Ice cream is loved by many. This delicious, sweet, frozen food is served as a snack or dessert and enjoyed when the sun is out and the weather is warm. As the name suggests, it’s made from frozen dairy milk and a sweetener, these two ingredients are formed into a creamy, thick and easy to eat product. If you love ice cream you may be considering serving this food to your pet bird when the weather gets warm enough. But is this a good idea? This article explores the question of ‘can birds eat ice cream’ 

Birds cannot eat ice cream. This food contains large amounts of dairy milk, birds cannot digest large amounts of dairy milk, dairy milk isn’t toxic to birds but it can cause diarrhoea in birds. In addition, if ice cream is fed to birds on a regular basis the high levels of sugar can cause the animal to develop illnesses like diabetes

Can birds eat ice cream?

Birds cannot eat ice cream. As explained earlier ice cream is made out of dairy milk or cream, a sweetener such as sugar or an alternative and spice such as vanilla or cocoa. Because of this ingredient list birds cannot eat ice cream. 

Birds cannot digest unfermented dairy, like milk and ice cream, only fermented dairy, like cheese. Large quantities of milk, such as in ice cream, cannot be digested by birds, only small quantities. 

The reason they can’t digest cows milk is that it isn’t a part of their natural diet, thus they are not naturally able to digest it as mammals can. Birds do not have the enzymes needed to digest the sugars (lactose) in milk and thus in ice cream. It isn’t necessarily toxic, just not beneficial. If you give your bird ice cream it can draw fluids into the animals digestive tract and cause them to develop diarrhoea

The high sugar content in ice cream is harmful to birds. Sugar does not offer birds any nutrients. In fact, it can actually harm the bird as it can cause the bird to develop infections such as gout, diabetes, heart damage, nervous disorders, cancer, obesity, high cholesterol, calcium imbalances, phosphorus imbalances, anxiety, irritability, depression and feather picking, 

Giving your bird ice cream that contains a sugar alternative is also a no go. Sugar alternatives such as xylitol have not been tested on birds but have been associated with liver damage and hypoglycemia in dogs. 

Birds especially cannot eat chocolate ice cream. Chocolate contains theobromine and caffeine, both of these compounds cause issues such as increased heart rate, hyperactivity, tremors, possibly seizures and possibly death in birds. Do not give chocolate to your bird under any circumstances 

Can birds eat ice cream cones?

While ice cream cones aren’t the healthiest foods to serve your bird they can be offered to your feathered friends as a treat on occasion. Birds will enjoy the crunch that comes with eating ice cream cones. and as a bonus, the cones can be left out and will not become rancid quickly

Common ingredients in ice cream cones include flour, sugar, eggs, butter, oil and small quantities of milk. Because the amount of milk in the cone is small you can offer them to birds. Just be sure not to serve them cones on a regular basis as the sugar can build up in the bird’s body. 

When feeding ice cream cones to birds rather get the plain cones and avoid the sugar cones or chocolate cones. Also, remember to check the ingredients list to make sure that the sugar and sodium content of the cones is very low.

Can birds eat cheese?

Yes, birds can eat cheese, this is one type of dairy product that does not have high amounts of lactose in it. In addition, birds can benefit from the minerals and nutrients in cheese. That being said, this food should only be given as an occasional food to birds and should be served in small amounts 

When feeding cheese to birds you should keep away from cheeses that contain onion or garlic. Onion and garlic are toxic to birds. Check the ingredients list for these two ingredients before serving the cheese to the bird 

Conclusion 

In conclusion, no, birds cannot eat ice cream. Ice cream is made up of milk and sugars. Birds cannot digest large amounts of milk, thus eating ice cream will give the animal diarrhoea. Sugar can cause the bird to suffer several emotional, mental or physical problems. Cheese is a dairy product that you can offer to birds, just make sure there is no onion or garlic in it. You can also feed your birds plain ice cream cones 

If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other bird related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: Can birds eat Indian corn?, Can birds eat onions?, Can birds eat popcorn?, Can birds eat peaches?