SESKStuff Everyone Should Know
SESK: Stuff Everyone Should Know · sesk.info/horse-slobbers-red-clover

Which plant's mold causes 'slobbers', heavy drooling, in horses?

Red clover, through a mold toxin called slaframine.

Start playing free

  1. Timothy
  2. Oat straw
  3. Red clover ✔

Why: A mold that grows on red clover makes a toxin that turns on a horse's saliva glands. The horse drools buckets. The mold is a known risk in pasture and hay.

Huh, didn't know that: UMN says horses with slobbers can fill several five-gallon pails with saliva in one day.

The dad joke
Why did the horse eat with its mouth open? It had poor stable manners.
Like this card?
Play the game

References

Answer: Red clover. A mold that grows on red clover makes a toxin that turns on a horse's saliva glands. The horse drools buckets. The mold is a known risk in pasture and hay.

  1. Feeding clover to your horse, UMN Extension extension.umn.edu/node/1491
    Slobbers is a well-known mold problem in red clover.
    Checked 2026-10-10.

Think this answer is wrong? Tap "Challenge this answer" on the card in the game and tell us why.

Test yourself in the game

HorsesPer UMN Extension, when should horses prone to laminitis graze?HorsesWhich horses does UMN Extension list as susceptible to pasture-caused laminitis?HorsesPer UMN Extension, which pasture plants tend to store more carbohydrates (sugars)?

That's stuff everyone should know.