copd advice/dust free bedding options

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lucymay9701

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Hi everyone

My horse has just started on ventipulmin due to breathing problems, probably due to dust. I want to make everything as dust free as possible for her. She's always been on dust extracted shavings (the natural flake) but there is still some dust in them. There isn't much choice at my local stores although they may order something in for me. I've used easibed in the past but it feels quite hard and I'm worried it wouldn't be as comfy for my horse to lie on. Paper seems a good option but not sure if the farmer would still remove the muck heap or even if could get hold of it. Are there any other alternatives I'm missing that would be completely dust free? I'm thinking maybe sticking to the natural flake is going to be the best option but as there is some dust it doesn't seem 'perfect'. Her stable has good ventilation and she'll be changing from soaked hay to horsehage as soon as the timothy (only one she likes!)horsehage I've ordered comes in just in case that helps at all.

Only thing is she isn't coughing much, only the odd cough (which is usual for her since being diagosed with a dust allergy about 8 years ago and hasn't been coughing more than normal) so don't know if something else could be going on aswell as dust problem? Would they usually cough more if just dust related? The reason I called the vet was that she was having breathing problems and her nostrils were flaring when breathing at rest along with being able to noticeably hear her breath out. The vet heard 'noises' in her lungs and put her on ventipulmin. She's been on ventipulmin over a week but her breathing still not 'right'. Shes OK in herself and eating well. Shes not a greedy horse and always goes off her food when ill so she can't be feeling too bad, although hasn't got as much energy as normal. Shes retired but usually 'jogs' on her way in at night and that has stopped. I've got to ring the vet with an update on Monday. Does anyone know of any other reasons she may be more noisy when breathing out? Also her nostrils seem to move twice as she breathes in - kind of a little nostril flare then sometimes a bigger nosrtil flare? Thats a bit difficult to describe without seeing though!

Sorry thats quite a lot of questions in one post!

Thanks for any advice

Lucy x
 
You will probably find a great improvement once she is on haylage, one of mine just cannot eat hay however long it is soaked for yet can be bedded on straw for short periods will no ill effects.
For bedding I find aubiose or similar flax products good and less dusty than shavings, it breaks down well so no issues with removal.
 
Hi 'be positive'
Thanks for you reply. I'd read about the aubiose but noticed it said to dampen it when you first put it down. Do you know why this is? I was assuming it was due to dust but thinking there may be another reason? Or maybe its just personal preference and you don't have to dampen? My horse has white line disease so don't like the thought of dampening her bedding as am paranoid about it being kept dry! Then it said some horses may eat it although unlikely with my horse as shes very fussy! Do you know the names of any of the other flax produsts you mention? Thankyou!
Lucy x
PS fingers crossed the horsehage will help aswell
 
With my COPD chap (very mild) I have rubber matted the stable and he only has a pee patch in one side which he uses. I use good quality wheat straw and find this is far less dusty than anything else particularly as it all goes out each day. If I give him a proper bed of anything it stops him within 5 days, he has been on the "pee patch rubber mat" system for the past 10 years without any recurrence of the condition. I feed hay and do not soak it as he doesn't like it and won't eat it soaked but find that he is just fine with dry providing it is good quality.

I make sure that I sweep the cobwebs away and brush down all surfaces in the stable once a week to keep the dust down. He is in at night in winter but out 24/7 in summer.

I have competed him without any medication using this system, he is as fit as a fiddle.

I hope this helps.
 
I use cardboard. It is completely dust free, absorbent, doesn't need dampened, and rots down v v quickly. My farmer has no issues taking it away and I hang on to some as the manure is phenomenal in my garden. And this year I've found a supplier at £4.50 a bag.
 
Hi, I totally recommend cardboard as my horse also suffers from COPD and he's been bedded on it for 10years now.

It is 100% dust free and rots down extremely well and quickly so no problem for getting it taken away. I have used many suppliers but have found my local council have a recycling plant and they sell this bedding at £4.15 per bale. So may be worth checking local recycling plants but its all the same as its not treated at all so don't worry about brands just go with where you get the best deal.
 
My horse has quite bad copd the best thing we found was to rubber mat his stable with a very small bed of softbed, it's copped straw and is not as dusty as shavings. Also our vet prescribed him ventipulmin and that stopped working so he was then put on steroids for a few months but we wanted to take a more herbal and natural way and we used liquorice root powder within 3 weeks his breathing was like we had never seen it before and he seemed so much happier, a bag is about £8 and lasts about 3 months! Could she be double breathing? This could be why her nostrils flare twice
 
now_loves_mares said:
I use cardboard. It is completely dust free, absorbent, doesn't need dampened, and rots down v v quickly. My farmer has no issues taking it away and I hang on to some as the manure is phenomenal in my garden. And this year I've found a supplier at £4.50 a bag.
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another vote for cardboard. Thats cheap though I was paying £7.50 a bag
 
Yeah I was buying branded stuff (keeps changing name though) it was Easybed originally the Bedmax (not to be mixed up with shavings etc also named this...very confusing). That was getting up to £7.00 per bale. But if you can find a local recycling plant such as a council then get from them.

