A recent incident in Oklahoma serves as a stark reminder of this risk.
As Canada's leader in equine nutrition, Mad Barn thanks The Rider for featuring this story.
When it comes to feeding your horse, providing them the wrong feed can have catastrophic consequences. One of the most dangerous threats commonly found in livestock feed is a class of medications called ionophores. Ionophores like monensin are intended to promote growth and prevent diseases in cattle, poultry, and ruminants. However, these medications are highly toxic to horses. Ionophore contamination in horse feed can lead to severe outcomes, including heart failure, neurological damage, and, tragically, death.
Ionophore toxicity in horses is fast acting and often lethal. Symptoms can appear within hours of ingestion and may include lethargy, colic, incoordination, excessive sweating, diarrhea, and collapse. Despite prompt veterinary care, including removing the horse’s access to the contaminated feed and providing them supportive treatment, most horses with ionophore poisoning do not survive. Even those that manage to recover often suffer long-term heart damage and other health complications. In this context, ensuring your horse’s feed is safe from ionophores is not just important — it’s vital.
A recent incident in Oklahoma serves as a stark reminder of this risk. At a single ranch, 70 horses tragically died after consuming feed contaminated with monensin. The contamination occurred at the feed mill where the horse feed was produced. While monensin is safe for cattle and other livestock, due to inadequate separation of production lines, the feed produced for horses at the same facility became tainted with this harmful substance.
This tragic event highlights a broader issue: the risks of cross-species feed production. Feed mills that manufacture products for multiple animal species run the risk of cross-contaminating equine feed with harmful ingredients intended for other animals. Although there are FDA and CFIA guidelines in place to mitigate this risk, such as ensuring equipment is thoroughly cleaned between production batches, the reality is that mistakes can happen. When cattle and poultry feeds are produced in the same facility as equine feeds, even small errors can lead to disastrous outcomes.
That’s why choosing equine-only feed producers is one of the best ways to protect your horse. At Mad Barn, we are committed to producing feeds specifically for horses in a facility that processes no other animal feed. This exclusive focus on equine nutrition eliminates the risk of cross-contamination with dangerous substances like ionophores. Our robust quality control processes further ensure the safety and purity of every batch of feed we produce.
Mad Barn’s dedication to equine safety means horse owners can have complete confidence in the products they use. By choosing brands that are equine-only, you’re taking an essential step to safeguard your horse’s health, ensuring that what’s meant to fuel and nourish your equine companion doesn’t accidentally become a life-threatening hazard.
Source: MadBarn