Agriculture Victoria is advising sheep and cattle producers to keep an eye out for signs of phalaris toxicity, which can lead to illness and sudden death in livestock.
With the flush of new growth across the region following rain after a prolonged dry period, there is an increased risk of livestock suffering from phalaris toxicity as a result of consuming young phalaris grass.
In its early stages of growth, usually the first six weeks, phalaris grass contains toxic alkaloids, which if grazed, can lead to animals developing phalaris staggers.
In contrast, phalaris sudden-
death syndrome is caused by high levels of ammonia in the animal’s system.
