Medicine Section

FERTILIZER

1. What do they conatin?
   • Fertilizer products generally contain varying amounts of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) compounds.
   • Product ingredients are often listed as N-P-K 10-8-8, where each number is the corresponding ingredient's concentration percentage.
   • Presented as liquid, granular, and solid (e.g. stakes), and fertilizer additives may include herbicides, insecticides, fungicides, iron, copper, or zinc.
2. What happens? and How do you manage?
   • Clinical signs
     • Fertilizers have a wide margin of safety.
     • GI signs such as vomiting, hypersalivation, diarrhea, or lethargy
     • Signs are self-limiting and resolve within 12 to 24 hours in most of  the cases
   • Management:
     • Treat animals with GI signs supportively with antiemetics, fluids, and GI protectants.
     • Heavy metals, such as iron, are generally not bioavailable but can causes problem when large amounts are ingested.