Poisonous Plants and trees to horses

1
Poisonous Plantsand trees to horses

• By
• Casey Hering and
• Deborah Lantin-Leonard

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How do horse get Plant Poising

• Horse usually get plant poising by the lack of
  knowledge by the owner on poisonous plants.
• Horse usually will not eat these plant but when
  there is a lack of food in the pasture horse will
  turn to eating poisonous.
• Another way is by a forin poisonous plant to make
  its way into the hay that you are feeding.
• So here is some common poisonous plants that are
  hazardous with horse.

3
Black walnut

• Juglans nigra
• Large forest trees, very tall with large leaves
  and fruit is a large cased nut
• Grown across US for ornamental purposes
• Toxin is not well known but is moderately toxic
• Symptoms include laminitis, slight cases of colic
  and difficult breathing
• Treatment would include cooling of hooves, oral
  detoxification if ingested. Prevention would
  include not using bedding with black walnut
  shavings and removal of trees

4
Bracken Fern

• Pteridium aquilinum
• Leaves are triangular, plant can be 2-3 ft tall
  and grows in clusters
• Across North America, minus dry climate and
  desert areas
• Toxin is thiaminase, which blocks absorption of
  thiamin also known as vitamin B1
• Symptoms are those of neural dysfunction lack of
  coordination, etc. Also weakness and weight loss
• Treatment would include large doses of thiamin

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Common Milkweed

• Botanic Name
• Asclepias Syriaca
• Plant description
• The milkweed plant is 1.5cm tall with narrow
  leaves Umbellate clusters of the flower, petal
  are in many colors and has fruit fusiform
  follicles
• Location
• All across the North American continent but high
  population in the south
• Dangerous plant parts and toxins
• Stems, Leaves and roots. Toxins have not been
  confirmed, but it could possibly pregnane
  glycosides
• Symptoms
• Colic, Uneasiness, Ataxia, Weakness of pelvic
  limbs, trembling, falls, mydriasis, profuse
  sweating, tetanic seizures, neck bowed and
  thoracic limbs flexed, later clonic types with
  paddling movements
• Treatment
• Provide sedation

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Hounds tongue

• Cynoglossum officinale
• Leaves alternate, has a rough hairy stem, 3-4 ft
  tall and flowers are blue to purple
• Grows across the US, mainly on range, waste lands
  and on roadsides
• Toxin is an alkaloid
• Symptoms include ataxia, anorexia, depression,
  bloody feces and can lead to death
• Treatment would include removal from area and
  detoxification

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Larkspur

• Delphinium tricorne
• Short plant with lobed leaves that bears a long
  cluster of white, blue or purple flowers
• Grows across US but main threat in western area
  range lands
• Toxins are a combination of alkaloids which
  inhibits reaction between nerves and muscles
• Symptoms include ataxia, salvation, bloating,
  constipation and even death
• Treatment is prevention. Removal of animal or
  plant. Supportive care with little interaction
  with animal

8
Locoweedaka Crazy Weed

• Botanic Name
• Oxytropis Lambertii
• Plant Description
• The Locoweed is 50 cm tall, with the leaves being
  1-pinnately and the five petals are usually
  colors of petals are white, yellowish, pink,
  violet, or purple
• Location
• Western half of the continent in the North
  America
• Dangerous Plants Parts and Toxins
• All of the plant
• Symptoms
• Horses will stand with head and neck down as if
  asleep, gait is stiff-legged
• Treatment
• 3-4 mg reserpine I.m. this is temporary horse

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Lupine

• Lupinus species
• 5 petal leaf, flowers can range from blue to
  purple and yellow to white
• Grows in western rangelands, dry areas
• Toxin is Lupinine, a type of alkaloid
• Symptoms include salvation, ataxia and seizures
• Treatment would include oral detoxification and
  control of seizures

10
Mustard

• Botanic Name
• Brassica (wild mustard)
• Plant Descrtion
• The Mustard plant is 1-15 cm tall, the leaves are
  simple, alternate, basal and cauline. The flowers
  4 petals of a yellow or yellow-white
• Location
• In North America
• Dangerous Plant Parts and Toxins
• All Parts of the plant and especially the seeds.
  The toxin are sulfides, disulfides, trisulfides,
  thiosulonates from S-methyl-L-cysteine sulfoxide
  (SMCO).
• Symptoms
• Dark urine, PCV decline up to 30, temporary
  loss of appetite and weakness.
• Treatment
• Not need in all most all case

