# Are beans poisonous?



## Leigh P (Dec 26, 2009)

I have just received a general email from a guinea pig information site, and it stated that beans are poisonous to piggies. My boys love them! Have I been unintentionally poisoning them? OMG! Not sure what to do now! Does anyone have any more information? 
Also, I recently read that piggies like banana skins. I feed mine banana's but not the skins. Can anyone help with this one too?
Thanks!


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## MerlinsMum (Aug 2, 2009)

What kind of beans do they mean?

*Dried* beans - e.g. kidney beans, broad beans, haricots and so on, are poisonous to humans. They contain toxins that must be boiled out by cooking them thoroughly. They may also be poisonous to animals too.

*Raw* beans of any sort are fine for us.... and no problem for animals either. That includes any kind of bean in the green pod - runners, french, stick, string, etc. Green is good!

Dried lentils are not toxic to anyone or anything... they are pulses, not beans. When cooking for people they do not need the rapid boiling to destroy toxins as dried Beans do.

Some rabbit/guinea/rat foods contain a kind of dry flaked bean - these are Field beans (a type of farmed broad bean) and as far as I know have been heat-treated before use to make them safe in the feeds. This was queried some years ago on a rat forum and I believe the manufacturers (Burgess) replied with the above explanation.

Hope this helps.


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## sullivan (Aug 29, 2008)

my piggies love runners and mant tout.


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## Leigh P (Dec 26, 2009)

Phew, that's a relief! My piggies love dwarf beans (when they are on special offer of course!) and I was setting myself up to grow some this year! They love them so much that I cut them into pieces and hide them under the other food so that they forage for them! Its like watching kids at Christmas!!!!
Thanks for your help
Leigh & the boys


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## emzybabe (Jun 30, 2009)

runner beans are poisons to rabbits


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