Watch out, sycamore seeds about!

Five ways to keep your pony safe from eating sycamore seeds

Did you know that sycamore seeds can be poisonous for your pony? Although their funny helicopter shape may seem harmless, if he eats them he could be in danger of contracting a nasty disease called atypical myopathy. This disease mainly affects the muscles, but it also causes severe colic and can even be fatal.

The toxic dose of sycamore seeds varies – it could be less than 100 or several thousand seeds needed to make your pony poorly. So, it’s best to eliminate the risk altogether. Even though he wouldn’t usually choose to eat the seeds, if his field’s bare he’s at a greater risk of ingesting them. Therefore, you should take practical steps to help prevent the disease.

Here are five ways that’ll help you banish all trace of sycamore seeds from your pony’s field…

Identify trees Check the area around your pony’s field, as well as ones nearby. The trees are easier to identify in summer when they’re in full bloom – so keep an eye out for the typical maple leaf shape – it’s usually easy to spot!

Collect seeds or avoid keeping your pony in affected areas Collecting seeds can be time consuming, but it’s worth it to keep your pony safe! Alternatively, you can use electric fencing to section off areas where seeds tend to land.

Feed hay To prevent your pony from foraging for short blades of grass and risk ingesting seeds, feed him hay in the field. Make sure the hay doesn’t become contaminated from falling seeds, though.

Don’t cut trees when loaded with seeds If you notice trees in or around your pony’s field, avoid getting them cut down when they’re full of seeds – it’ll quickly contaminate the pasture!

Monitor your pony If you think your pony might be unwell, keep an eye on him for a few days after he’s been moved from the affected field – the disease doesn’t always show up rig