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Poison hemlock

• Botanic Name
• Conium Maculatum
• Plant Description
• The Poison Hemlock is 3 m tall, leaves are 2-4
  pinnately,with the petals being white
• Location
• Across the North American continent except the
  deserts, high population in the great plains
• Danger plant parts and toxins
• The toxins are Volatile Pyridine alkaloids,
  coniine, N-methylconiine and ?-coniceine
• Symptoms
• Early phase- nervousness,tremors, muscular
  weakness, ataxia, excess salivation and
  lacrimation, groaning, increased urination,
  colic.
• Later phase- depression and narcosis,
  bradycardia, hypothermia, respiratory. Recovers
  in 8 hours
• Treatment
• Administer activated charcoal orally to the horse
  

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Red Maple

• Botanic Name
• Acer Rubrum
• Plant Description
• The Red Maple is Medium-size tree, with smooth
  grayish bark. The leaves have 3-6 lobed. During
  the fall leaves change appearance to reddish
  brown color.
• Location
• Found in the Estern half of the North America
  continent or as other wise as ornamental
• Dangerous Plant Parts and toxins
• Leaves, Fallen Leaves, Damaged, or Wilted, Toxin
  has not been Identified
• Symptoms
• It is a Quickly Progressive in day several days
  of consumption. Depression, lethargy, anorexia,
  red to brown urine, a Hematologic change
• Treatment
• Give fluids, may need to give Whole blood,
  Activated charcoal, 30 Mg/kg b.w. I.v. or give
  orally 3-4 times that amount every 12 hours.

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St. Johnwart

• Hypericum perforatum
• Leaves are 5 petal with black spots on edges,
  grows like a vine and have bright yellow flowers
• Grows across US in drought areas and on
  over-grazed lands
• Toxin is hypericin, which is absorbed and causes
  photosensitization, or sunburn
• Symptoms include swollen, sun burnt and tender
  skin. Blindness, peeling skin and can lead to
  coma/death
• Treatment includes removal of animal from plant,
  confinement in shaded areas and veterinary
  assistance if skin is peeling

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Tall Fescue

• Tall Fescue
• Festuca arundinacea
• Grass plant that can grow to be 5 ft tall,
  tufted, with a seed/grain head that can be 4-10
  inches long
• Widely known grass that grows across US, known as
  a pasture grass
• Toxin is available in the summer months that
  affects horses, summer fescue toxicosis. Toxin
  comes from plant contaminated with endophytic
  fungus
• Symptoms include weight gain, reproductive
  problems, fever and poor doers
• Treatment is prevention in this case. Some
  supportive care can be taken

15
Water Hemlock

• Botanic Name
• Cicuta Douglasii
• Plant Description
• The Water Hemlock is 2.5 m tall, with stout
  hollow stems, lower stem and upper root
  chambered, leaves that are 1-3-pinnately, the 5
  small petals are usually white.
• Location
• Across the North America continent along streams,
  ponds or in marshy areas
• Dangerous Plant Parts and toxins
• Acetylenic alcohols, cicutoxin and cicutol
• Symptoms
• Violent muscular activity, three stages twitching
  of lips, nose, face and ears, then champing of
  jaws with grinding of teeth as the head and neck
  thrown backwards then the horse goes in to
  prolonged seizure. Death may happen with in 1-8
  hours of consumption
• Treatment
• The horse needs sedation, 30 mg/kg b.w
  pentobarbital, 75 mg atropine

16
Yellow Star Thistle

• Botanic Name
• Centaurea solstitalis
• Plant Description
• The Yellow Star Thistle is 30-175 cm tall, the
  leaves are simple, alternating, upper usually
  reduced,it has a ray florets absent and disk
  florets yellow or purple
• Location
• Western half of the North America continent,it
  is an aggressive invader of pasture
• Dangerous Parts of Plant and toxins
• Symptoms
• The horse is impaired eating, drinking and
  apprehension, locomotive difficulties, head low
  and other. The disease is permanent but not
  progressive after a few days
• Treatment
• The treatment for a horse is providing care,
  food, water and vitamin supplements

17
Yellow and White Sweet clover

• Melilotus officinalis and M alba
• Leaves alternate, 3 leaflets with yellow or white
  flowers, grows 3-5 ft tall
• Grows in alkaline soils, on roadsides and
  ditches. Northern and Southern US
• Toxin is dicoumarol. Coumarin from the plant is
  converted to dicoumarin, which thins the blood
• Symptoms include weakness, anorexia, visual
  bleeding and death
• Treatment includes blood transfusion or Vitamin
  K1 shots

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References

• http//cal.vet.upenn.edu/projects/poison/plants/pp
  lupin.htm
• http//www.manesandtailsorganization.org/toxic.htm
  l
• http//www.spokanecounty.org/weedboard/pdf/2004Tox
  icPlants.pdf
• http//extension.oregonstate.edu/linn/content1/poi
  sonplants.php
• http//www.vet.purdue.edu/depts/addl/toxic/byanim.
  htm
• http//ohioline.osu.edu/b762/b762_24.html
• George E. Burrows Ronald J.Tyrl Handbook of
  Toxic Plants of North America, Blackwell
  Publishing 2006