What are Mycotoxins?
Mycotoxins can occur on growing, harvested or stored cereal and forage crops. Invisible to the naked eye, these toxic chemicals are produced by some types of mould growth under certain environmental conditions and can cause serious health problems for horses.
Although several hundred mycotoxins have been identified to date, much is still to be learned, but the acknowledged risk is such that their presence in human food and animal feedstuffs is strictly regulated. Mycotoxins occur in damp, humid or drought conditions and are more prevalent on mature crops, meaning that hay can be prone to higher levels of contamination than haylage, though research shows that haylage is also susceptible to mycotoxin contamination, particularly when produced under inferior production processes.
Known to be an increasing problem in Northern Europe - possibly due to changing climatic conditions - mycotoxins first came under scrutiny in the 1960's when contaminated feed resulted in the death of thousands of turkeys. Research subsequently boomed, although most of it still relates to humans and farm animals, but since horses take most, or all, of their nutritional intake from prone plant species, it makes sense to consider how mycotoxins might be affecting our equines; especially since their digestive system leaves them more susceptible than ruminants to the effects of mycotoxins.
Download our PDF information sheet here
RAO and EIPH In Performance Horses
Respiratory infections, recurrent airway obstruction (RAO) and exercise induced pulmonary haemorrhage (EIPH) are major causes of poor performance in horses. Fungi and mycotoxins are now recognised as a major cause of these conditions. The most notable fungi are Aspergillus and Fusarium. Fungal spores can originate from forage, bedding and feed and, in turn, these fungal spores can produce a series of mycotoxins as secondary metabolites.
Thomas Buckley, Alan Creighton, Ursula Fogarty Irish Equine Centre, Johnstown, Naas, Co. Kildare, Ireland
