Nutritionist > Equine
Horses
Problems commonly associated with mycotoxicosis include:
- Reduced growth rates
- Decreased appetite
- Poor performance
- Colic
- Respiratory problems
- Hypersensitivity
- Reduced reproductive performance
- Increased susceptibility to disease
- Brain lesions
- Neurological disorders
- Organ damage especially liver, kidneys
The degree of exposure to mycotoxins i.e. length of time and the concentration of mycotoxin in the feed will affect the symptoms shown. For example long-term exposure to low levels of mycotoxins may produce quite vague symptoms. In addition contaminated feed is likely to contain more than one fungal species and therefore multiple mycotoxins. It is also known that mycotoxins can act synergistically with other toxins.
Other factors will also affect the response of horses to mycotoxin exposure including age, workload, stress level, nutritional status and immune status of the horse. Horses in hard work or lactating are likely to have much higher intakes of cereal-based concentrate feeds and this should also be taken into account, when assessing possible mycotoxin involvement.
Optimising feed quality is vital for reducing mycotoxin levels in equine diets. Mouldy feeds should never be fed to horses even though they might not necessarily contain mycotoxins. In addition, significant concentrations of mycotoxins may be found in equine bedding such as straw and shavings and this should not be overlooked where mycotoxicosis is suspected. Straw may already be contaminated with significant concentrations of mycotoxins at the time of harvest, although any type of bedding may be contaminated during unfavourable storage conditions. It is important to note that mycotoxins may be present in bedding and feedstuffs even though they do appear to be fungus free.
In order to effectively recognise mycotoxicosis, horses should be carefully monitored for symptoms, particularly poor performance and respiratory problems in working horses or problems with fertility and pregnancy and poor growth in breeding stock. These vague symptoms should be investigated for possible mycotoxin involvement. Symptoms are often very general and can greatly vary between mycotoxins, making proper diagnosis difficult. Careful recognition of symptoms and post-mortem analyses combined with adequate feed analyses, provide the most accurate means of a mycotoxicosis diagnosis.
