Leaves a health risk for horses?

Foliage for horses? Only harmless in moderation
In autumn, trees, hedges and other plants lose their leaves. The discarded leaves then collect in more or less large quantities on the ground - even on horse pastures and in paddocks. Then riders and pet owners repeatedly discuss whether foliage is suitable as feed for their four-legged friends.

From a nutritional point of view foliage in healthy animals is considered harmless, except of course leaves of toxic plants. In the wild horses in the "golden season" also feed on foliage and tree fruits. And just a few decades ago, the peasants used to drive the horses into the forest whenever their food resources were in danger of becoming scarce.

Little leaves can usually be well tolerated by horses. Image: famveldman - fotolia

However, as is true for almost everything in life, here too the rule: "The dose makes the poison!". Because in contrast to today's domestic horses equidae is in the wild a sufficiently large area with countless food alternatives available.

Domestic horses do not usually have these areas. If they do not get enough hay and are hungry, they may eat too much leaves. But also the attitude of the animals is an important factor. Boredom favors curiosity, especially in young horses, and reduces their natural aversion to an unknown plant or inedible fruit. While small amounts of foliage are considered to be harmless in vital, sufficiently mineral-rich horses, metabolically ill or susceptible horses should eat only limited foliage.

In the case of fruits, the situation is often more critical: Even small amounts of fermented fallen fruit on a meadow orchard can be the cause of digestive problems. While hazelnuts are usually avoided by the horses due to their hard shell, this is less common for walnuts. The fruit peels of even green walnuts contain tannic acid, which can cause gastrointestinal discomfort and diarrhea. If the fruit peel is also attacked by fungi, their toxins can lead to nerve cramps. Even on beechnuts horses react extremely sensitive, d. H. even small amounts are lethal. Acorns, on the other hand, are considered to be beneficial for horses in small quantities and are not infrequently already part of industrially manufactured feed mixtures.
Anke Klabunde, aid