Equines & Toxic Plants: A Mismatched Pair
Losing a horse is traumatic
under any circumstances, but the preventable loss of one due to lack of
information on toxic plants and poisoning is devastating as well as unnecessary. Often, the
simple awareness of the possibility of such an event is sufficient for its
prevention.
Livestock
losses due to poisonous plants have been estimated at $340 million annually in
the 17 Western states alone. Each
year, 3 to 5 percent of the cattle, sheep, and horses in western ranges are
negatively affected by the ingestion of poisonous plants. Due to
physiological, physical, and behavioral characteristics, horses and other
equines may be much more highly susceptible to the toxins in many plants than
most horse owners realize.
There is a
shortage of comprehensive and concise resources on the subject of equines and
toxic plants, and therefore this website was created. Its goal is to assist in
educating horse owners and others in the equine fields on the prevalence of
toxic plants in pastures and the effects that ingestion of or contact with them
may have on equines.
During the
course of this study, there has been little published literature found on the
differences between the equid species: horses, draft horses, ponies,
donkeys/burros, mules, and miniatures. Therefore, until such information is
published, at which point it will be added to this website, all equids will be
included when using the terms 'horses' and 'equines'. The only real distinction
will be in size: the smaller the animal, the smaller the amount of toxic
material necessary to cause problems.
Included in this website are
several sections:
-
a synopsis with several informational pages
on specific equine, plant toxicity, and
poisoning prevention issues;
-
a FAQ page for quick
answers to common questions;
-
a database that includes
nearly 350 plants in the U.S. that are known to be poisonous to equines,
listed by common name, scientific name, and
growth form;
-
a bibliography and
citations page that also contains a number of links to other helpful
resources; and
-
a contacts page with
information regarding the author and links to the department and
university.
This site is in no way
intended to replace your veterinarian; rather, it is to provide a resource that
can't readily be found elsewhere. Its goal is to supply information
helpful in the prevention, identification, and successful treatment of plant
poisonings in equines.
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