Dandelion greens

[sassismom]

My budgies love dandelion greens, are they alright for cockatiels as well?

[Danielle]

They're just fine

[ReniLyn]

Just like... straight out of the yard?

[Danielle]

I'd wash them thoroughly first. I always make sure to clean them so there's no dirt/bugs/dandelion milk on them. As they're not from near a road, and there's no chance of harmful chemicals having been near them, they should be just fine. They're a regular for my tiels, Quaker and rats.

[ReniLyn]

I'd wash them thoroughly first. I always make sure to clean them so there's no dirt/bugs/dandelion milk on them. As they're not from near a road, and there's no chance of harmful chemicals having been near them, they should be just fine. They're a regular for my tiels, Quaker and rats.

well HUH... I have a boat load of the buggers growing in the back yard this year... maybe i'll try that out!

[sassismom]

I bought these, because ours aren't quite ready yet. I will wash them before giving. These are huge, says they're from Texas, so I guess that's why. I've never seen dandelions so large.:D

[xxxSpikexxx]

Yep they are ok :) Just make sure they are pesticide free and wash well.

[tielfan]

I bought these, because ours aren't quite ready yet. I will wash them before giving. These are huge, says they're from Texas, so I guess that's why. I've never seen dandelions so large.:D

The ones in the grocery store are a different variety than the wild weed and yes, the leaves are quite long!

[sassismom]

Well so far they aren't the least bit interested in them, should have waited for the yard ones to appear and saved a little money I guess....oh well the budgies are enjoying them.

[skthurley]

My guys enjoy them :)

I buy mine from the grocery store. I don't trust the ones in the yards nearby to be pesticide free

[Lola's_mommy]

I have a ton of pesticide free dandelions growing in my yard and it's nice to know they can be useful. Are clovers greens ok too?

[sassismom]

Well they've decided they like them now...so how often can they have this kind of greens?

[tielfan]

Are clovers greens ok too?

At http://www.cockatielcottage.net/houseplants.html they say that clover is toxic but white clover is safe. There's a picture of white clover at http://www.secondchancebirds.com/safe_plants_6.html

It does seem to be generally agreed that some types of clover are dangerous and others are not, and several different websites say white clover is bird-safe. But I think it's best to stay away from clover completely, since apparently not all white clover is created equal. At http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071001151308.htm there's an article about a plant geneticist who's studying several different types of white clover to find out why some produce cyanide and others don't. At http://books.google.com/books?id=VBpKghrwRRAC&pg=PA36&lpg=PA36&dq=clover+bird+toxic&source=bl&ots=sgzSAV9HYD&sig=qiwcNBsfIPJDsXyVfiv8AkRdNYA&hl=en&ei=gObwSbyOJJP6tAPR583QCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6 it says that white clover can cause problems for horses.

At http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/weeds/plants/white_clover.htm it says this: "Clover can be toxic because it contains a glycoside that converts to prussic acid when the foliage is eaten by animals. However, cultivated strains of White Clover have been developed that are without this glycoside. The ecological value of White Clover to wildlife is high. It is also an important source of honey to humans."

so how often can they have this kind of greens?

I've never heard anything bad about dandelion greens so it would probably be OK to serve them as often as every day (in reasonable amounts of course). There's a fairly scientific article at http://www.drugs.com/npp/dandelion.html which says "Dandelion may be potentially toxic because of the high concentration of potassium, magnesium, and other minerals." That seems to be the worst that anyone can say about it,which means that it's pretty darned good. These are beneficial nutrients and one would have to consume ridiculous amounts to have toxicity issues. Other potential problems are allergies and interactions with certain medications, which doesn't really apply to birds.

Basically every food contains some kind of toxin, but all the sources I saw said that dandelion greens have very low toxicity or that no toxicity has been observed.

[sweetrsue]

Clover is in the family of plants that are high in oxalic acid. in fact the botanical name for clover is oxalis. I would not give it too often.

[sassismom]

Thank you tielfan. I also found out that parsley has the oxalic acid and to only feed once or twice a week, I think to be safe I'll stick with the once a week. They're going to really miss their parsley. I want them to have dark greens, so what does everyone think is the safest to be given regularly?

[skthurley]

For dark greens, I feed dandelion greens, red or green leaf lettuce and cilantro everyday, in addition to broccoli and broccoli leaves :)

Kale is also great to give as well

[sassismom]

I bought some kale yesterday and they seem to really like it, so now at least I have 2 greens they like. So far not much else in the veggie line.