Spineless prickly pear

[jjaymeza]

The spines on the plant is it dangerous for the little guys?

 

[wellington]

I wouldn't feed it to the little ones with the big spines. If you burn them off it will take some if not all the little ones too.

 

[daniellenc]

I just use a knife to sheer them off. If you go the opposite direction they are growing they do tend to fly off.

 

[Tom]

I use heavy oversized thick rubber gloves and rub the spines off under running water.

Well… that's what I used to do. For the past couple of years I've just been cutting pads off and dropping them straight into the enclosures with the little spines and glocchids intact. I do this for babies, juveniles and adults and it appears to be no problem for any of them.

 

[jjaymeza]

I think I am just going to use a potato peeler and just start peeling them until they get a little older than maybe they can deal with like the smaller spines

 

[SteveW]

As a related point, when you get the tiny, needle like spines in your fingers that you can’t see, put some Elmer’s glue on the area. When it dries you can peal it off and it pulls them out.

 

[jjaymeza]

As a related point, when you get the tiny, needle like spines in your fingers that you can’t see, put some Elmer’s glue on the area. When it dries you can peal it off and it pulls them out.

I didn’t even think of that thank you yeah I can’t really see any of them but they keep poking me.

 

[RosemaryDW]

As a related point, when you get the tiny, needle like spines in your fingers that you can’t see, put some Elmer’s glue on the area. When it dries you can peal it off and it pulls them out.

That’s awesome. I remove them by putting masking tape on wherever I got stuck and pulling it off; some of the spines come off but it takes a few yanks to get it all. Your way sounds much better.