I am in Scotland and get mine from Banff & Buchan council -BEAT recycling.
 
I use cardboard as others have said it rots much quicker than shavings or straw. I also leave my horses out as much as possible and feed soaked hay or haylage.
 
Thanks very much for the replies. I like the sound of the cardboard (I had missed that option when looking!) so am going to see if can get that from anywhere locally and if not look into the other options mentioned. I'm very grateful for the advice!
I'm not sure how to put the quotes into my reply (to quote what other people have put) but if the person is reading who mentioned about the double breathing please can you let me know what that is? I've read about double expiratory effort but can't find about them breathing in twice. This is however what she looks like sometimes, as if she's breathing in twice before breathing out. Also please could you let me know where you get the liquorice root powder from and how much you feed? Thank you x
PS please could someone advice me how to put quotes in from previous posts - I can't see any options for doing it at all!
 
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Bedmax is pretty good - larger flakes and VERY little dust.

Aubiose and the like only say to soak the bed first to activate the absorbancy properties of the bedding and also help it knit together.

I have found some of the rape straw beddings to be relatively dust free too - I like BedSoft at the moment :)

using minimal bedding on rubber matting isn't a brilliant idea as the amonia could affect the horse's already compromised lungs.
 
Sorry but I don't know much about double breathing my vet just told me about it as this is what he does but I get the powder from my local feed hop they order it in for me i think it's by equus health
 
Thank you for the last couple of replies. Do you know if you need to dampen down aubiose and similar products every time you put a bag down or is that just when you put down the initial bed with it? x
 
Hi - I use rubber matting along with wood pellets from Liverpool Wood Pellets (approx £3.50 a bag if you can buy 500kg at a time) also top up with Comfybed. Tried Auboise but my mare decided to eat it! then she really coughed
 
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My mare develops COPD symptoms when given dry hay or when she is in over the winter. Ventopulmin helped an awful lot to get her over her initial hard to shift snotts, and she has been better since that gave her a chance to clear out.
I also find that steaming hay helps alot more than soaking it (even if it is totally soaked for a couple of hours -). any potential dust causing jobs like rug change, mucking out, sweeping, grooming done outside the stable helps alot. Mine was on winergy ventilate last winter and I def noticed an improvement. The naf one didn't do anything though.

2.
I tried all sorts of ones and although I had never rated Naf before. found the best one was respirator. you start with the liquid then switch to the powder __________________
Click to expand...


Asthma

Things to help aid horses airways and breathing
Gold Label Vapour Mist.
Click to expand...
Here
 
Thanks again everyone - Have ordered some cardboard bedding from my local feed shop so fingers crossed will like it or if not I can look at the other options suggested! Another bonus if I like it is it only costs £4.99 a bag compared to £7.99 for the shavings - I wasn't expecting it to be that cheap although maybe I'll need to use more. Its the future animal bedding that I was able to get hold of. x
 
A word of advice re: cardboard I love it but its a different way of mucking out. I found I went through a lot of any bedding type by using it sparingly with rubber mats.

Best method I found was to semi-deep litter (perfectly fine for COPD sufferers on cardboard). I used about 8 bales initially for start-up and remove poo every day wearing marigolds and the wet once or twice a week...just scrape dry cardboard off and you'll just be left with a contained wet patch to scoop out. If you have banks, I pull them down to freshen bed up and re-bank every so often. I use 1 bale a week to top up. Good luck.
 
Unfortunately I haven't managed to get hold of it yet. I put an order in a while ago and was told the shop could get it but as yet it hasn't come in so very disappointed. Its still on order so still hoping but if I can't get it I think I'll give the megazorb a try as that is stocked by one of our local feed shops now. Really want to try the cardboard though, have 6 bags on order to see if I liked it and then was going to order more. Will let you know if I get it how we get on!
 
Hi 'Skipadeedooda' - just to let you know that the cardboard bedding did eventually come in! Have put the first bag down today but its mixed with shavings at the moment so won't know fully what its like for a couple of weeks - will let you know! The only 'problem' is that its got ink in it, I assumed (not sure why!) that it was ink free. I'm unsure if ink can cause any problems with allergies etc and also wih the farmer taking away. I'm just about to post a separate thread to ask. I had been wanting ink free really x
 
Hmm interesting, yes previous bedding I used did have a mix...I think. I've just asked hubby as I don't think this stuff I've been getting this year does have, I might pop out to stables and check. Something I've never considered actually but I suppose there must be ink - free brands. I've never had a problem with it but interested to see new thread. I hope it works out for you :-)
 
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