Trees Not to Have in Your Horse Pasture

Many pastures included forested areas. These provide important shade and shelter from the wind and are a nice addition to a natural setting. But, you may want to check that there are no trees that are actually toxic to your horse. Toxic trees and shrubs in North America include:

JunipersApricot cherry, peach and plum treesLocusts, including honey and blackYewOleanderMountain LaurelBoxwoodElderberryButtonbushHorse ChestnutPines (when eaten in great quantity)Black WalnutRed OakSwamp MapleRed MapleWhite SumacWater Hemlock and Poison Hemlock

Ingesting the leaves or needles, wood or bark of these trees can be fatal. Chances are if your horse snatches a mouthful of red maple or oak leaves while trail riding, it won’t be harmed. Many of these trees, bushes or shrubs won’t be attractive to your horse. They probably don’t taste good, and if better food is available, the horse won’t touch them. But if your horse gets hungry or greedy, a stomach full of leaves or tender bark could spell trouble, however.

Because most of these toxic trees don’t taste very good, horses will leave them alone. But, during times of drought, when pasture grass is sparse, your horse might snack on the trees despite the unpleasant taste. In the springtime, emerging leaves may taste fresher to your horse than a dry hay bale. Storms can down branches, putting otherwise unattainable tempting leaves within reach. And, in the autumn leaves on the ground may be attractive to some horses. Sometimes it’s simply not practical to cut all the trees down that may be toxic.