This weed killed an adult rabbit

Jimson weed (“Datura stramonium”) grows naturally in Western NC. I fed one 5" stalk to my Champagne doe (11 lb adult) and she was dead the next day. From what I have since read, it is a hallucinogenic in the Bella Donna family and is toxic to people too. gallery/image_page.php?album_id=939&image_id=3609

That is an image of lambsquarter (Chenopodium album).

But yes Jimson weed is highly toxic. This is what it looks like. Notice the flower. Lambsquarter will never have flower like that.

Alforddm is right. The picture you posted is lamb's quarters and is safe for rabbits. I've fed it hundreds of times. If your rabbit died after eating lamb's quarters, I am quite sure that something else was the cause.

Jimson Weed is another story altogether. Horrible stuff. People have died experimenting with it for its hallucinogenic effects.

My picture must not be clear. The picture you posted has leaves that are twice as long as my weed. My weed does not have flowers.

ADinWNC":l7zm85ny said:

My picture must not be clear. The picture you posted has leaves that are twice as long as my weed. My weed does not have flowers.

Click to expand...

Then you have misidentified your weed. The picture you posted IS lambs quarter. It is safe (I even eat it). As MaggieJ said if your rabbit died after eating lambs quarter then it died from something else.

We would be happy to try and help you figure out the true cause of death. It's not always possible to figure out the cause of death but the members here have years of experience and are always willing to help.

If lambs quarter is grown in an area that is heavily fertilized it can have a very high nitrate content, - high enough to cause problems in cattle--
------------- but- as has already been posted by others,-- if your rabbit was used to having greens, and that was truly lambs quarter you fed, and nothing else was changed or added in the feed program-- I would suspect some other complication in the death of your rabbit... JMHO

I really would like to sort this out if we can. Some more information would likely help.

ADinWNC, what -- apart from the timing of the rabbit's death -- led you to conclude that the weed was the cause? Can you describe any symptoms that you observed prior to the death, or did you just find the rabbit dead?

Did you identify the plant as Jimson weed before the rabbit died? What led you to feed it to the rabbit? Is the photograph you posted the actual plant you used to feed the rabbit?

I don't want you to feel ambushed by those of us who have identified the plant in your picture as Lamb's Quarters, but we need to sort this out so that members can feed safe greens with confidence. Please help us to do this!

Was it safely within your own yard where you have lived long enough to know has not been sprayed with anything including fertilizer? Always be sure to ask and if it's near a fence line or down a hill from someone else some of it can get in your yard by wind or rain runoff.

I also see lambsquarter (Chenopodium album) in your picture, ADinWNC.
Alforddm posted pictures of Jimsonweed for you to compare with your photo.

Here are some images of lambsquarter:
http://fmcturfadvisor.com/weeds/lambsqu ... #top-o-nav

I feed it to my buns whenever I pull it from the garden.

Thanks for that thread, I had Jimson Weed growing all over the spot where I gathered forage, tried to avoid it, but some leaves sure got through, thank god with no consequences.

Lambsquarter is growing in abudance here, but I could never put a name to it, and since my rabbits were reluctant to eat it I didn't feed it (since some of the things they avoid by instinct are toxic)

My rabbits would always eat young lamb's quarters, but as michaels4gardens pointed out, it can accumulate troublesome nitrates later in the season.

People eat it as a spring salad and pot herb, but I understand it is not palatable later in the year. That could be why your rabbits won't eat it, Preitler.

There are quite a few plants that can be fed in spring but are better avoided later on. Curly dock and redroot pigweed come to mind. See the Safe Plants for Rabbits sticky for more information and Latin names.

safe-plants-for-rabbits-list-t55.html

JMHO
about feeding weeds....
--- I feed lambsquarter all year,[from last frost to killing frost] but it is always fed with the other weeds, my rabbits will eat what they want and leave the rest-- it is important to have enough other things available to them so they can move on to another type of plant if they have had enough of something. I feed kale [usually dino-kale [lacinato], or collard] along with the weeds, these are always safe for them to move on to since they are very used to eating these most of the year] In the early spring when weeds, and kale are first becoming available I start out with about 1/2 a leaf of kale for each rabbit [about a 3" x 4" piece from the over-wintered plants] for a few days, then i gave them twice as much for a week, -- after that I give them all the kale they want, [or what I have available]. -- as weeds begin to become available I give each rabbit a few - and by the time weeding is a major chore-- they have become used to them to the point I can load each manger full and they choose what they want to eat. - each afternoon[or evening] before I feed more greens, I clean all uneaten weeds from the manger,[there is almost never any kale left] I feed these to the sheep and then give the rabbits the freshly pulled weeds, and more kale. There is always a little grass hay, straw, or corn stalks available to them at all times [long stem fiber]. Nursing does and their litters get a scoop of pellets, or some grain/ boss mix. [or at times ,cooked potato, carrot, J. artichoke, or sugar beet] to provide enough energy for good growth.-- JMHO---

I agree with you, michaels4gardens, about the importance of feeding a variety of plants at the same time. They do need to be able to pick and choose -- and they do know what they need at a given time.