I began my initial criticism of Monty as having, once again, given incomplete, off the cuff advice without considering the consequences or implications or actual facts. He's too good at that.
I do believe cat and dog owners have a responsibility to see that their pets do not cause havoc and also are not unwittingly endangered but who, please, on a normal day in a normal life would dream that lilies and hemerocallis could be so potentially harmful? Better to spread correct info than to give a passing remark that others may misinterpret.
I don't think it helpful for people to dismiss something as irrelevant or inflammatory just because they haven't heard of it. I do believe pet owners need to take measures to reduce the impact of their pets on wildlife such as keeping cats in at night and providing safe bird feeding stations.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
It all depends whether your perception of what MD said is that it was dismissive, or whether you took it to be a simple explanation of his own experience and why he does what he does.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
@Dovefromabove.....I hope you mean mince for the dog rather than mince made from dog?!?!?! "Frozen dog mince "
Mary As sometimes happens in conversation I had left a little space for misinterpretation .. but as most people with a bit of common sense do, you checked. Yes, mince for the dog not made from the dog
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I've just read in Saturday's The Times ( page 4 ) of a cat which died after eating tulip flowers. Add them to the list.
I've never tried it for cats but I know if you Google 'plants that may be toxic to dogs' you'll get pages and pages and pages.
Personally I'd rather MD had just said nothing - it's a gardening programme not a pet care programme (granted it's sometimes hard to tell the difference). And as you quite rightly say, picking up specifically on lilies then leaves the question of all the other poisonous plants. But I can see that - as has been said - perhaps because the toxicity of lilies is relatively unknown, or because there's an outcry if he doesn't say anything, they felt obliged to make a comment this time. Well fine. But why not follow the principle he does with euphorbias - "these plants can be harmful, it's best to wear gloves to avoid coming into contact with the sap?". He never adds whether or not he's had a problem himself.
"If you grow lilies and you have cats, be aware that they can be toxic". Nuff said.
Gardening on the edge of Exmoor, in Devon
“It's still magic even if you know how it's done.”
RG, there'd have been an outcry that he was taking risks with his own cat's health.
I wonder if there's an outcry on any cooking forums when Mary Berry, Nigella, Jamie et al use almonds or ground nut oil or cashews, or even chocolate or eggs or any of the other foodstuffs that can cause serious problems for some people without mentioning the possible dangers? It certainly doesn't trigger a furore on the two I'm a member of.
I think Monty's mistake was in responding to previous outcries by mentioning that there may be a problem. People who are responsible for the welfare of another being should inform themselves and not blame others if they've not done that comprehensively.
When I took responsibility for a flock of sheep I went on a course, did a lot of reading on the subject and took advice from shepherds and vets. I didn't blame John Seymour when I discovered that he'd not included all the potential problems in his books.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I agree, Raisingirl and Dove - better for him to say nothing, probably. Though the scientific piece you linked to, Raisingirl, did say that the toxicity of lilies was unknown until 2002, so that could explain a) the scepticism among some posters that it's true, and b) Monty being advised to mention it on GW.
Cats are pretty secretive, so it's not surprising some were ill or died after licking pollen from their coats, without owners or vets being aware of the cause of the problem. A dog would just stay covered in pollen...
I'd guess it's the cut flowers which cause most of the problem.
Since 2019 I've lived in east Clare, in the west of Ireland.
My point was that if he says anything it should be complete and correct because people take him at his word. He should never be incomplete or incorrect and he is too often guilty of both. He may not take his position as the "nation's gardening guru" seriously but people who believe he is an expert do and that has consequences for their plants, gardens and pets.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
Posts
I do believe cat and dog owners have a responsibility to see that their pets do not cause havoc and also are not unwittingly endangered but who, please, on a normal day in a normal life would dream that lilies and hemerocallis could be so potentially harmful? Better to spread correct info than to give a passing remark that others may misinterpret.
I don't think it helpful for people to dismiss something as irrelevant or inflammatory just because they haven't heard of it. I do believe pet owners need to take measures to reduce the impact of their pets on wildlife such as keeping cats in at night and providing safe bird feeding stations.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
" X,Y and Z are always going to happen, on each and every occasion"
Add them to the list.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Personally I'd rather MD had just said nothing - it's a gardening programme not a pet care programme (granted it's sometimes hard to tell the difference). And as you quite rightly say, picking up specifically on lilies then leaves the question of all the other poisonous plants. But I can see that - as has been said - perhaps because the toxicity of lilies is relatively unknown, or because there's an outcry if he doesn't say anything, they felt obliged to make a comment this time. Well fine. But why not follow the principle he does with euphorbias - "these plants can be harmful, it's best to wear gloves to avoid coming into contact with the sap?". He never adds whether or not he's had a problem himself.
"If you grow lilies and you have cats, be aware that they can be toxic". Nuff said.
“It's still magic even if you know how it's done.”
I wonder if there's an outcry on any cooking forums when Mary Berry, Nigella, Jamie et al use almonds or ground nut oil or cashews, or even chocolate or eggs or any of the other foodstuffs that can cause serious problems for some people without mentioning the possible dangers? It certainly doesn't trigger a furore on the two I'm a member of.
I think Monty's mistake was in responding to previous outcries by mentioning that there may be a problem. People who are responsible for the welfare of another being should inform themselves and not blame others if they've not done that comprehensively.
When I took responsibility for a flock of sheep I went on a course, did a lot of reading on the subject and took advice from shepherds and vets. I didn't blame John Seymour when I discovered that he'd not included all the potential problems in his books.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Cats are pretty secretive, so it's not surprising some were ill or died after licking pollen from their coats, without owners or vets being aware of the cause of the problem. A dog would just stay covered in pollen...
I'd guess it's the cut flowers which cause most of the problem.