copd advice/dust free bedding options

I use cardboard bedding and I love it because it doesn't set off my asthma, like straw, shavings and flax does!

I pay £6.90 a bale so if anyone knows where I can get it cheaper in southern Hampshire I would love to hear from you.
 
Hi Perissa, I don't know specifically about your area but I am in Scotland and get it for £4.50(ish) a bale includes delivery from my local council recycling plant. It's fully baled and packed, might be worth contacting local recycling plants/local councils. It's the exact same stuff. Previously I was paying approx £7.00 for horse branded.
 
Skipadeedooda said:
Hi Lucy,

I've just brought my horses in and thought of you when I was bedding them down. How are you getting on with the cardboard bedding?
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Hi, I was just giving you an update on the cardboard bedding. My mum mucks my horse out and she really likes it. No dust at all which is great and less needs taking out plus the added benefit of virtually no ammonia smells. We're very pleased and there is the added bonus of being £2 cheaper a bag than the shavings we were using! The farmer has also said he is happy to take it away and wasn't worried about the ink - we've had lots of colours now. Decided not to worry about it as the benefits of the cardboard have been really good! x
 
Hello,


Have you had your horse blood tested? It could be that she has a respiratory virus a blood test will quickly confirm/deny this, a virus may be the reason she has been quieter than usual? Has she lost any weight?

I think Ventapulmin is used to open the airways, my COPD sufferer normally has sputolosin too if he has a virus because this breaks up the mucus and gets it moving; it works alongside the ventapulmin ( or that's how I understand it). So this may help if your horse isn't clearing what is there. If a blood test finds your horse has a virus then a vet may prescribe antibiotics and sometimes they advise a supplement to improve their blood count. If these options don't work then I normally go onto Prednisolone steroid tablets which seem to be the only way to sort him out, but I have known other people to have inhalers.

Also do you feed from the floor? I think this makes a big difference, and if you are feeding soaked hay until horsehage comes then don't let it dry out too much it is best fed wet. I have used Bedmax and Hunters with mine and he has done well on it. I have also used hemp beddings but he eats them. I would advise against deep littering a horse with COPD due to the ammonia.

I have heard good things about Equistro secreto pro but have not used it myself.

I hope this helps and I'm not just telling you things you already know. If I am then apologies :o



Sorry I read the date of the post wrong!!!!
 
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Conniemara1 said:
Hello,


Have you had your horse blood tested? It could be that she has a respiratory virus a blood test will quickly confirm/deny this, a virus may be the reason she has been quieter than usual? Has she lost any weight?

I think Ventapulmin is used to open the airways, my COPD sufferer normally has sputolosin too if he has a virus because this breaks up the mucus and gets it moving; it works alongside the ventapulmin ( or that's how I understand it). So this may help if your horse isn't clearing what is there. If a blood test finds your horse has a virus then a vet may prescribe antibiotics and sometimes they advise a supplement to improve their blood count. If these options don't work then I normally go onto Prednisolone steroid tablets which seem to be the only way to sort him out, but I have known other people to have inhalers.

Also do you feed from the floor? I think this makes a big difference, and if you are feeding soaked hay until horsehage comes then don't let it dry out too much it is best fed wet. I have used Bedmax and Hunters with mine and he has done well on it. I have also used hemp beddings but he eats them. I would advise against deep littering a horse with COPD due to the ammonia.

I have heard good things about Equistro secreto pro but have not used it myself.

I hope this helps and I'm not just telling you things you already know. If I am then apologies :o



Sorry I read the date of the post wrong!!!!
Click to expand...

Hi, Thank you for your reply. She had blood tests and endoscopy and was found to be slightly anaemic (vet advised some supplements for that) but nothing else came back abnormal. Even the fluid samples from her endoscopy were normal so I wonder if she was starting with COPD but there were no changes yet thank goodness. The ventipulmin didn't help unfortunately but she is starting to improve now. Also changed her diet to cereal free, virtually molasses free etc to see if that helps aswell. She has some feed on floor and some higher up. We try to put as much on the floor as possible but she had a left vein thrombosis after a colic operation and it left the drainage around the top of her neck on that side not very good. Therefore it swells up more with her head down sometimes so we have to balance it out a bit! Thanks again for your reply x
 
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