Officials from the Tennessee Farmers Cooperative in LaVergne, Tenn., have recalled four lots of horse feed after three horses\’ deaths in Tennessee were linked to the feed.
The 10 percent grain mix was contaminated with rumensin (monensin sodium) at the TFC feed mill in Rockford, Tenn. The feed was distributed between Oct. 10 and 25 to five TFC feed outlets in East Tennessee and one store in northeastern South Carolina.
Monensin is particularly lethal to horses. A dose of 1 to 3 milligrams per kilogram of equine body weight can kill more than 50 percent of the horses that eat it.
Horses with monensin poisoning become progressively weaker, uncoordinated, disoriented and often colic. They also may have labored breathing and profuse sweating before death.
John Niver, a nutritionist at the TFC, explained that the rumensin contaminated the horse feed as a result of a mechanical failure. Horse and cattle feed are mixed in a tub-type mixer. “It\’s a metal mixer that has ribbons that move the feed back and forth. After it\’s mixed, it\’s discharged and conveyed through the remainder of the system,” explained Niver.
ADVERTISEMENT
“Rumensin is given to cattle as a product to improve feed efficiency and enhance the rate of growth,” said Niver. “It\’s also used as a prevention for coccidiosis [a protozoal infection].”
Lot number 4287593638 was pulled off the shelves after the first horse died in Tennessee. “We did further investigation at the request of the Food and Drug Administration, and they wanted us to recall some additional lot numbers, which we did,” said Niver.
Lots 4283593638, 4287593638 and 4290593638 were also recalled.
This is the first time that the TFC has had trouble with rumensin contamination. “We\’ve increased our security and updated our mixing procedures to reduce the possibility of this re-occurring,” said Niver. They will continue to mix both horse and cattle feed in the same machines.
Customers who purchased 10 percent Grain Mix with the specified lot numbers shouldn\’t continue to store or use this product; they should return the feed to their dealer for replacement. Anyone who has fed these particular feeds to their horses should immediately contact their veterinarian.
