What plants are common causes of gestation problems in horses?

Question

I know about fescus being bad for mares in late gestation but I've heard that there are other plants as well. I've done a search but can not find other information.

Answer 1

Watch wild cherry. While it growing live and being eaten FRESH off the tree is seemingly ok, if you have alot of cherry trees in your pasture and have a storm where a branch gets broken and the leaves wilt and the horse eats the wilting leaves it can kill them. Cattle also.

Answer 2

locoweed

tall fescue

ryegrass

grain...corn and wheat

American tropical morning glory

Sleepy grass

These are all ergot alkaloids....

Answer 3

There are many toxic plants.  However when given a choice most horses will avoid toxic plants if they have an alternative.

In addition to those black bunny mentioned, some horses develop a taste for the fiddlehead's of ferns.  Large quantities can cause stiffness and sluggish movements.  Such horses can also take in a lethal dose.

Other common paster plants that can cause problems are buttercup--small yellow flowers with shiny interior

hemlock--looks like carrot leaves, white flowers similiar to queen anne's lace but flower clusters much smaller

sudan and johnson grass--tall grasses, too high in prussic acid,  Sudan is actually sold as seed, furtunately you can buy a low prussic acid sudan.

Alsike clover--agin too high in prussic acid unless low prussic acid alsike is purchased

white clover--during parts of the year developes a fungus that cuases problems.  Fortunately no deaths have been reported in the US that I know of.  A few deaths have occurred in Great britain.  In the US the main affect seems to be excessive slobbering.  Little other effect is noticed and large quantities have to be taken in England to cause problems.

Luckily horses avoid all of these plants if they can.  They will eat many of them however if they are dried and stored as hay.