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Apple Branches...

lisa
lisa
in Health Questions and Tips

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Have just been reading the list of Toxic and non Toxic plants list and was shocked to read that apple branches and bark is Toxic :glare: I have been using apple branches for years and my budgies love the bark with no adverse effects....I was advised by my vet many years ago to use it and also in budgie books it tell us to use apple branches...who is right? I don't want to go back to unnatural perches so what do I use in place of the apple branches? Help!

Edited by lisa

Never used them before but if someone put them as toxic on the forum I would go with that.

  • Author

This certainly is a strange one :) ....I have phoned around all the experts I can find on budgies and they all say they're safe apart from the pips :huh: ....they all say they have used apple branches for years, some as far back as the 60's with no problems :)

Edited by lisa

actually I've been doing a bit of googling since my last post and I retract that opinion. I've seen many posts on various forums saying apple trees are fine, the wood and the bark. Not the apple seeds though.

 

Take a look at this - http://www.mdvaden.com/bird_page.shtml

Apple is on the right column.

Also various other posts suggest apple branches are indeed safe.

Apple branches are fine the seeds are not.

 

Question know is who wrote the list?

Maybe it should be reviewed and altered if need be. :)

  • Author

Thanks for your help..it definitely says they are Toxic..take a look :)

 

http://forums.budgiebreeders.asn.au/index....showtopic=23616

 

Toxic

Acokanthera - all parts are toxic except the ripe fruit

Amaryllis - all parts are toxic

Andromeda - all parts are toxic

Angel's Trumpet - seeds, leaves, and flowers are toxic

Apricot - pits, leaves, and bark are toxic

Apple - seeds, leaves, and bark are toxic

Arum Lily - all parts are toxic

Australian Flame Tree - all parts are toxic

Autumn Crocus - all parts are toxic

Avocado - pits, unripe fruit, leaves, and stems are toxic

Azalea - all parts are toxic

 

 

Wild budgies must have come across apple trees and taken a nibble :huh:...it also says Pear is Toxic but again I have found out through asking other budgie experts/owners that only the pips are Toxic not the bark and leaves...these are also used as branches for budgies with no problems.

Edited by lisa

The only thing I can see can cause a problem is if pesticides have been sprayed on them. If they come from your own garden it should not be a problem.

They may have it there because they feel safer then sorry.

They may have it there because they feel safer then sorry.

 

That may well be the case but it is misleading and causes confusion. There are many more authoritatrian sources out there than the contents of this forum. Any forum that sets itself up as a source of information needs to make sure that what is provided is correct and not just the views of a few individuals.

 

Maybe a view from the mderators can be provided. :blink:

Aswell as looking on this forum I look on others and also google etc.

I do not get all my information from one source, I browse and research different sources.

Aswell as looking on this forum I look on others and also google etc.

I do not get all my information from one source, I browse and research different sources.

 

I comend you for doing your research but not everybody does that Pearce. Some people are just down right gullible and some just go with the first peice of info they lay there hands on. Then there are others who just believe every damn thing that they are told, even complete lies. Here is a nice little saying I found some years ago.

 

"A lie gets half way around the world before the truth has a chance to put it's pants on"

yes I agree Ripbudgies. a moderator will be able to change the list.

I will change it to apple seeds, use branches only if not sprayed with any pesticides, the FAQ officer needs to change any FAQ information, which is myself.

  • Author

...and the infoemation for Pear is incorrect aswell...pear branches are fine as long as no pesticides have been used on them, it's just the seeds that are toxic.

Thanks to everyone for all of your invaluable information and help..much appreciated. :)

Edited by lisa

Yeah a bit suss on the HOney Locust too. In many parts of the world they are a fodder cropn and the seed pods are readily eaten. The seeds themselves can be roasted and are used as a coffee substitute. Kurrajong (Bracychiton) tree seeds are also used as a coffee substitute and is part of the bottle tree family.

 

There was also an entry on Thistle But does not say what type. I have always grown and fed my birds a plant called Milk Thistle (not to be confused with Milkweed). In the human world it is a liver tonic. I will endevour to get the correct botantical name for it and any other common names.

I use milk thistle also.

If you break the stem you will see white sap inside. The birds eat the entire stem.

The stem is also more square than it is rounded.

Botanic name is

Silybum marianum

Do not get it mixed up with other thistles.

