© 2022 Copyright Statement dolor sit amet, consetetur sadipscing User Terms, sed diam nonumy eirmod tempor invidunt ut labore et dolore magna aliquyam erat, sed diam voluptua. At vero eos et accusam et justo duo dolores et ea rebum. Stet clita kasd gubergren, no sea takimata sanctus est Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet.
You need to be logged in to fill out this form
Register Below...
Can Wildfire Ash Make Pastures Unsafe for Horses to Eat?
A: This is a great question given how many horse owners in the Western states are finding themselves dealing with ash in their horses’ environment. I have a number of friends in Northern California and Oregon who are reporting a blanket of ash over the plants in their yards, and obviously this ash is also accumulating on pastures and stacks of hay and around the barns where horses are kept. Many of us have read the warnings about looking after our horses’ lung health during the poor air quality these wild fires cause; however, the question remains, is it safe for horses to graze pastures or other forages that might result in the consumption of ash?
Thankfully, researchers associated with the University of California, Davis, took the initiative to study ash’s impact on forages fed to livestock during the Camp Fire in 2018. They looked at 26 irrigated pastures, 20 haystacks, and 15 corn silage piles. These forages were located throughout California; some were impacted by wildfire smoke and ash while others were not. Researchers analyzed all samples for various heavy metals and minerals, as well as a large number of organic compounds such as pesticides, environmental contaminants, drugs, and other natural products.
The researchers found that minerals such as iron, zinc, and manganese varied by forage source but not by the presence of ash. Copper was higher in fields not affected by ash. They identified some organic compounds of interest, such as caffeine in pasture and ethoprophos (an insecticide) in pasture and hay. However, none of the organic compounds identified were associated with forage type or geographic region. It’s possible they were either naturally occurring compounds in the plants being analyzed or legacy chemicals (residues from a previous point in time). The samples containing these compounds were randomly distributed, meaning they weren’t all from wildfire-impacted areas. Therefore, the researchers did not believe they were the result of smoke and
Create a free account with TheHorse.com to view this content.
TheHorse.com is home to thousands of free articles about horse health care. In order to access some of our exclusive free content, you must be signed into TheHorse.com.
Start your free account today!
Already have an account?
and continue reading.
Written by:
Clair Thunes, PhD
Related Articles
Suppressing Undesirable Behavior in Mares
Positive Reinforcement in Practice
Advances in Diagnosing Equine Dental Disease
Understanding Classical Conditioning in Horses
Stay on top of the most recent Horse Health news with
FREE weekly newsletters from TheHorse.com
Sponsored Content
PulseVet Shock Wave Therapy for Horses
Noltrex®Vet for Equine Joint Maintenance
Equine is MinXray’s Past, Present and Future
Weekly Poll
Readers’ Most Popular
Feeding the Foot: Nutrition For Equine Hoof Health
What’s New in Preventing and Treating Laminitis in Horses
Conditioning Arthritic Horses: Do’s and Don’ts
Senior Horses: Living the Good Life
Top Categories