What is the truth about the level of horse deaths caused by
Ragwort? The truthful answer to this question is that nobody
knows for certain how many horses die of ragwort poisoning.
However there is sufficient research available to show that the
figure is probably not very high. A significant quantity needs
to be ingested by an animal before poisoning occurs. See Ragwort
Toxicity Ragwort poisoning does not have distinctive symptoms.
Ragwort causes destruction of the liver and any other ailment
which affects the liver in the same way will cause the same
symptoms. This is further complicated by the fact that the the
alkaloids that cause the problems are found in many other
plants. In fact they occur in 3 percent of all flowering plants.
(1) It is actually the breakdown products of these alkaloids
produced in the liver that cause the problem and there are other
sources of these too. The symptoms can only be confirmed by a
post mortem and these are often not carried out. The picture in
the UK has been distorted by