What is this leaf please and can they eat it?

Claire W said:
I’ve just been picking dandelion leaves from my parents garden and they also have these leaves. Does anyone know what they are and can it be fed?
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This looks like it is probably ragwort which is toxic. Definitely do not feed it to the piggies. Make sure you wash your hands now you’ve touched it
 
Son No 3 once spent a whole day, along with others, pulling up Ragwort from a field which was covered in it. Ragwort is nasty stuff. It may look pretty with its yellow flower but looks can be deceiving. The only way to get rid of it is to pull it out roots and all, bag it and bin it.
 
Ahh great, I see ragwort is starting to make its reappearance this year. Lots of fields for us to pick soon! 😫
 
Although dangerous to animals, ragwort is an incredibly important plant for wildlife. Many insects rely on ragwort as their main food source, such as the cinnabar moth, a beautiful crimson and black day flying moth. The larvae feed on the ragwort and absorb the toxins, this makes the larvae and adults toxic to predators, if they didn’t have the ragwort they (and many other insects) would not be able to survive.
So if ragwort is not directly affecting your pets, for example if it is at the edges of your garden, please leave it where it is to help the wildlife.
 
I must admit, when I had horses we would get the occasional ragwort plant in the field, which was usually dug up and disposed of. If it had the cinnabar moth larvae on it, it got left for them to eat, as they pretty much decimate the plant. I’ve had them in the garden too - beautiful caterpillars.
 
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