Horse Owner's Guide to Toxic Plants by Sandra McQuinn

Author:Sandra McQuinn
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781510741676
Publisher: Skyhorse
Published: 2020-06-03T16:00:00+00:00

Geographic Distribution

Southwestern Canada, south to Minnesota, South Dakota, Texas, and beyond; prairies and sandy soil, especially in arid and mountainous areas of the West.

Signs of Poisoning

Poisoning usually occurs in late winter or early spring, and symptoms may take several months to appear. Weight loss and abnormal behavior are typical of locoweed poisoning. Horses develop unpredictable behavior, including falling over and charging through fences. Affected horses should not be ridden.

What to Do

There is no effective treatment for locoweed poisoning and death will occur if the animal is not removed from the source. But once clinical signs of locoism are apparent, horses rarely recover completely even if removed from the locoweeds. A “locoed” horse should be given a poor prognosis as there will always be a risk to someone riding that horse. Pregnant mares eating woolly locoweed may produce foals with crooked legs. Prevention of locoweed consumption may be accomplished by holding animals out of locoweed areas until other forages are abundant, and by selective use of appropriate herbicides.

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