10 Tips to Reduce Respiratory Ailments in Horses
The life of a domestic horse requires consumption of hay and often grain to provide enough energy for the tasks we ask. He or she is frequently stabled and ridden on sandy surfaces that can introduce many dusts and molds that increase the chances of respiratory ailments in horses.
What can you do to improve air quality and reduce dust in your stable? Click here, to learn more about reducing the risk of respiratory ailments in horses. This article is reposted with kind permission by Equine Guelph: http://equineguelph.ca/index.php
Here are some tips from the article:
- A combination of inlets (i.e. vents) and outlets (cupolas) help provide ventilation, especially once doors are closed up to provide warmth in the winter.
- Add proper insulation to minimize temperature fluctuations caused by warm days and cold nights.
- Choose high-quality absorbent bedding with low dust levels. Bedding is the second most common source of dust in the barn. (Hay is the first.)
- Turn out horses prior to cleaning the stable.
- Use an ammonia control product if needed. If you can smell ammonia, your horse’s airways are at risk. Ammonia can also increase mucus production.
- Wet down floors before sweeping.
- Sprinkle hay with water, which can reduce dust by half.
- Feed hay from the ground to reduce airborne dust.
- Avoid round bales that can become havens for dust and mold.
- Check moisture content of footing weekly and water as required, which will increase the weight of footing particles. Fine, smooth particles are more prone to suspension than heavier, angular particles.
