questions in the title really. does anyone know how to identify ragwort in hay or haylage before you feed it to your horse?
Thanks xx
Thanks xx
How do you know if your hay has got ragwort in it?
- Thread starter teabiscuit
- Start date
Sometimes you can see it, it tends to be much ticker and stalkier than hay.
TBH often you can't see it, you have to take the hay producers word for it or buy it from a field (straight off the field) where you have not seen any ragwort growing.
J x
TBH often you can't see it, you have to take the hay producers word for it or buy it from a field (straight off the field) where you have not seen any ragwort growing.
J x
Ragwort is an accumulative poision, damages the liver, you wouldn't know it was affecting your horse unless you had tests done or your horse developed symptoms of liver failure (like jaundice) at that point it would be too late to do anything, Thats why its so important not to graze your horse in/near a field of ragwort.
i believe that lethergy has now been recognised as a symptom of ragwort poisoning in horses, and if the liver damage is then picked up on early enough by blood test, the horse can be treated and saved.
i think this is useful information for horse owners so i'm passing it on.
any other information about how to recognise ragwort poisoning in horses as early as possible would be gratefully appreciated.
i think this is useful information for horse owners so i'm passing it on.
any other information about how to recognise ragwort poisoning in horses as early as possible would be gratefully appreciated.
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I looked after a horse on livery who suffered from Rag poisioning, the yard we were at (he had been there about 5 years and owner had him since he was 4) had no Rag anywhere.
He started to just be a little off color, not overly keen to work (he was a 17 yo ex-racer tb and normally very keen) he was still eating and peeing etc normaly. To start with we (we being livery staff and horses owner) just thought he had a low grade virus or something so gave him a few days off and kept him well wrapped up. When it didn't get any better after a couple of days the vet was called, there were discussions of azotoria as he was getting stiff and not happy to move. After bloods had been run it was found that he was heading for liver faliure.
The vet still had a small hope to pull him through, he was put onto drips and all sorts to try to flush his system etc. I stayed up for 3 days and nights to keep his drip going etc, on the third day it got very worrying, he started to stagger about and didn't really seem to be aware of what was around him anymore. That night he was PTS as the toxins in his body had reached critical lavels in his brain and he was totally unaware of his surroundings and had started walking straight into the walls and things causing himself real damage and he didn't even know it
They did further checks on him, the decided it was likely that this horse had been poisioned as a baby, probably when he was turned out after weaning before his race training. The concluded that the poisioning had been bad at that stage, but not bad enough to finnish him, the damage is never repaired and as he got older and needed treatments (drugs/wormers etc) his system had finally been overloaded, so even though his owner had always been super careful, just that short period when someone was not was then end of a really lovely chap.
Ragwort is definatly a killer, don't underestimate it, don't even risk it if you are not sure. Watching this poor horse die within 2 weeks of symptoms showing was terrible.
J x
He started to just be a little off color, not overly keen to work (he was a 17 yo ex-racer tb and normally very keen) he was still eating and peeing etc normaly. To start with we (we being livery staff and horses owner) just thought he had a low grade virus or something so gave him a few days off and kept him well wrapped up. When it didn't get any better after a couple of days the vet was called, there were discussions of azotoria as he was getting stiff and not happy to move. After bloods had been run it was found that he was heading for liver faliure.
The vet still had a small hope to pull him through, he was put onto drips and all sorts to try to flush his system etc. I stayed up for 3 days and nights to keep his drip going etc, on the third day it got very worrying, he started to stagger about and didn't really seem to be aware of what was around him anymore. That night he was PTS as the toxins in his body had reached critical lavels in his brain and he was totally unaware of his surroundings and had started walking straight into the walls and things causing himself real damage and he didn't even know it
They did further checks on him, the decided it was likely that this horse had been poisioned as a baby, probably when he was turned out after weaning before his race training. The concluded that the poisioning had been bad at that stage, but not bad enough to finnish him, the damage is never repaired and as he got older and needed treatments (drugs/wormers etc) his system had finally been overloaded, so even though his owner had always been super careful, just that short period when someone was not was then end of a really lovely chap.
