Ragwort - the truth and the myths

I've got a few turn of the century 1900 era horse books which mention it and he was being poisonous, and also recall it being described in some children's pony stokes from the 60s, so predates the vet quite a bit.

What a very strange person...
 
ycbm said:
Myth. Oxford ragwort is sencio squalidus and is definitely the plant which horse lovers have been pulling up for fifty years that I know of, because it's poisonous to horses.




Presumably this is not a survey of Oxford ragwort, then. It has spread throughout the Peak Park in the last twenty six years when it was previously never seen above 800 feet. It has also been recorded, I believe, as being spread along verges by council cutting programs.



I only got that far. I'm not giving up pulling it up any time soon.
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I have been pulling ragwort from horses fields over 800ft in the Peak District for over 40 years! (And will continue to do so.)
 
JillA said:
Very interesting reading

From www.ragwortfacts.com (copied and pasted to save you all looking up the link)

This is biased and worthless article. And VERY DANGEROUSLY MISLEADING.

Having had horses with liver damage from ragwort consumed in an 8 acre field of good grass cover, where we were actively pulling but didn't consistently beat it. I DO NOT subscribe to the idea it isn't that toxic, or that horses wont eat it if have access to good grass. Or wont eat it if it is actively growing and not dried.

PS Having been refused my offer to pay to spray fields twice, and been unable to consistently get on top of it pulling, despite 70 plus hours working at it, I moved yards. Lesson learnt. Zero tolerance for ragwort! Horses recovered as damage whilst shown on liver biopsy as unquestionably ragwort signature was reversible.
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Has his been written by someone trying to convince themselves it’s ok because they can’t be bothered to deal with it??

I was out there yesterday doing yet another load in my bigger field that had popped up while the girls were over on the smaller one. I then cleared the bordering path. Having lost a horse to liver disease, unknown as to whether caused by previous ragwort exposure before she came to me, it’s not something I ever wish to witness again.
 
This thread is potentially harmful in my opinion by playing down ragwort and the danger it poses.

Fact : ragwort is toxic and can prove fatal to horses who eat it, deal with it in the paddocks, full stop.
 
What a load of cobblers. Honestly. Not removing poisonous plants from pasture is pure laziness. Ragwort is one one those plants. Get off your bum and get rid of it. The cinnabar moths etc can go live on the roadside, where ragwort is in abundance, they don't need to be in with the horses.

A nailed on fact is that horses can't be sick. That means that what goes in one end HAS to go through the whole GIT, be it good for the horse or bad, the damage is done. Providing safe feed stuff free from poison is a basic requirement of any responsible horse owner. Do we not already deal with enough colic and laminitis from horses making poor feed choices of stuff that is NOT inherently poisonous, without adding to pain and suffering by allowing access to ACTUAL poisons?
 
Kinda re-assuring that the Great British Lunatic, sorry Eccentric, is still alive and well.

Of all the weird obsessions......

PS Just thought...Knottenbelt...suspiciously close to Knotweed.....probably a plot to exterminate our noble RAGWORT and allow Knotweed to take over.....
 
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turnbuckle said:
Kinda re-assuring that the Great British Lunatic, sorry Eccentric, is still alive and well.

Of all the weird obsessions......

PS Just thought...Knottenbelt...suspiciously close to Knotweed.....probably a plot to exterminate our noble RAGWORT and allow Knotweed to take over.....
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That website has been around for YEARS. At one point he was sharing it around all the forums. I had a right go at him on one of them and gave him a chemistry lesson. His response was to threaten the forum admin with legal action - on what basis I have no idea but he's a certified nutjob with a degree from the university of Google...
 
I remove it from my grazing although I do think the risks posed to horses with access to enough alternatives can be exaggerated. It is a native plant and has coexisted with horses for a few thousand years at least in this country.
 
The biggest risk to livestock is certainly when ragwort is wilted/dry but shouldn't dismiss issues in grazing, even if there is other forage, much depends on the situation and individual animal.
Domestication and selective breeding are known to influence grazing ability of animals so can't always rely on 'instinct', owners need to be vigilant, especially with respect to first year plants in grazing.
 
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