The International League for the Protection of Horses (ILPH) has claimed that equine vets should be doing more to warn clients about a ragwort epidemic sweeping the UK. It is feared that the wet weather of the summer has left many fields being left uncut allowing the deadly weed to increase in numbers.
Ragwort poisoning is usually fatal and most animals die after a period of loss of condition, depression, uncoordinated movements or loss of appetite. Owners are being urged to help eradicate ragwort from fields in the UK where horses graze to prevent suffering to their horses and ponies. Ragwort, along with five other weeds, is covered by the provisions of weeds act 1959, allowing the secretary of state to enforce the land occupier to take action on pasture that is considered a risk.