# Budgie has been eating expired spinach for 2 weeks



## Willow_ (Jun 26, 2018)

Hey everyone! So I returned today from a two week vacation while a pet sitter was taking care of my budgie. I asked my pet sitter to pick up some fresh spinach as the one we had in the fridge was set to expire on July 3. She totally forgot and continued to feed him the expired spinach until today when I returned. The spinach was pretty gross when I found it - slimey and smelly and dark. He normally eats 1-2 leaves a day and I can tell he nibbled off most of one today. He’s appearing totally fine like his normal self - chirping, talking, flying around and eating and drinking. His poops look a little more watery than normal but nothing super unusual. How worried should I be? He won’t be able to see his avian vet until tomorrow at the earliest but I don’t want to bring him in unless it’s a true emergency as he gets super stressed out being handled at the vet.


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## Cody (Sep 5, 2013)

If you are taking him to the vet they will be able to determine if any harm was done. If you don't want to take him give them a call and explain what happened and maybe they could just check a poop sample. I don't think I would use that sitter again that was very irresponsible on the sitter's part.


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## iHeartPieds (Jan 9, 2017)

Cody has given you good advice. Additionally you don't really want to be feeding spinach too often. It contains Oxalate which can prevent calcium absorption. A little in moderation is fine, but it would be best to feed your bird other leafy greens on a daily basis.


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## Willow_ (Jun 26, 2018)

Thanks for the replies. I called his avian vet and she said that if he wasn't having diarrhea he is probably fine. I checked his poop and it looks normal so luckily it looks like there isn't any significant damage. 

I've used this pet sitter before multiple times without any issues and Matcha is very attached to her so I'm reluctant to switch but definitely annoyed she didn't noticed the expiry date.

Thanks for the info on spinach, he's a pretty picky bird so the only vegetables he really likes are brocolli and spinach. I guess I could try giving him more brocolli and less spinach?


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## Cody (Sep 5, 2013)

I would tell the sitter that if it's not good enough for you to eat it's not good enough for the bird. I don't understand how anyone can pick up a piece of slimey, smelly and dark spinach and think that it is ok to feed to anything.


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## iHeartPieds (Jan 9, 2017)

Sprouted seeds are also a very nutritious fresh food that can be offered.


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