Is Australian pine poisonous to horses? EMERGENCY!

Question

Please I need like an immediate answer! I read somewhere that pine needles (I dont know if they refer to any pine) can be toxic if it's consumed over a long period of time which can cause renal (kidney) disease.

The scoop:

Recently my healthy 5 y/o mare has gotten sick. She is not eating anything, and so has lost some weight. We thought it might be her teeth so we got them floated right away. That didnt help so we called out the vet. He started giving her antibiotics which she has yet to respond to, and took some blood to analyze. He also pumped mineral oil into her stomach to make sure her bowls werent impacted and they arent.

He then told us later when the results were in that something was indeed very wrong. He said she has a kidney infection. She has never been sick before! Any information on Australian Pine would be very helpful! I think she has been poisoned!

**This is not colic! Please, no colic c**p!**

Answer 1

pine needles have a lot of acid in them at least the ponderosa pines out here do and has been know to produce renal failure,neurological diseases and abortions of cattle and other ruminants.your vet may need to do a check for ulcers in the throat and stomach.

Answer 2

yes

Answer 3

I know that you are worried and don't really want to read c**p but horses rarely eat anything that is not natural to them. Yes they will over eat grain and such but not usually something out for grazing unless there isn't anything else offered. Have you sprayed anything that may have wind drifted to the grazing area? Roundup for weeds etc that sort of thing?  We are usually so careful about pesticides.

If you are watching her go down hill the first thing I would do is get a second opinion. Vets may excell in regular stuff but it sounds like you need a super vet in a hurry.

Good luck EM