. You definitely don't want to give it to your birds. So in studies that they've done about xylitol, it's been toxic to dogs and cats and they don't have many official studies about birds. But because birds have such a fast metabolism, smaller amounts of things are more toxic to birds than they are to other animals. So it's pretty much safe to say that if you're eating anything with those artificial sweeteners, do not share them with your birds. Number 10, dried beans. Now, this is very interesting, of course, because cooked beans are actually pretty healthy for your birds. But dried beans contain something called hemaggluten, which is actually very toxic to your parents. So in order to avoid any poisoning in your bird, make sure that you fully cook all of your beans and legumes. Those are my top 10 toxic foods for your birds. By avoiding these things, you'll help your bird live a long and healthy life. There are, of course, other foods and things that you don't want to include in your bird's diet, but they're much less immediately toxic. If you guys want a video on that, please let me know and we'll do an extended version of this video. But in the meantime, I hope you learned something from this video and feel free to add more things in the comments to help fellow bird lovers take care of their birds better. Thank you guys so much for watching this video till the end. My name is Marlene McCohen. This is Leo and we would love it if you subscribe to our Parrot Care 101 series. Love you guys so much. Bye!