Re: RC: Almonds (was: eating)

[Kim <kim@redhorsetech.com>]

> Well, in that pasture are almond trees----which are now very
> well pruned. The vet was here and told me my horses looked great!
> Especially the pregnant mares in pasture---two things--some of them are
> geldings and the rest weren't bred this year due to our move. I asked
> him if almonds were good for horses and he replied"the deers sure like
> them".
> Sooo, are almonds good for horses---and what pray tell do I supplement
> them with? This is a first for me. My horses are used to alfalfa and
> forage. Can anyone shed some light?
> Thanks.
> Bette
> 

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Hi Bette,

There are two major types of almond trees grown for production: the
"Prunus amygdalus dulcis" and the "Prunus amygdalus amara"... the "sweet
almond" and the "bitter almond", respectively.

If your horses have been chomping down on the bitter almond, you may
want to consider either fencing the trees off or removing the horses
completely from that area.  Bitter almond is not generally edible,
although it's oil is used to make flavoring extracts and some
medications.  The bitter almond contains a high level of a toxin known
as cyanogenic glycoside.  All plants produce this toxin when they form
ethylene (the gas produced to allow fruits to fully ripen) --- the
difference between the bitter almond and other seemingly non-toxic
plants is the *amount* of glycosides produced per kilogram of plant
tissue.  Other plants which produce
higher-than-humans-would-be-comfortable-with levels of cyanogenic
glycosides includes sorghum, Johnson grass, Sudangrass, white clover,
apple seeds, braken fern, flax seed, and others.

Small curious amounts of bitter almond may not harm your horse, although
larger quantities may be a problem.  For example, the cyanide content of
bitter almond may be around 250 mg per 100 grams of plant tissue.  The
lethal dose has been reported to be from 0.5 to 3 mg of cyanide per
kilogram of body weight (unfortunately, I do not know which livestock
species this represents).  Flax is on the order of 53 mg of cyanide per
100 grams of plant tissue, while sorghum forage is 250 and arrow grass
is around 77 mg of cyanide per 100 grams of plant tissue.

Now, the other type of almond, the "sweet almond", is produced for human
consumption.  These nuts are safe to eat and do not have the same high
level cyanogenic properties as the bitter almond.  The sweet almond's
hull is a byproduct feed that can be used in equine and ruminant feed
rations for increasing the energy and fat content, and is generally safe
to use.  In my experience, I have found one drawback to these hulls ---
if not processed, the size of the hull can cause a choke problem with a
greedy eater or a horse with any impairments to swallowing.  The hulls
are kind of tough n' rubbery, and not easily chewed.  But that's a whole
'nother story :-).  

Hope it helps a bit --- and since your happy, healthy horses are
probably eating sweet almond, I envy them.  Dipped in chocolate...
yummmmm!

Kim (drooling at the thought of chocolate-dipped almonds)  and 'Lee, the
old, lovable QH mutt-horse who prefers Pepsi, Skittles, and sherberts.


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