Thistles

My pony loves thistles she eats the purple flower off the top then she even eats the prickly leaves! Shes done it for years and she's fine. I don't think they are poisons and i have no idea why she eats them i thought she was a freak but i'm glad someone elses horse does it to.
 
Some of the horses on my yard also like to munch them after they have been topped. Have to eat them very carefully! Mine spits them out
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Just googled horses eating thistles and apparently if a horse eats thistles it means its liver function is disrupted. So i suppose this is a natural remady. Lucy always seems fine so i'll let her carry on if it saves me some vet bills or like i said befor maybe she just a freak!
 
My last ned used to hurry over to in-flower thistles, pause to consider things carefully, curl back his lips so they were out of harm's way, then snip the flower off the top with his teeth and munch it with a look of bliss on his face. I always thought it was the horse equivalent of diving into a huge tin of Quality Street and rummaging around for your favourite! It's milk thistle that's good for supporting a damaged liver. Is milk thistle the same as our common or garden thistles?
 
Mine does a funny pursing of his lips with a shlurping/sucking method of getting the tops off thistles. He does the same with blackberries!

After my nettle questions the other day I pulled up a load of nettles last night to wilt and dry out, then got a bit field-clearing-crazy and pulled up the thistles too, to make the field look a bit neater.

They can just go on the muck heap can't they? Just my luck if I don't ask someone will eventually tell me something happens to them and they turn poisonous or something!!!
 
I wish some of you lot could send your horses our way- our field is full of thistles, which my 2 studiously avoid- dead funny watching them nibble the grass around the thistles tho!
 
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Just googled horses eating thistles and apparently if a horse eats thistles it means its liver function is disrupted

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Where did you read that? I really do not think that is correct.
 
I think some horses eat them because they like them and they are in season.

My horse likes cleavers, hawthorn flowers, leaves and berries, rose hips, dandelions as well as thistles and bay willow herb.

Its like people, I cant stand melons, but I know many people who do.
 
My horses have always ate thistles. I was told that they do this because they are sweet. My last horse didn't have a problem with his liver function as he was tested for this, I think he just liked the taste!
In the wild, horses eat all kinds of forage, they like a varied diet so a few thistles will be nice change for them.
 
I think the flowers must just taste nice as Bobby always has a look of complete bliss oh nis face as he gently plucks off the flowers & munches on them. The leaves must prick his muzzle though, as thistles and blackberries are the only foods where he doesn't just dive in & stuff himself.
 
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