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Well-known member
Initial tests show toxins in horses' stomachs
By HOLLY HUFFMAN
Eagle Staff Writer
Brazos County stable owner Bradley Raphel said Wednesday that he had
been following a standard practice when he treated a silo of horse
feed with a chemical pesticide last weekend.
The 72-year-old said he did nothing different when applying the
chemical tablets designed to kill weevils: He used the same
treatment, in the same amount and applied it the same way as he had
hundreds of times before, he said.
"Actually, it's not even supposed to get into their feed. All it is
is a gas that extracts oxygen out of the silo and deprives weevils of
air," Raphel said Wednesday. "How that has transferred into the feed,
I don't know. Nobody seems to know the answer to that."
More than two dozen horses boarded at Raphel's facility - Carousel
Acres Equestrian Center and Stable in southern Brazos County -
mysteriously died earlier this week. One-by-one, 24 horses fell ill
and died overnight Sunday. Another three died after being taken to
Texas A&M University's Large Animal Clinic.
Eighteen more remained under close watch late Wednesday. Two were at
the A&M Clinic where they were listed in good condition, said A&M
College of Veterinary Medicine Dean H. Richard Adams.
Raphel said the other 16 still were at the stable and had been placed
on a watch list because of possible liver damage from high nitrogen
levels.
Veterinarians late Wednesday had yet to determine the cause of death
for the animals, but they continued to point to the likelihood that
the horses' feed was contaminated by an environmental toxin.
Adams said that necropsies had been done on each of the three horses
that died at the A&M clinic. All three were found to have phosphine
gas in their stomach cavity. The gas is a product of a fumigant that
is released from a tablet used to treat the horses' feed, Adams said.
The fact that the gas was found in the stomach and not in the lungs
suggests there was residue on the feed, the dean explained. But Adams
said it remained unclear why there would be residue on the feed
because a gas wouldn't normally stick to such a substance.
Veterinarians were awaiting additional test results, and Adams said
it could take several more days before a definitive cause of death is
established.
"I believe we're going to find out something else happened - what
that is, I don't know," he said, discussing the possibility that
moisture in the silo could have interacted with the gas and caused it
to adhere to the feed.
Raphel said Wednesday that representatives from both A&M and Purina,
which is the brand of feed that was given to the horses, had come to
the stable to collect samples for testing. He and his wife Beverly
Raphel - co-owners since 1998 - anxiously await the results, he said.
Meanwhile, veterinarians from A&M and the community remained at the
stable, offering around-the-clock care for the 41 horses still
boarded there, he said.
The horses' medical bills already total hundreds of thousands of
dollars, Raphel said, and the price to replace the dead horses will
be "astronomical." But despite worries about the staggering costs
before them, Raphel said he and his wife remain grateful for the
support shown by both A&M and the community.
The stable has had calls from across the country, and the Raphels
have received a constant supply of donated meals, he said. Some have
even called to donate horses, Beverly Raphel said earlier this week.
"We didn't know how many friends we had or how many horse lovers
there were out there," Bradley Raphel said. "We're most appreciative.
We certainly want everyone to know that."
MEMORIAL SERVICE PLANNED
• A memorial service for the horses will be held at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday at Carousel Acres Equestrian Center and Stable, where many
of the horses have been buried.
• Donations can be sent to Carousel Acres in care of the horse fund,
5200 Koppe Bridge Road, College Station, Texas, 77845. Money will go
to medical bills for the surviving horses and replacement costs for
all others.
http://www.theeagle.com/
By HOLLY HUFFMAN
Eagle Staff Writer
Brazos County stable owner Bradley Raphel said Wednesday that he had
been following a standard practice when he treated a silo of horse
feed with a chemical pesticide last weekend.
The 72-year-old said he did nothing different when applying the
chemical tablets designed to kill weevils: He used the same
treatment, in the same amount and applied it the same way as he had
hundreds of times before, he said.
"Actually, it's not even supposed to get into their feed. All it is
is a gas that extracts oxygen out of the silo and deprives weevils of
air," Raphel said Wednesday. "How that has transferred into the feed,
I don't know. Nobody seems to know the answer to that."
More than two dozen horses boarded at Raphel's facility - Carousel
Acres Equestrian Center and Stable in southern Brazos County -
mysteriously died earlier this week. One-by-one, 24 horses fell ill
and died overnight Sunday. Another three died after being taken to
Texas A&M University's Large Animal Clinic.
Eighteen more remained under close watch late Wednesday. Two were at
the A&M Clinic where they were listed in good condition, said A&M
College of Veterinary Medicine Dean H. Richard Adams.
Raphel said the other 16 still were at the stable and had been placed
on a watch list because of possible liver damage from high nitrogen
levels.
Veterinarians late Wednesday had yet to determine the cause of death
for the animals, but they continued to point to the likelihood that
the horses' feed was contaminated by an environmental toxin.
Adams said that necropsies had been done on each of the three horses
that died at the A&M clinic. All three were found to have phosphine
gas in their stomach cavity. The gas is a product of a fumigant that
is released from a tablet used to treat the horses' feed, Adams said.
The fact that the gas was found in the stomach and not in the lungs
suggests there was residue on the feed, the dean explained. But Adams
said it remained unclear why there would be residue on the feed
because a gas wouldn't normally stick to such a substance.
Veterinarians were awaiting additional test results, and Adams said
it could take several more days before a definitive cause of death is
established.
"I believe we're going to find out something else happened - what
that is, I don't know," he said, discussing the possibility that
moisture in the silo could have interacted with the gas and caused it
to adhere to the feed.
Raphel said Wednesday that representatives from both A&M and Purina,
which is the brand of feed that was given to the horses, had come to
the stable to collect samples for testing. He and his wife Beverly
Raphel - co-owners since 1998 - anxiously await the results, he said.
Meanwhile, veterinarians from A&M and the community remained at the
stable, offering around-the-clock care for the 41 horses still
boarded there, he said.
The horses' medical bills already total hundreds of thousands of
dollars, Raphel said, and the price to replace the dead horses will
be "astronomical." But despite worries about the staggering costs
before them, Raphel said he and his wife remain grateful for the
support shown by both A&M and the community.
The stable has had calls from across the country, and the Raphels
have received a constant supply of donated meals, he said. Some have
even called to donate horses, Beverly Raphel said earlier this week.
"We didn't know how many friends we had or how many horse lovers
there were out there," Bradley Raphel said. "We're most appreciative.
We certainly want everyone to know that."
MEMORIAL SERVICE PLANNED
• A memorial service for the horses will be held at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday at Carousel Acres Equestrian Center and Stable, where many
of the horses have been buried.
• Donations can be sent to Carousel Acres in care of the horse fund,
5200 Koppe Bridge Road, College Station, Texas, 77845. Money will go
to medical bills for the surviving horses and replacement costs for
all others.
http://www.theeagle.com/
