Creating a Quick Home Sale

4 Plants To Avoid Putting In Your Horse's Paddock

26 February 2015 by Lillian Bishop

Suppose you like putting plants in your garden and in the back area of your home to make your land look more attractive, but you're also thinking about getting a horse. You've set up the paddock and started to put the plants you want into it so that your horse can graze to its heart's content. However, before you can bring your new horse into this paddock, you will need to inspect if for any dangerous plants. There are many different plants that should come nowhere near a horse, because, if ingested, they can prove fatal. If you want your horse to live for a very long time while being happy and healthy, then you should avoid putting the following four plants into the paddock so that the horse's chances of getting sick are greatly decreased.

Buttercups

Buttercups may look like beautiful flowers dotting grass in your home, but they can actually be quite harmful to your horse if the animal comes into contact with them. In most cases, the horse will experience pain in its mouth if it chomps on the flower, which will discourage the horse from eating the flower. However, in rare cases, the flower may be ingested, which can lead to a wide array of health problems like colic or even death.

Hemlock

While it is widely known that hemlock is poisonous to people when ingested, many people are not aware that it is also poisonous to horses. What's so bad about hemlock? Well, simply put, it contains several neurotoxins that can essentially disrupt or shut down your horse's nervous system, thereby causing death as brain function is lost, which in turn causes all of the animal's other bodily functions to cease working.

Bird of Paradise Flower

Known for its extreme beauty, the Bird of Paradise Flower is sometimes placed in gardens in order to give a more exotic look to the area. However, this plant can be toxic to horses if consumed during grazing. In general, your horse will just display symptoms of lethargy, which means that you may be able to get a vet over to your place in time to flush the flower out of the horse's system. However, it could potentially be more toxic if not treated right away.

Oleander

Oleander is another beautiful flower that many people use in their gardens, but it should never be used in an area where horses graze or reside, because it is one of the most toxic plants out there. If ingested, the horse will more than likely die within 12–24 hours of consumption unless a veterinarian is called to the location right away and can administer emergency treatment to flush all of the components of the plant out of the horse's body.

If you truly want your horse to be around for a long time, then be a smart gardener and landscaper--don't include any of the plants mentioned above in your horse's paddock or in the surrounding area. Also, do your research to find out what other types of plants may be toxic, and have an inspector from the Bureau of Land Management or a similar agency come out and inspect the paddock to make sure it is truly secure, safe, and ready for your new four-legged friend. For more information, contact a landscaping company like CNC Lawn Care, Inc.

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