30 May 03
While I was away in the country recently I saw a sign next to a pond that read, Please do not feed bread to the swans as they are poisoned by yeast. This made me feel really guilty having fed many a swan with chunks of Mother's Pride...
I also understand that dogs are adversely affected by chocolate and whole peanuts shouldn't be left out for the birds when they have young to feed.
Are there any other foods that we should avoid feeding to the animals?
PS. I would also like to know of any food that is harmful to squirrels (and where to buy it from) 😉
Rhymester
30 May 03
Originally posted by RhymesterOnions are just as bad for dogs as chocolate is. I'm pretty sure that it shuts down there liver.
While I was away in the country recently I saw a sign next to a pond that read, Please do not feed bread to the swans as they are poisoned by yeast. This made me feel really guilty having fed many a swan with chunks of Mother's Pride...
I also understand that dogs are adversely affected by chocolate and whole peanuts shouldn't be left out for the bird ...[text shortened]... like to know of any food that is harmful to squirrels (and where to buy it from) 😉
Rhymester
30 May 03
...but lemons are a great way of training dogs not to beg - the squirty lemons you use on pancakes - just let the dog hang around while you're eating, offer it the lemon, and give it a quick squirt in the chops - it doesn't take long for yr four legged friend to leave you alone while you eat.😕
30 May 03
Originally posted by adayatthezooyeah-i heard the same about polo's-but it's earier to tie string to polo's 😉
oh and apparently bacon rind shoots straight thru geese - in one end out the other, with no delay or digestion. It is possible to attach geese to each other using a piece of bacon rind on a length of string....allegedly
30 May 03
I'm not sure if this is an urban legend or not, but someone told me a long time ago that feeding Alka-Seltzers to sea gulls causes their stomachs to explode, sometimes in mid-flight, detonating the hapless creature like a hand grenade. Can anyone lend any veracity to that? I'd rather not have to experiment on my next visit to the coast. 😏
30 May 03
Originally posted by Poison Godmachineyep, it's true - at least in part. Birds like seaguls don't have the ability to burp. In other words they can't release a gas build up in their stomachs. Nornmally this isn't a problem, but if they get something that fizzes on contact with the stomach then their stomach will burst. Not as dramatic as a hand grenade going off, but a decidedly unpleasant death all the same.
I'm not sure if this is an urban legend or not, but someone told me a long time ago that feeding Alka-Seltzers to sea gulls causes their stomachs to explode, sometimes in mid-flight, detonating the hapless creature like a hand grenade. Can anyone lend any veracity to that? I'd rather not have to experiment on my next visit to the coast. 😏
30 May 03
Originally posted by Poison GodmachineRahul, don't you remember when we tried that at Leslie Groves Park with Bey, Ekblaw and McGilton? I didn't work. By and large the seagulls wouldn't eat alka-seltzer, but the one's that did were unaffected. God, it was fun being eighteen and stupid.
I'm not sure if this is an urban legend or not, but someone told me a long time ago that feeding Alka-Seltzers to sea gulls causes their stomachs to explode, sometimes in mid-flight, detonating the hapless creature like a hand grenade. Can anyone lend any veracity to that? I'd rather not have to experiment on my next visit to the coast. 😏
30 May 03
1 edit
Originally posted by belgianfreakMaby its only for Humans and some other animals, but...
yep, it's true - at least in part. Birds like seaguls don't have the ability to burp. In other words they can't release a gas build up in their stomachs. Nornmally this isn't a problem, but if they get something that fizzes on cont ...[text shortened]... grenade going off, but a decidedly unpleasant death all the same.
I thought the stomach can expand alot, does this not happen to birds?
Edit, never mind, Bbarr gave me the answer
30 May 03
Originally posted by UncleAdamit expands a lot, buthere's a limit. If you can burst your stomach by eating too much it's clearly possible when you have a massive gas release & can't get it out. The explosin will often cause their guts to rupture outside their body. Unpleasant
Maby its only for Humans and some other animals, but...
I thought the stomach can expand alot, does this not happen to birds?
31 May 03
Originally posted by belgianfreakActually that is not true. Here is the Environmental Literacy Council's remark on this urban legend:
yep, it's true - at least in part. Birds like seaguls don't have the ability to burp. In other words they can't release a gas build up in their stomachs. Nornmally this isn't a problem, but if they get something that fizzes on contact with the stomach then their stomach will burst. Not as dramatic as a hand grenade going off, but a decidedly unpleasant death all the same.
Ask an Expert for January 17, 2003
Question:
Can birds burp? I use to live near South Padre Island and it is reported that if you feed a sea gull an Alka Seltzer tablet they will explode.
Answer:
It is an old urban myth that seagulls will explode if they eat an Alka Seltzer. We burp because gaseous byproducts are produced in digestion and forced up through the esophagus (See KidsHealth for a good explanation). Birds have a different digestive system than humans, though they do have an esophagus and are capable of burping. Birds have no teeth and many swallow their food whole or hold it in their crop to regurgitate.
Considering how my views on the rights of animals have changed since I was a stupid teenager, I'm glad it didn't work. If it had I would now be plagued with guilt.
31 May 03
2 edits
Originally posted by bbarr*Slaps self across face*
Rahul, don't you remember when we tried that at Leslie Groves Park with Bey, Ekblaw and McGilton?
Those were freakin' Alka-Seltzers! You're right! For some reason I remembered those as bread crumbs, as Big B and Little B and I used to feed the birds fairly often.
Is this the same time that one got stuck in my hair and two sea gulls converged hungrily onto my unsuspecting head? Causing me to flail in consternation until they dislodged themselves and spirited away the bit of food? I can still hear Ekblaw's guffaws of delight at my predicament. I remember being paranoid about getting "head disease" (another term that sent Ekblaw into hysterics) and shampooing my hair three times that night.
EDIT: Meh speling = suxors
31 May 03
Originally posted by belgianfreakThat would be eating WAY past when you are full, I saw some expriment on the Discovery or something that trys to see if some urban legends are true or false and they took a pig stomach (aparent the most similer to a human stomach) and filled it with over 10 liters of soda, 7 6-packs of beer and lots and lots of food and a few bottles of Alka Seltzer(or something like it) before it burst.
it expands a lot, buthere's a limit. If you can burst your stomach by eating too much it's clearly possible when you have a massive gas release & can't get it out. The explosin will often cause their guts to rupture outside their body. Unpleasant
it can happen but I dont think anyone would eat that much...