Horses are highly dependent on their respiratory health for performance and wellbeing, but it’s a fine balancing act to ensure their respiratory system is working as efficiently as possible. While the circulatory or musculoskeletal systems can be improved with training, the same cannot be said for the respiratory system, which means there is already a limit on what your horse’s body can achieve. In addition to this, horses cannot mouth breathe and so rely completely on nasal breathing. This means that even minor impairments in respiratory function or health can significantly impact a horse’s ability to perform and recover.
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Benefits of nebulisation
Nebulisation is a method of delivering medication to the lungs using a nebuliser, and is routinely used to medicate horses with clinical conditions, such as recurrent airway obstruction (RAO), which is also known as equine asthma. It’s often a key part of managing and supporting horses with equine asthma between flare-ups or when pollen counts are high, for example.
It can also be used to deliver non-prescription therapies for routine airway maintenance that provides proactive support to optimise respiratory health in all horses, particularly during times of stress or prior to travel.
Therapy options
Non-prescription therapies suitable for nebulisation include:
Saline, which is proposed to break up respiratory mucus and makes it easier for a horse to clear it from the airways. Excess mucus can block the airways, trap irritants and bacteria. Saline may also help to reduce airway inflammation1.
Silvaplex – nebulised silver can have anti-bacterial2 and anti-viral effects3 . Silver solutions can be used to provide additional support on yards during periods of heightened risk, potentially reducing the spread of respiratory infections.
Balsamic air, which is a blend of essential oils that support respiratory health and can be administered orally or by nebulisation.
Immuno-San, which is a combination of high-grade essential oils, formulated to support the respiratory system of performance horses. Immuno-San Red is formulated to support the respiratory system of performance horses at increased risk of EIPH (exercise-induced pulmonary haemorrhage), which is a condition where blood is present in the airways of the lungs after strenuous exercise.
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Making use of a nebuliser
International event rider Harry Meade understands how asthma, allergies, and other respiratory diseases can affect horses’ performance and says this is particularly noticeable in their anaerobic work.
“Their performance across country is particularly likely to be impeded, as well as the quality of their fitness work in training,” he explains. “For any horses with known respiratory issues, we use the Flexineb E3 to minimise the effect of their condition and to help with their overall performance.”
The Flexineb E3 is an effective and user-friendly nebuliser for routine and therapeutic use. It’s available in three sizes to fit horses with a muzzle circumference of 12–26in. For more information, visit breatheazy.co.uk
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