A response , but need some help. (long post)

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Posted by girlzilla on March 14, 2003 at 12:37:49:

In Reply to: Food posted by jakeyjakers on March 12, 2003 at 21:23:25:

Hey, sorry this took so long to write.
Okay.
So, when I read your post, I KNEW that two of the three things you were asking about threw up a red flag for me, it was just a matter of trawling through Melissa Kaplan's Iguana Care, Feeding, and Socialization article to find them.

:This is a list of the things that I feed Guano:

Everything you are feeding sounds great, but in what proportion do you feed them? Take a look at the salad recipe and other nutritional information on Melissa Kaplan's website, http//www.anapsid.org. (I KNOW I've read stuff on Bok Choy (Pak Choy) and parsley on Wong's Green Iguana Heaven, and in James Hatfield's book. (I think I got his name right...)

1) BOK CHOY: I need some help here. Here is an MK quote.

"When fed in excess, vegetables including broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kale, cabbage, cauliflower, and bok choy (and soy) cause hypothyroidism, a thyroid deficiency.This slows down the metabolism, causes lethargy, and muscle and joint aches. The
animal gains weight due to the slowed metabolism and lowered activity levels, but overallgrowth is abnormally slowed and normal development is retarded. These vegetables may
be fed in small amounts in addition to the regular vegetables, mixed into their salad, but should never become the primary ingredients or regular additions to the diet."

Is this because it is a goitrogen? Goiters being a thyroid-related condition? I don't know. I know soy is billed as a goitrogen, and that broccoli is high in oxalates, but I don't know which one Bok Choy is full of! Help!

2)PARSLEY

MK writes:

"I opt not to feed spinach (and took parsley out of the diet
years ago) because it is very high in calcium oxalates, and there are plenty of other leafy greens I can choose from and still provide a variety of tastes and textures over time."

Just for a little comparison (and shock value), check out the chart at http://www.anapsid.org/iguana/cal_ox.html. Spinach, which most of us think of as an "occasional" food, contains 970 units (grams? milligrams? MK doesn't say. I'm gonna guess milligrams per 100 grams of food, that's how the USDA seems to evaluate foods.) SPINACH contains 1700 mg!!!! Sky-high.

As for 3), ANISE, MK has no specific info except for that your igs may, like you, enjoy tiny amounts of spices in their foods.

Here's a link on the USDA's website about anise:
http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/cgi-bin/list_nut.pl
It has a Calcium:Phosporus ratio of 3.23:2.2, but if you're only feeding it in tiny amounts, as a spice, and your ig likes it, what does it matter? I don't know anything else about it.

As you can see, this is why you should pull up MK's site, or another reputable ig site, and clear your schedule.

I hope now that the ball is rolling in terms of having done some legwork on this, someone else will either correct me, or be able to answer my question about the Bok Choy. I want to feed it to my ig, too! :)

Follow Ups:

Bok choy a goitrogen Kate 03/14/03 (0)