I commend all who have beneficially added to our wonderful play ground er, forum; we all work towards making it what it is don't forget. I just spoke to a bird wholesaler who informs me the reason apple seeds are toxic [and how] is because they contain ARSENIC... can't provide a better reference than that I'm afraid.

I commend all who have beneficially added to our wonderful play ground er, forum; we all work towards making it what it is don't forget. I just spoke to a bird wholesaler who informs me the reason apple seeds are toxic [and how] is because they contain ARSENIC... can't provide a better reference than that I'm afraid.

 

Do not take this personally Richo but this is an example of asking somebody who you think may be able to provide the correct information maybe because he is a bird wholesaler. Apple seeds do not contain ARSENIC they contain CYANIDE.

 

Arsenic has in the past been used for animal feeds in strickly control quantities. It was used routinely in the racehorse industry until ruled illegal.

 

Used in animal feed, particularly in the US as a method of disease prevention and growth stimulation. One example is roxarsone (organoarsenic compound) which was used by 69.8 and 73.9% of the broiler starter and growers between 1995 to 2000. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arsenic

 

 

Cyanides are produced by certain bacteria, fungi, and algae and are found in a number of foods and plants. Cyanides are found, although in small amounts, in apple seeds, mango stone, peach stones, and bitter almonds.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyanide

Cyanide was used in the nazi gas chambers during WWII.

I commend all who have beneficially added to our wonderful play ground er, forum; we all work towards making it what it is don't forget. I just spoke to a bird wholesaler who informs me the reason apple seeds are toxic [and how] is because they contain ARSENIC... can't provide a better reference than that I'm afraid.

 

Do not take this personally Richo but this is an example of asking somebody who you think may be able to provide the correct information maybe because he is a bird wholesaler. Apple seeds do not contain ARSENIC they contain CYANIDE.

 

Arsenic has in the past been used for animal feeds in strickly control quantities. It was used routinely in the racehorse industry until ruled illegal.

 

Used in animal feed, particularly in the US as a method of disease prevention and growth stimulation. One example is roxarsone (organoarsenic compound) which was used by 69.8 and 73.9% of the broiler starter and growers between 1995 to 2000. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arsenic

 

 

You know i love you R.I.P. but wiickpoopia is not acknowledged in academia. Ya gotta give us more...

 

Cyanides are produced by certain bacteria, fungi, and algae and are found in a number of foods and plants. Cyanides are found, although in small amounts, in apple seeds, mango stone, peach stones, and bitter almonds.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyanide

Cyanide was used in the nazi gas chambers during WWII.

Nice work R.I.P. thanks for making me the wiser.

since the seeds and core etc is poison to them,

i don't see how the branches are safe.

but it's better to be safe than sorry

since the seeds and core etc is poison to them,

i don't see how the branches are safe.

but it's better to be safe than sorry

 

It's like this. Nature endowes each species wether it be flora or fauna with specific requirements in order to survive and propagate the species.

 

Plant growth is kept in check by browsers who feed on the leaves. This maintains the tree so it does not grow out of control. The seeds of a plant are designed, depending on the environment, in such a manner as to ensure it surives to sprout to produce the next generation. Some seeds have defenses such as toxins (apple, mango), some have extremely hard shells (macadamia, coconut) and some must be consumed by certain fauna (emu bush) and others must receive a particluar process such as fire or smoke (Black Kangaroo Paw) in order to sprout.

 

The apple seed itself does not contain a large amount of cyanide but if consumed in sufficient quantities it will produce toxicity. Toxicity effects depend on the size of the fauna consuming the seed and wether or not the fauna has it's own defense mechanisims. The amount of Cyanide produced within the apple is small but as Cyanide produces a bitter taste, a small amount is all that is required to ensure that the fauna that chooses to sample the apple seed will meet with an unpalatable taste and proceed to remove the offending seed from the diet without being poisioned. The apple tree is defending itself, it is not out to kill.

 

Bascially humans do not have any real defenses as far a food goes. So generally what is safe for us is safe for animals, exceptions being chocolate for example, don't feed to dogs and cats. But what an animal can eat is not always safe for humans. Some animals can eat the most dangerous of substances with no effect what so ever. Example of this is the Koala. No other animals can consume the vast quantities of gum trees that this animal does and survive. Each baby Koalas can't consume it without first getting the beneficial bacteria from it's mother.

Edited by RIPbudgies

Very interesting about the koalas Ripbudgies. Do you have any other examples?

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