Questions and comments about plant safety for rabbits.

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I've searrched through Google as well as on this forum and couldn't find an answer, so thought I'd ask here... Are Caragana trimmings safe to feed to rabbits? Latin name caragana arborescens. We have tons of them around the farm here and we usually cut them back every fall - so I'm wondering if I can give the branches to the rabbits.
Thanks!
 
This may seem a silly question, and I havent finished reading this forum so sorry if its a repeat but does anyone know if thistle sprouts are bad for rabbits?
 
Any one heard of feeding Mertensia paniculata, also known as the tall lungwort, tall bluebells, or northern bluebells? It is in the same plant family as Borago officinalis, Borage (family, Boraginaceae). I have come across quite a bit of it while foraging for the buns and was curious if it was ok for them. I did some research yesterday and it seems that the wild snowshoe hares up here eat it. And I found this about it too; "While the Tall Bluebell's organs are not edible whole, it has been used in the past as a pot-herb in the north and in areas of Scotland, due to its place in the borage family. It also has been used for medicinal purposes. The dried leaves of the plant could be made into an herbal tea to stimulate the respiratory system."
220px-Mertensia_paniculata_8856.jpg
 
Any idea what this red-seeded plant is? I thought amaranth at a distance, but the leaves are wrong. Would like to know what it is, since it's all over.

http://imgur.com/IMcCpUr

Also, can rabbits eat fig leaves?
 
Yes, I agree, it is dock.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rumex_crispus

You can feed the young leaves in moderation, but it contains a lot of oxalic acid and the older leaves are not recommended. Once it puts up its flower stalk, I remove it from the rabbits' menu. But it is very useful in spring, when a lot of other plants are slow to start.

Feeding a variety of plants is your best safeguard against the rabbits getting too much of any one thing.
 
craneman54":32i672q6 said:
I was just looking to see if pecan tree leave's and bark are toxic to rabbits and found this info. This may help answer some questions here.

http://www.adoptarabbit.com/articles/toxic.html

Toxic plant lists can be a starting point, but there are several problems with them.

1. They rarely list the Latin names for plants and common names often vary regionally. Confusion as to what plant is meant can be dangerous for our rabbits.

2. They are not comprehensive (how can they be?) and people tend to assume if a plant is not on the toxic list it must be okay for their rabbits. Not necessarily so.

3. They often contain inaccuracies. In this list sweet potatoes are listed as toxic. If they mean the sweet potato whose Latin name is Ipomoea batatas, they are not toxic to rabbits and both the greens and the tubers can be fed in moderation. They are a rich food, but useful, especially in winter.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweet_potato
Another error is listing wild carrot as toxic. Again, assuming they mean the plant a lot of us call Queen Anne's Lace (Daucus carota) it is botanically the same plant as garden carrots and all parts are safe for rabbits, except the seeds. The seeds have strong contraceptive properties.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daucus_carota

There may be other inaccuracies in this list that I did not notice at a glance. Please use lists like this with extreme caution.
 
it also lists Morning Glory, my rabbits love morning glory. and eat a large amount of it when I weed the garden , they like it better then Lambsquarters, Cheese weed [malva neglecta] ,or amaranth , and they eat a lot of those also.---
I think-- people who come up with lists of toxic plants for rabbits, sometimes- just do a search for plants that are toxic to something, or could be toxic in large amounts, they often have never really raised rabbits, and tried feeding different questionable plants to them. I do see the need for caution, I believe moderation is the key to many problems, -as feeding too much of a lot of "relatively safe" plants [like Lambsquarters] can become a big problem- --, - I see Garlic is not on the "toxic plant list" but it was probly just an oversight.
 

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