COPD

[tarzipan06]

Any tips? My mare has this condition and I am moving her from my field (which she has successfully lived out all year long) to a livery yard to start getting fit/competing.
I know the obvious shavings, dust free conditions, airy space etc but is there anything really good that works on the market at the moment?
Many thanks

 

[beaconhorse]

wingergy ventilate is fav but expensive, one thin ihave found that helped a lot was to quickly spray stable up into the roof with a quick spray of water to dampen any dust, this has wokred really well for me. haylage is much better than hay too

 

[goeslikestink]

echo--- and dont keep her in a livery yard near rape seed fileds

 

[rforsyth1984]

I use NAF respirator, that works really well for my horse. Winnergy ventilate is supposed to be very good too.
Make sure you get good quality shavings, because some of the poorer ones can be dustier than straw - I use Easibed as theres virtually no dust compared to shavings!
Feed everything from the floor (feed, hay (soaked for a minimum of 20 minutes),or haylage), and make sure the people next door do not leave hay outside your stable. Also, try to keep your horse out as much as possible, especially around the times when people in your stable block are mucking out.
Also, if you are searching the net for information, COPD is now known as recurrent airway obstruction (RAO).

 

[steffielu]

my horse just been diagnosed with COPD/RAO/thingy, but the vet said it is now referred to as Allergic Lung Disease...can this get any more confusing!!

 

[rforsyth1984]

Lol, think I will just say 'my horse is allergic to dust and mould spores'!

 

[pocket]

Ralph has copd, I soak his hay during the summer and he goes onto haylage in the winter. He's also on chippings and is out as much as possible, which helps

 

[Evadiva1514]

One of my geldings suffers with COPD,i stable him in a very open box to allow a lot of air to circulate, he is bedded down on shavings and is given haylage throughout the year. If he needs extra support supplement wise i feed NAF respirator which i find is excellent for any respiratory problems. I just find that i have to keep everything as clean and as dust free as possible even down to wetting his feed in the evenings as sometimes the dust from the chaff can aggravate him. I think my biggest saving grace though has to be the haylage, after a bad episode last winter with Ben i don't think i could ever go back to feeding him hay now...

 

[lynspop]

ventipulmin from the vet is fantastic- we have two school ponies with COPD and we keep them on ventipulmin, it is expensive compared to buying a supplement type,but i find it works. Out of the supplements you can buy- NAF respirator is the best (in my humble opinion)
we also feed haylage rather than hay, try to keep them outside the yard when we can (we have a hitching post type thingy for them) and they live out as much as possible.

As already mentioned -avoid oil seed rape and also buttercups can add to the problem.

 

[BethH]

Horsewise (I think they are called) do a respiratory chinese herb biscuit which my friend swears by, her horse is a headshaker and has some COPD issues although not major issues and has had the ventapulmin etc but she thinks they work well. Her ned suffers mainly in the Summer so she only feeds them for the months of the year he is affected, if you wanted a more natural route you could try them. They come in an oblong black and gold tin I think about £25 per box which lasts a month, she found unlimited turnout for him the most beneficial thing, he was worse when stabled!

 

[so03]

[ QUOTE ]
wingergy ventilate is fav but expensive

[/ QUOTE ]

I agree. My boy is allergic to pollen so not much preventative work I can do really. I started him on winergy ventilate this year and his breathing is back to normal.

At his worst, when the pollen was bad he would trot once around the field and puff like he'd galloped 10 miles, he was that bad.