Don’t Throw Away Stale Cereal Because Experts Say It Can Actually Help Birds in a Surprising Way

We all would've had, at least once in our lives, a cereal box sitting somewhere in the shadowy alley of kitchen cupboards whose flakes may have turned soggy and less crispy. While we don't want those cereal flakes in our breakfast, some birds will embrace them. After exhausting long-distance journeys, these feathered friends swoop in and plunge into the feeder because all they need is a rich supply of proteins, carbs, fiber, and vitamins. I see nothing wrong with feeding, in moderation, some of the low-sugar, whole-grain cereals to birds,” Doctor Donna Muscarella, senior research associate at Cornell University’s Veterinary Medical Center in Ithaca, wrote in Chewy.

She shared that birds like parrots and cockatiels love eating cereals like Cheerios or Grape Nuts. Barbara Landsperg, an enthusiastic birdkeeper, had been feeding birds by hand long before readymade feeders popped up on the market’s shelves. In the early 90s, she would hand-feed her budgerigar babies with cereals like ground sunflower seeds, baby apple sauce, drops of liquid avian vitamins, and Karo syrup. Her lorikeet’s diet included oatmeal baby cereal with unsweetened apple sauce and a touch of condensed milk, along with fruits and vegetables. Sometimes, she fed them dry cereals like Cheerios, Rice Krispies, and Raisin Bran as treats, per Chewy.

Another bird enthusiast shared footage of a lovebird couple relishing cereals from her feeder. She warned people not to add any chocolate or cacao to the cereal before consulting it first with a bird doctor. The reason why they’re urging people to avoid these chocolate ingredients is mainly due to sugar. “Stale cereal and oats are fine, just as long as they don't have a high sugar or salt content and are not soaked in milk. Cooked oats can harden around a bird's beak, so raw oats are preferred,” experts at Really Wild Bird Food say.

“It is worth mentioning not to use cereals with a high salt content, as you can poison the wee things. I don’t know about Cheerios, but cereals like cornflakes have more salt than seawater,” cautioned Dafi, a BirdForum user, in response to a woman named Savinia, who asked whether it was alright to feed her birds with leftover Cheerios. One person said their grandma used to serve her bird visitors with “bread mushed up in a bowl of milk,” and it worked out just fine. Feeding raisins is also a good option.

Doctor Muscarella advised, “Look for genuine, whole-grain cereals like shredded wheat. Nearly everything carries the ‘whole grain’ label, so one must use common sense and perhaps investigate a little further!” She added that she feeds cooked cereal to her birds while soaking it in water and dipping it in soy milk. Moderation is the key, the doctor emphasizes. Too much milk can cause temporary diarrhoea. Except for sandpipers, who mostly eat fish, or hummingbirds who drink flower nectar, most wild birds would love a meal of cereal. You might want to make the food specific to the type of bird. Parrots and grackles love cornflakes, whereas blue jays and orioles are more into Grape Nuts.