Animals may ingest pigweed due to boredom or lack of other forage. It is not particularly palatable unless it is young or has been damaged by herbicides. It accumulates toxic levels of nitrates, especially after treatment with herbicides it can also contain oxalates. Pigweed ( Amaranthus species) is a common weed that can be found in pastures, rangeland and even corrals. Post mortem findings can include hemorrhage and severe congestion of lungs. Treatment with atropine and picrotoxin may alleviate signs to some degree.
Signs of poisoning include incoordination, staggering, rapid pulse and respiration, excessive salivation, frothing from the mouth, vomiting, coma and death due to heart failure. All parts of the plant are toxic, particularly the bulbs all species of livestock can be affected. Deathcamus is of particular concern in the early spring because it is one of the first green plants to emerge and will therefore be attractive to grazing livestock, especially sheep. Toxicity is due to zygacine, a steroidal alkaloid. This toxic plant can cause human poisoning if its bulbs are confused with onions or camas ( Camassia quamash). Treatment with atropine and propranolol may lessen cardiac effects somewhat but most cases are usually fatal.ĭeathcamus ( Zigadenus venenosus and other species) is the broad name given to a genus of at least four species of native perennial herbs that are found throughout the West. Food that has touched an oleander should be considered toxic, as should smoke made from a fire fueled with oleander. Signs of poisoning appear quickly and include severe vomiting and diarrhea, swollen and inflamed oral tissues, cold extremities, dilated pupils, increased heart rate, weakness and death. A digitoxin-like cardiac glycoside, oleandrin, is responsible for this plant’s toxicity. All fresh or dry parts of the plant are toxic. Oleander ( Nerium oleander) is another extremely toxic ornamental shrub. On autopsy, yew plant parts can be identified in stomach or rumen contents. Treatment with atropine may be somewhat helpful but most cases are fatal. Signs of poisoning include vomiting, diarrhea, bloat, weakness, nervousness, trembling, difficulty breathing, incoordination, dilated pupils, decreased heart rate, convulsions, coma and death due to cardiac standstill. Livestock can ingest this plant if they gain access to landscaped lawns or if homeowners trim yew shrubs and give the trimmings to livestock. Japanese Yew ( Taxus cuspidata) is a common ornamental shrub that is extremely toxic due to the presence of taxine, ephedrine and cyanide alkaloids. During autopsy, an odor of bitter almonds can sometimes be detected in the rumen. Treatment includes sodium nitrite and sodium thiosulfate many cases die too quickly to receive treatment. Fruit from Prunus species is not poisonous but seeds and pits are. Blood and mucous membranes of affected animals are bright red. Livestock ingest Prunus plant material when other forage is unavailable and out of curiosity when a branch falls into a pasture. Signs of poisoning appear rapidly and are those of cyanide toxicity: difficulty breathing, excitement, tremors, gasping, dilated pupils, bright pink mucous membranes, bloat, staggering, involuntary urination and defecation, convulsions, coma and death due to asphyxiation. The toxic agent is a cyanogenic glycoside which makes hemoglobin unable to release oxygen at the tissue level. Wild cherry, chokecherry, black cherry, peach, apricot and cherry laurel ( Prunus species) have poisonous leaves, twigs and bark. To learn about other potential sources of plant toxicity, producers are encouraged to consult the references cited at the end of this article. The plants discussed here were selected because of their ability to cause serious illness, abundance in the PNW or other special factors. This article is in no way meant to be an exhaustive list of all the PNW’s poisonous plants. It behooves all livestock producers to become familiar with the toxic plants growing in areas where he/she pastures or houses animals. Signs of toxicity can range from as mild as brief indigestion to as severe as sudden death. Unfortunately, some of these plants are toxic to livestock. The PNW abounds with a huge variety of native and imported plants.
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