The name ‘Staggers’ gives you a good indication of what happens to horses when afflicted. They lose neuro-muscular co-ordination and walk like they have had a few too many drinks! There are differing opinions on the causes of Staggers – Minerals, Mycotoxins or Wobblers Syndrome?
WHAT ARE THE SIGNS?
- Muscular weakness – giving out in the hind quarters
- ‘Plaiting’ with the front legs while walking, see video here: http://calmhealthyhorses.com/neuro/staggers.html
- Heavy on the forehand, stumbling/tripping over nothing
- Uncharacteristic stopping at jumps
- Can’t seem to back up
- Standing base wide
- Trouble judging distances as if their eyesight is affected,
- Spooking at things underneath them, ie while jumping
- Being Hypersensitive to noises
- The ‘Zonked look’ (Sleepy eyed, ears askew – see pic)
- Difficulty walking downhill
- For every extreme case, where the horse develops full blown ‘staggers’ and it’s really obvious, there are hundreds of mild to moderate cases with maybe a touch of these symptoms – do not ignore them!
It is common anywhere there are cool-season grasses (NZ, the UK, lower regions of Australia).
Frequently mistaken for ‘Wobbler Syndrome’ – where there is an actual lesion affecting the vertebrae of the neck, verifiable by X-Ray and is usually only seen in younger horses.
It is advisable to investigate the other two causes of these symptoms BEFORE giving up on the horse!
WHAT ARE THE CAUSES?
There is a great deal of confusion around about ‘Staggers’. Everybody thinks it is a toxin problem whereas in actual fact there are TWO possible causes:
1. An endophyte fungus in Perennial Rye-Grass which in late summer/autumn can produce a specific mycotoxin which causes ‘Rye-Grass Staggers’ in livestock.
2. Season related mineral imbalances in ANY SPECIES of grass, whether horse-friendly or not. This is by far the most common cause as most horses who get staggers are not grazing Perennial Rye-Grass. Having ‘endophyte free’ grass doesn’t mean the horses will never go down with ‘staggers’ and no amount of toxin binder is going to help the horse if it is the mineral imbalance variety of staggers.
HOW CAN WE PREVENT IT?
A. If you don’t have a grass-free ‘Dry Lot ‘ option available to avoid exposure to the culprit grass then ensure all your horses consume as much hay as possible every day. Do whatever you can to reduce access to the fresh green Autumn grass especially any shoots which spring from the ground after a drought breaking rain
B. Horses that are kept ‘up’ on all their minerals including salt are far less susceptible. Add salt daily to their feeds along with GrazeEzy and SOS over danger periods of grass growth.
WHAT DO WE DO IF THE HORSE DEVELOPS ‘STAGGERS’?
1. Remove them from the offending pasture
2. Keep them out of trouble by putting them in a safe environment where they can’t hurt themselves by falling into ditches or fences. For obvious reasons move them off any slopes or hills to somewhere flat.
3. Feed ad-lib plain grass hay, (no rye, clover or lucerne)
4. Check salt intake, if you are not already including it in the feed make sure you do – at least a Tbsp per feed twice a day for average sized hack.
5. Give them GrazeEzy, Alleviate GOLD and / or SOS multiple times a day, either in a small plain feed of oaten or meadow chaff with some soaked beet or dissolved in water and syringed.
Time frames for regaining co-ordination vary from horse to horse but are usually around 1-10 days. If you don’t see improvements after 2-3 days please contact us to help identify what is getting in the way.
Feeding Grass Affected horses – Click here for details
For more advice, complete our complimentary Horse Questionnaire.
