Cornell Toxic Plant Link

[LynneP]

Since there have been some questions lately, I thought some of you might want to bookmark the Cornell site for information on toxic plants. I find it detailed and more useful than most, because the exact poisons are listed.

http://www.ansci.cornell.edu/plants/comlist.html

 

[NYREDS]

There are things on that list that I routinely feed w/o incident. There are also things on that list that I have eaten all my life. According to that list Onions are poisonous to humans. That came as kind of a surprise to me.

 

[cybercat]

Again folks take what you read with a grain of salt. I saw alot of feed grains listed second down is alfalfa and few down from the treifoil both well known feed hays. Just putting plants up because they have a toxic substance that if taken in vast quatieties will hurt you is no reason to go by these lists for CHickens. Most chickens eat this and more when free ranging. Heck most cattle and goats do too. It is the fact it is NOT a sole food source. If you feed just one thing to an animal for a feed yes the animal will get sick, how soon depends on the food but it will happen. Why because it is an unbalanced diet and a substance will build up faster if eaten alone. If eaten with other things it is usually not a problem for it is taken in alot less amount that makes it non toxic. Again please take these lists with a grain of salt and use common sense and do not panic. If your chickens are doing fine and you find plants listed you have fed or they are eating in your yard do not worry about it. Go by how your chickens are doing not by these lists.

 

[digitS']

Lynne, you have a most helpful website maintained by the Canadian government. It is of primary use for grazing livestock owners but the information and references are extensive. The names of toxins are also given on this site and there is, what seems to me, a common-sense discussion of the reports of poisonings. poisonous plants

There is information on native, common animal forage and human food plants. Note that bloating in cattle is one of the most important issues for alfalfa. And speaking from some experience, I know this to be so.

Just because a plant is listed as toxic doesn't mean that it is toxic under all conditions - some are, some are not. If the plant causes digestive problems - it is helpful to know. An animal's weight loss is of concern, interference with reproduction is also. Not many plants kill the animal outright if they are ingested.

Chickens aren't smarter than dogs. I'll say that they aren't smarter than cattle, either. There are daily occasions of these critters poisoning themselves. One thing that a chicken has going for it, is that it really isn't a grazing animal but then neither is a dog.

The diet of our backyard flocks is largely their commercial feed and from the standpoint of this poisoning issue, that's probably a good thing. As was pointed out, ingestion of plants is probably going to be fairly limited. Bloating on alfalfa, for instance, just doesn't seem likely.

Steve