ragwort in hay

[badhay]

Hi, I'm a regular in hiding!

My horse is on livery where haylage is provided and generally it's not great quality. I complained last week because my horse's haynet was full of really mouldy haylage and when I went to get some more to replace it with I found ragwort in the bale. The yard owner was very apologetic and said she would take it up with her supplier and in the mean time make sure all the staff were extra careful about filling nets.

Last night I went to get some extra hay for my horse and picked up a ready filled net (yard owner had given permission) and found ragwort IN THE NET and more on the bale. The whole bale was also smelly and wet

I'm thinking I don't want my horse fed from that bale at all (only one is delivered to the yard at a time, so it's that bale or nothing) so I'm planning to buy some horsehage and ask that he's fed that until the yard sort their supply out. Do you think this is reasonable? I don't suppose it'll go down all that well as it will alert the other owners to the fact that I think their hay is too poor to feed and they don't have enough storage space for everyone to have their own, but I'd rather have horsehage stored in my car than feed him that.

[jill]

Whatever it takes - there is no way I would be offering them hay from a bale with ragwort in. And TBH the others need to know as well - the YO needs to change supplier or get the existing supplier to up his game. If he has ragwort in his hay fields chances are that isn't the only bale which is contaminated.

[Catrin]

I think you are doing the yard owner, and other liveries a service by drawing attention to it.

No haylage should be in that condition. We have the large bales and have never had a bad one. When we open it the haylage smells clean and looks fairly dry. We have no undercover storage, so the bale stands out in its own wrapping, for up to two weeks if there is grass, by which time it is all gone. We only ever throw any poor haylage away in summer, from the last of the bale, when the weather is hot.

If we can feed haylage like this for eleven years, there's is a serious need for your livery owner to look at their mangement of the haylage, or their supplier.

[cuffey]

Ragwort in haylage even more dangerous than in hay as the damp conditions will leach the poison out of the ragwort into the whole bale
Please --no one should be feeding this--dead horses!!!!

[annas]

Well i would certainly be refusing to let my horse eat from any bale that has ragwort in it. As already said, if it is in that bale then chances are it will be other bales from that supplier as well.

I also think it is important that the YO and other liveries know not to feed from the bale! It really is not worth the risk.

Ragwort aside, feeding mouldy haylage carries its own health risks. Can't it cause botulism??

I think your suggestion is very fair (esp if you are paying for haylage to be included). If there is not enough room for everyone to store their own then the YO needs to sort out the supplier.

[mrsfields]

would absolutely recommend you feed your own horsehage as a matter of urgency... scary!

[badhay]

well I'm glad you all agree with me. My day is going from bad to worse. I spoke to my vet re an ongoing medical issue and mentioned the ragwort at which point he insisted on dropping everything and coming out to do a blood test for liver function. I'm waiting for the result and could throw up thinking about the possibility

[troop]

Yikes jesus that shouldnt be anywhere near any horses. Good luck with test results :/ fingers crossed for you xx

[annas]

Oh no, fingers crossed for the blood test. Hope its ok. xx

Sent from my GT-S5690 using proboards

[ladynowak]

I can we why you are worried, but don't panic. The liver is an amazing organ that if picked up early can be sorted. Get some Global Herbs Restore...infant ring global herbs and ask their advice as they are excellent and were wonderful when my boy had some liver damage due to viral hepatitis.

If the yard owner won't tell everyone at the yard, tell the other liveries.

[june]

The liver doesn't recover from ragwort poisoning. It causes scaring which doesn't go away. Yes, the liver is an amazing organ and can regenerate after a lot of things, but ragwort isn't one of them. That's why it is so dangerous. Absolutely you are doing the right thing. No one should be feeding hay or haylage that they know contains ragwort. That is a major welfare issue. Horses avoid ragwort in the field as it is bitter but they don't avoid it in hay or haylage as the bitterness disappears when it is dry. Even in the field it is dangerous as a horse may nibble it and spit it out, then those leaves dry and become palatable so could get eaten.

[ladynowak]

That was my understanding of it, but my friends horse recovered from ragwort poisoning that was picked up on a routine blood test.

[june]

It depends on how badly damaged the liver is. There is a certain amount of recovery and the liver can still function with a lot of scaring, but in most cases it is too far gone by the time you catch it.

[annas]

The liver is an amazing organ that can function even with a lot of damage. As already says it depends when the diagnosis is made.

I have my fingers crossed that the blood test comes back OK. Is there any news OP??

[specialized]

Liver damage through ragwort poisoning is progressive and cumulative and once the level of damage reaches a certain point then failure occurs. As it is generally a slow accumulation it is rarely evident until too late.
Any ragwort in hay is unacceptable and the YO has a responsibility to the liveries and could be held liable for any loss if knowingly supplying contaminated forage.