Ensuring your duck has a well-rounded and healthy diet will help you to keep your ducks in good condition. Whether you keep them as pets or for food, you want to give them a diet full of foods that offer the correct nutrients and other essentials.
Ducks can eat a range of foods, but before you introduce a new food item, it is a good idea to ensure it is something they can eat without any negative side effects. In addition, you want to know how much to feed and how often to avoid adverse reactions.
Can ducks eat tomatoes? You may be asking this if you had a bumper crop in your garden or because they are cheap and easy to get. The good news is the short answer is ducks can eat tomatoes, but there are some guidelines.
Nutritional Benefits
You know that in general ducks can eat tomatoes, but can baby ducks eat tomatoes? The answer to that question is yes. The rules are the same for both adults and ducklings.
You want to give them only in moderation. Too much can be bad. It is also essential to only give ducks ripe tomato fruit as it is the only part of the plant that is not toxic. Never feed a duck the plant or leaves.
Tomatoes make a good food option because they are packed with fiber, beta-carotene, vitamin A, vitamin C, phosphorus, calcium, and folic acid.
Phosphorus and calcium will have great benefits for your duck’s bone health. Calcium also is helpful in the production of eggshells. The shell is almost all calcium, so having extra food sources is great for females who will lay.
Folic acid is also incredibly great for your ducks. Deficiencies can be a big problem. Folic acid will help prevent anemia, ensure healthy growth, and keep the liver in good condition.
Potential Risks
As mentioned, tomatoes can also be very harmful to ducks. You must take care when feeding them to your birds. If you are asking, “can ducks eat tomato leaves,” then the answer is no.
The reason the plant can be dangerous is that it is part of the nightshade family, which has unhealthy levels of alkaloids. The fruit is the only part edible. The stem and leaves are highly toxic, so you should never let your ducks eat them.
It is also advisable to avoid giving them green tomatoes. These also can be harmful because they contain tomatine, which is toxic to ducks. Only feed them the red, ripe fruit with the seeds removed.
If your duck gets a green tomato or eats any part of the plant, you should monitor it for symptoms of poisoning. The Open Sanctuary Project lists the following as signs for which to watch out:
- Convulsions
- Loss of appetite
- Diarrhea
- Loss of coordination
- Dilated pupils
You should also watch out for excess water in the droppings. Tomatoes have a high water content, which can over hydrate your duck. If you notice an issue, just lower the amount you feed it.
It may also alter the color of the droppings and the smell. You will know if it is the tomatoes because once you stop feeding the fruit, the poop will go back to normal.
ChickenMag also cautions that you want to only feed tomatoes in moderation because they are high in sugar content. Too much sugar can lead to a range of health issues.
Safe Eating Guidelines
Now that you know you can add tomatoes to your duck’s diet and the warnings about what not to do, let’s go over some guidelines. Common questions about how to feed ducks tomatoes include, can ducks eat cherry tomatoes, can ducks eat red tomatoes, can Pekin ducks eat tomatoes, and can ducks eat ripe tomatoes.
The answer to all of these questions is yes. All ducks can eat tomatoes and any variety is fine. Some ducks may prefer the smaller tomatoes as they are easier to eat.
Portion
If the tomato is small enough, ducks can eat a whole tomato. The reason you may prefer smaller tomatoes is that you don’t want to give a duck a whole tomato. They can’t get a good bite on it. You will have to cut up larger fruit to give them small bites they can more easily consume.
Of course, you may want to give your ducks tomatoes every day, but it’s best to limit their portions. You can give a serving of half a tomato once or twice per week. If you have ducklings, drop the serving size to a quarter of a tomato. You can reduce the size for larger tomatoes, too, as this is based on an average size fruit.
Do keep in mind that if you give your ducks other fruit, you need to give less tomato. All fruits are high in sugar, so you need to account for that in the total food you give your duck.
Preparing the Tomato
Fortunately, it’s easy to prepare when you do give your ducks their serving of tomato. To get the fruit ready, you want to remove the skin and seeds. Then, just cut it into chunks.
You may also want to give your duck tomato sauce. They probably won’t get sick from eating tomato sauce, but because it has additives, you may want to avoid it. Most tomato sauces have additional sugar, so it is not that healthy for your duck.
If you have a tomato puree, which is just smashed tomatoes with no additives, then you can give that to your duck. They may not enjoy it as much as eating the chunks, but it won’t be harmful to them.
Final Words
Tomatoes are not just a yummy crop you want to enjoy. Your ducks are going to love them, too. They can add variety to the diet for your birds, especially if you don’t give them a lot of fresh produce.
Just make sure you keep the warnings in mind. Never allow your ducks to get any of the plant or to consume anything other than ripe tomatoes. Take care to remove the skin and seeds to prevent choking issues.
Most ducks love tomato treats, so yours should enjoy the new addition to their diet.