Warning to beware onset of grass sickness
This is the time of the year when horse owners should beware of grass sickness.Grass sickness is a disease of horses, ponies and donkeys which is manifested impaired activity of the gut due to damage to automatic nervous system.
As we approach the new season, owners must be vigilant.
Horses and ponies should be observed for any change in their normal behaviour, eating and drinking habits, which might suggest that all is not well.
The cause of equine grass sickness is not proven, but recent evidence strongly implicates the involvement of the bacterium Clostridium botulinum.
For full feature see Sussex Horse World, West Sussex Gazette, March 16.