Plants Toxic to Horses....

[Ingrid Taskin]

There is a great article in The Horse.d.o.t.c.o.m. on Plants that are toxic to horses.

here is the link:

http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=19321

For Florida.. pointing out these three paragraphs:

"Other plants outside pastures can be toxic to horses as well--ornamental plants used in landscaping, such as rhododendron, azalea, and yew, for example. The latter ornamental plant is an evergreen, so it and other evergreens remain toxic year-round because they never lose their leaves. Between 10 and 15 ounces of yew leaves are sufficient to kill a 1,000-pound horse.

Oleander is a leafy, flowering drought-resistant plant often used in ornamental landscaping in California and across the Southern states to Florida. It contains cardiac glycosides--naturally occurring compounds that can cause colic, loss of coordination, profuse sweating, difficulty breathing, abnormal heart function, muscle tremors, and potentially death from cardiac failure.

"A few mouthfuls of oleander leaves can be fatal to a horse," says Knight. "The toxin is similar to digitalis (a drug that comes from the foxglove plant and is prescribed to certain heart patients); it works on the heart, affecting normal heart rhythm."

Just things to keep in mind.

Ingrid

[SaddlebredShowMom]

Great reminder Ingrid.

You have to be especially careful for Oleander around here as it is a very popular ornamental plant.

Here's some pics to help you identify it:

http://consejo.bz/belize/images/poisonplants/oleander.jpg

http://images.plant-care.com/oleander-pink-809.jpg


It comes in different shades of pink and white too.

[LEOArabs]

The ASPCA maintains on its website a page a plants that are of poisonous to horses, as well as dogs & cats.  In addition, Florida Horse has a list as well as photos on their site.  I'm not sure if it is still in print, but I know it is available at the public library called "Florida Horsekeeping"- it has a wealth of information about managing a horse property in Fl.

Fortunately, most plants that are toxic are unpalatable to our equine friends, but it pays to be vigilant.

[SaddlebredShowMom]

Thanks LEOArabs.  I checked out the article on FloridaHorse(dot)com and the list is pretty extensive!

Here's the link:  http://www.floridahorse.com/poisonplants.html

[deb be]

My experience is that if nurseries sell it and or there are plants in your yard (or your surrounding neighbors)  they are more than likely poisonous to your horse in some degree.  Its always good to steer clear of the worst offenders as mentioned.  Some palm trees are very bad too. Lately I am seeing the nightshades coming back to life again in the field here and there. 

But its so dry now that w/o hay for turn out their going for the grass roots and stubble which is also bad for sand ingestion.  I'd like to see a list of what isn't poisonous, or a nursery that specializes in horse friendly landscapes.  I'm wondering what would be good for wind breaks thats not detrimental to our horses,  I have some bamboo growing strong but it has thorns and isn't what I would call horse friendly for that reason - or gardener friendly to deal with.  It goes w/o saying that they want to nibble on the leaves which I don't believe are poison, but its very hard to keep up with keeping it trimmed back to avoid thorns.

Some would say that they won't eat it if its poison and somehow they know the difference, but I've read that when some bad weeds are wilting that they are then more appetizing to the horse.  This is a great time of the year to clean up the fence rows before the spring flush of growth begins.  Some of those philodendron and rhododendron are hard if not impossible to stop once they are established.   

Poison ivy is something I keep an eye out for as I've seen my boy taste it and I am very allergic to it too.  I love this subject.  I bet there are poison mushrooms on those lists too.