Grapes?

So I brought Iago to the vet this morning for his annual checkup and wing trim. She said he is in perfect health but was concerned that I was feeding him grapes. She said that grapes were linked to kidney failure in cats and dogs but they were still unsure for birds. This really concerned me since grapes are one of Iago's favorite snacks. Has anybody else heard of this claim?

No, grapes are fine. Here is a list for you of safe and unsafe foods.

http://www.parrotforums.com/parrot-...afe-fresh-foods-toxic-food-lists-sprouts.html

I've been feeding mine grapes for 15+ years, and all their bloodwork is perfect.

The dog and cat guys aren't necessarily 100% accurate or trustworthy when it comes to birds. Dog and cat advice doesn't translate to parrots.

The only thing to watch out for with produce is pesticides...

What is toxic to dogs and cats isn't necessarily also toxic to birds. Is your vet an avian vet? Dog+cat vets are not typically ideal to treat birds since they don't know as much about them and the care needs/illnesses are so vastly different than dogs and cats.

Grapes are completely safe for parrots. Of course, they should be part of a varied diet, but they're healthy and quite good for them due to the amount of moisture too

I believe the grapes would be good. The seeds may be in question as some seeded fruit seeds contain a chemical unsuited for birds.

Just wondering was that an avian vet? Or a regular vet who accepts birds?

Grapes are Goooooood lol

Grapes are perfectly safe. You can't compare dogs and cats to each other, let alone to birds. Cats intestinal system is so complex that feline researches still don't understand their microbial environment. Even then, birds digestive systems differ from species to species. A conure couldn't live on what a goose could, that's for sure!

Next time I would recommend finding a vet that is specifically avian. It sounds very much so that you had a general small animal vet.

Dinosrawr said:

You can't compare dogs and cats to each other, let alone to birds. Cats intestinal system is so complex that feline researches still don't understand their microbial environment. Even then, birds digestive systems differ from species to species. A conure couldn't live on what a goose could, that's for sure!

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This is very true!

Brings another point to mind- dogs and cats are carnivores by nature. They eat primarily meat, and plant matter of any kind is a minimal to non-existent part of their natural diet. Parrots are opportunistic omnivores (meaning they can eat just about anything), but they eat a mostly vegetarian diet in nature. New world parrots from the amazon basin subsist *primarily* on fruit, nuts and seeds in their natural environment, so unlike a dog or cat, they're digestive tract is designed to process a wide range of fruit and has the ability to process things in fruit a carnivore that would never naturally eat it can't.

Grapes are ok. I haven't heard of them causing kidney failure, but I have read that you should be careful feeding birds them because of the amount of iron they have.

All the birds here get grapes in small amounts.

Well that is good to hear. I will continue to give Iago his grapes. The vet I bring him to is the only one in the pet hospital that sees birds so I usually have to schedule an appointment 2-4 weeks in advance. Their website says that she has a strong interest in avian medicine and belongs to the Association of Avian Veterinarians.

Frumpydumple said:

Grapes are ok. I haven't heard of them causing kidney failure, but I have read that you should be careful feeding birds them because of the amount of iron they have.

All the birds here get grapes in small amounts.

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That's actually a good point. But those of you who keep birds that are prone to iron storage disease, I would hope understand the complexities of feeding them properly.

Toucans are particularly problematic.

I fed my late Panama grapes for 20 years; I never knew her exact age but she was over 40 and very healthy until she apparently died of old age. I was feeding my Yellow Naped 4-5 grapes a day for his entire 7 years.

Just this spring his vet told us that grapes are toxic. He is an avian vet and indicated it had not been know until the last few years.

I have tried to find documenting information but the only information I could find had to do with the pesticides used in South America. But we stopped giving him grapes just to be safe.

Grapes are Larry's favorite treat

Zeno said:

Just this spring his vet told us that grapes are toxic. He is an avian vet and indicated it had not been know until the last few years.

I have tried to find documenting information but the only information I could find had to do with the pesticides used in South America. But we stopped giving him grapes just to be safe.

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ANY kind of pesticide is highly toxic to birds and humans (and other animals).

The only thing I can find that scientifically states that grapes are harmful for animals in recent years (2007) has to do with fungal species that can potentially contaminate them. That, or metal poisoning possible through wine consumption (which most birds don't have to worry about - some species ARE sensitive to the inorganic minerals during regular consumption). Even with the research regarding dogs they aren't even positive it's the grape itself that happens to be toxic, rather a contaminant within the grape that causes kidney damage and/or failure.

These contaminants are equally harmful to humans, but of course smaller animals with more sensitive body systems would be more greatly affected. But, when I consider that such a large population of birds tend to eat grapes in the wild considering that a decent percentage are frugivores, I can't honestly see how grapes could be toxic in themselves. You have to worry about certain things they contain or have been treated with, of course, but I currently cannot find any papers that state grapes themselves being the toxin for animals. If they were, I'm sure there would be research on it considering it's a very important economical food item.

But that's just my two cents.

I have a cinnamon conure and she likes grapes, but I buy her seedless and she is very healthy, I have had her for 3 years