STOCK-POISONING PLANTS OF THE RANGE 



63 



Symptoms of Poisoning by Western Sneeze weed 



The marked symptoms of sneezeweed poisoning are depression, 

 weakness, salivation, and nausea accompanied with vomiting; the 

 latter symptom is so prominent as to have given the disease its popu- 

 lar name. Diarrhea is common, and bloating is a prominent symptom 

 in the animals poisoned 

 on the range. The poi- 

 son is cumulative, and 

 its effects continue for 

 a long time. 



Figure 30 shows a 

 sheep poisoned by II. 

 hoopesii at a time 

 when nausea is very 

 apparent, and Figure 

 31 shows a steer in the 

 act of retching as the 

 result of feeding on 

 this plant. 



Treatment for Sneeze- 

 weed Poisoning 



Figure 30. — A sheep poisoned by w stern sneezeweecl. 

 \o medicinal remedv Helenium hoopesii. Its attitude shows that it is 



_ , nauseated 



for sneezeweecl poi- 

 soning has been found. It is the custom of sheepmen on the 

 Wasatch Mountains, when their sheep are foimd to be "spew- 

 ing." to take them to lower altitude^ on " browse range/' when 



their condition is im- 

 proved. It is recog- 

 nized, however, that 

 this treatment does not 

 effect a real cure. It is 

 important that herders 

 should recognize the 

 plant and so far as pos- 

 sible avoid ranges or 

 parts of ranges where 

 it is especially abun- 

 dant. Generally speak- 

 ing, when sheep are 

 found to be suffering 

 from this plant it is 

 because they have been 

 eating it for some time, 

 and perhaps a single, 

 large feeding may have 

 precipitated the trouble, which is mainly due to the accumulated 

 effect of prolonged feeding. 



BACCHARIS RAMULOSA 



Baccharis ramulosa (pis. 45 and 46) is a spreading shrub from 1 

 to 2 feet in height, found in western Texas, the southern portions of 



Figure 31. — A steer which has eaten western sneeze- 

 weed and is suffering from severe retching 



