Farmer’s Weekly – 23 August 2019

(Kiana) #1

horsetalk


thehorsefeed,orthefeed
hasa mustysmell,thismay
beduetofungalgrowth.In
general,commercialhorse
feedis producedbythesame
manufacturersthatproduce
livestockfeedandtheingredients
areregularlytested.
It is thereforemoreriskytomix
yourownfeed,especiallyif you
buyingredientsdirectlyfrom
farmersthatarenotsubjected
totheroutinetestingexpected
offeedmanufacturers.It is
alsoparticularlydangerousto
feedgroundnuthaytohorses
asthishasa highriskofbeing
contaminatedwithaflatoxins.


  • Sources:Singh,SDandChuturgoon,
    AA.2017.‘Acomparativeanalysis
    of mycotoxincontaminationof
    supermarketandpremiumbrand
    pelleteddogfoodin Durban,South
    Africa’.JournaloftheSouth
    AfricanVeterinaryAssociation.
    doi.org/10.4102/jsava.v88i0.1488.

  • Caloni.F andCortinovis,
    C.2011.‘Toxicologicaleffects
    of aflatoxinsin horses’.The
    VeterinaryJournal. 188(3):270 -



  1. 10.1016/j.tvjl.2010.06.002.



  • DrMacis anacademic,a practising
    equineveterinariananda studowner.
    Emailherat farmersweekly@caxton.
    co.za.Subjectline:Horses. ▪FW


T


heFoodandAgriculture
Organizationofthe
UnitedNationshas
recentlybeendistributingrapid
testsforanalysisofcereals
andgrainsusedforhuman
andanimalconsumption
indevelopingcountriesto
detectaflatoxins.It is a simple
testthatcanbeusedatfarm
level,andis reportedlybeing
suppliedtosmall-scalefarmers
inZimbabweandTanzania.
Aflatoxinsaremycotoxins
thatareproducedbytwofungi,
namelyAspergillusflavusand
A.parasiticus, whichgrowon
groundnuts,maize,treenuts,
soyabeanandotherplant-derived
ingredientsinanimalfeeds.
AflatoxinB1is a powerful
hepatocarcinogenandis
knowntocauselivercancerin
children.Assuch,it is strictly
monitoredinhumanfood.
Livestockfeedmanufacturers
arefairlycompliantwithregards
tomeasuringaflatoxinsasthey
canbetransmittedthroughmilk
andeggs.Severetoxiceffectson
dogshavebeenobserved,and
outbreakswithhighmortality
rateshavebeendescribeddue
tohighlevelsofaflatoxinindog
food.Thearticle,‘Acomparative
analysisofmycotoxin
contaminationofsupermarket
andpremiumbrandpelleteddog
foodinDurban,SouthAfrica’,
publishedintheJournalof the
SouthAfricanVeterinaryAssociation
in2017,saidthatall 20 samples
ofdogfoodsampledinthe
studycontainedmorethanthe
10 ppballowedintermsofthe
FarmFeedsandFertilizersAct.
Whilethepresenceandeffects
ofaflatoxininhorsefeedare
notwelldescribedinliterature,
it is beginningtoattractthe
attentionofhorseowners.

aflatoxinpoisoning
Theclinicalsignsofacute
aflatoxinpoisoninginhorsesare
fairlyeasytoobserveassudden
deathfollowscolic,bloodyfaeces
andbleedingfromthenostrils.
Severalhorsesusuallydieatthe
sametime.Theseacutecases
showsevereliverdamageon
postmortem.However,chronic
effectsofaflatoxinpoisoningare
noteasilyrecognisedandcan
beconfusedwitha numberof
otherdiseases.Theyincludepoor
appetite,weightloss,depression,
coughing,yellowmucous
membranes,reducedimmunity
andbrownurine.Somehorses
alsohavetremorsanda lossof
balance.Bloodtestsshowhigh
liverenzymesandanaemia,but
thismayalsooccurininfectious
diseasescarriedbyticks.Horses
withheavyburdensofintestinal
parasitessuchasbots,tapeworms
androundwormsorliverfluke
mayalsopresentwithhigh
liverenzymesandanaemia.

prevention
Aspergillusmouldsgrowin
thepresenceofmoisture.
Forthisreason,keephorse
feeddryandstoreit indoors.
If therearehardlumpsin

ABOVE:
Asaflatoxinsare
producedbyfungi
thatgrowonmaize,
soyabeanand
groundnuts,ensure
thathorsefeedis
keptdryandstored
indoors.Aflatoxin
poisoningcan
resultin death.
PIXABAY

DrmAc

Aflatoxins can cause
severe liver damage and
may result in death, says
Dr Mac. As such, proper
feed storage is crucial.

Preventing aflatoxin poisoning

23 august 2019 farmer’sweekly 45
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