Water hemlock (Cicuta douglasii) toxicoses in sheep: pathologic description and prevention of lesions and death

USDA, Poisonous Plant Research Lab, Logan, UT 84341, USA.

Water hemlock causes numerous livestock losses in North America every year. Description of pathologic and serum biochemical changes has been lacking in the literature. Tubers of western water hemlock (Cicuta douglasii) induced excessive salivation, tremors, grand mal seizures, skeletal and cardiac myodegeneration, and death in sheep given 1.2-2.7 g fresh tuber/kg body weight by gavage. Seizures were intermittent with periods of relaxation until death occurred from anoxia during seizure activity. In sheep given 1.5-2.5 times the lethal dose of water hemlock by gavage, intravenous administration of sodium pentobarbital at the onset of the first seizure prevented further seizure activity and skeletal and cardiac myodegeneration and resulted in rapid and complete recovery.