Ragwort is definatly a killer, don't underestimate it, don't even risk it if you are not sure. Watching this poor horse die within 2 weeks of symptoms showing was terrible.
J x
problem is Jessey you can only take the farmers word for it that the hay is clean, unless you buy off the field, when you know there has been no ragwort.
i always reach a stage where i have to buy in hay/lage this time of year and it always freaks me out.
bloody awful stuff.
i always reach a stage where i have to buy in hay/lage this time of year and it always freaks me out.
bloody awful stuff.
Yeah I know its a real pain, our current yard did nothing to deal with Rag last year, I ended up spending hours pulling it in the field mine are in, some of the others still had loads in august where they did nothing, that to me is just plain irresponsible
I know what you mean about hay, you really are in the farmers hands there , all I do is try to have a look at at least some of his hay fields and see if there is any Rag, and if I see hay being baled on a field with Rag I try to find out who owns it so I know not to have hay off them in future.
I just thought I would tell that story to help remind people why we worry about it, and also that often by the time the symptoms arise its to late and that relying on seeing them in time is not enough, this is one of my constant worries, after seeing that horse go the way he did I would rather tell everyone and hopefully save another from the same fate
I know what you mean about hay, you really are in the farmers hands there
, all I do is try to have a look at at least some of his hay fields and see if there is any Rag, and if I see hay being baled on a field with Rag I try to find out who owns it so I know not to have hay off them in future.I just thought I would tell that story to help remind people why we worry about it, and also that often by the time the symptoms arise its to late and that relying on seeing them in time is not enough, this is one of my constant worries, after seeing that horse go the way he did I would rather tell everyone and hopefully save another from the same fate
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One thing I am not sure about is that I was once told its only harmful when its dead? I suspect it does the same damage if eaten either way but in my old RS we got severely given out to if we attempted to pull it up, there was a day however once a year where every stalk of it was pulled up, taken to wasteland and burned. The field was then left for quite a long time. As pulling it up also helps spread the spores
(Not that it matters since I'd rather stay clear of it altogether!)
I do see a lot less of it these days, hmm?
(Not that it matters since I'd rather stay clear of it altogether!)
I do see a lot less of it these days, hmm?
Rips, when its alive ragwort tastes nasty so the horses won't eat it, when it dies (the horse can chop it down with a shod foot, or people cut it and leave it, or its cut as part of a hay crop ) it starts to turn sweet and lose its nasty taste and thats when they will eat it.
i pull it up and get rid of it as soon as i see it.
one thing puzzles me-ragwort is very toxic, and i see horses in fields of the stuff as everyone does.
when autumn comes and the ragwort dies in the field naturally as part of its life cycle, does the horse still eat it? because if so then i would expect the horse death from ragwort poisoning figures to be much greater than they are now
is there a different process involved that makes it less toxic when it dies naturally as opposed to when it is cut in the prime of its life? or are horse deaths just underestimated?
edited to say sorry cross posted Rips
, or its cut as part of a hay crop ) it starts to turn sweet and lose its nasty taste and thats when they will eat it.i pull it up and get rid of it as soon as i see it.
one thing puzzles me-ragwort is very toxic, and i see horses in fields of the stuff as everyone does.
when autumn comes and the ragwort dies in the field naturally as part of its life cycle, does the horse still eat it? because if so then i would expect the horse death from ragwort poisoning figures to be much greater than they are now
is there a different process involved that makes it less toxic when it dies naturally as opposed to when it is cut in the prime of its life? or are horse deaths just underestimated?
edited to say sorry cross posted Rips
I suspect that the number of deaths accredited to ragwort are lower than the acctual numbers, like the horse I mentioned, he had not been anywhere near the stuff for years, it was a vigilant owner willing to pay lots for tests etc and a good vet that found the true cause, without the testing done before and after death they wouldn't have known for sure.
J x
J x
I shake my hay out and check for anything suspect in it. I have found rubbish in field hay before
ETA - TO identify it, it would look like it does alive but would just be brown and crispy. To be safe just pull out anything that isnt grass!
ETA - TO identify it, it would look like it does alive but would just be brown and crispy. To be safe just pull out anything that isnt grass!
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