Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Sudden death and seizures in goats and sheep from wintersweet
By Leone, Stefania et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary diagnostic investigation : official publication of the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians, Inc·2026·Centro specialistico di Medicina Forense Veterinaria, Italy·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Clinical and pathologic changes in small ruminants with acute(wintersweet) intoxication confirmed by analytical chemistry.
Plain-English summary
Two goats and ten sheep suddenly died in a flock in Italy after showing signs of severe illness, including difficulty walking, lying down on their sides, muscle spasms, and trouble breathing. An autopsy revealed that they had eaten a toxic plant called wintersweet, which contains harmful alkaloids. Tests confirmed the presence of these toxins in their bodies. Unfortunately, the animals did not survive, highlighting the dangers of certain plants to livestock.
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Abstract
Abnormal sudden mortality of 2 goats and 10 sheep occurred in a 27-head flock in Verona province (northeastern Italy). In the 24 h before death, animals had acute ataxia, lateral recumbency, spastic convulsions, and dyspnea. Autopsy of 4 animals was performed at the Verona Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory of the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie (IZSVe; Italy). In the forestomachs, abundant fibrous material and numerous seeds were observed. Bacteriologic, parasitologic, and histologic investigations were carried out; samples of rumen contents and liver were analyzed by direct analysis real-time high-resolution mass spectrometry (DART-HRMS), which allows rapid screening of toxic substances. The combination of DART-HRMS and liquid chromatography high-resolution tandem MS (LC-HRMS/MS) confirmed the acute intoxication and provided insights into the clinicopathologic findings due to the ingestion of(wintersweet), a plant species that contains alkaloids including calycanthine, which is known to be toxic in several domestic species, including small ruminants.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41185551/