Seasonal ailments
By being savvy about these winter woes, you can get ahead and help prevent them. Charlotte Sinclair shows you how
Our expert
Charlotte Sinclair BVSc PhD Cert EP Cert ES (Orth) FHEA MRCVS is one of the senior ambulatory vets at CVS Equine practice, B&W Equine Vets. She’s also a senior lecturer in equine health and disease at the Royal Agricultural University, and has a particular interest in sport horses.
As if the reduced daylight hours and the ever-present threat of rain, wind and snow weren’t enough, the winter months bring with them a heightened risk of your horse developing a number of seasonal maladies. However, as with all things equine, knowledge is power – so by better understanding some of the problems you might be faced with, you’ll know what to do in the unfortunate event your horse becomes affected.
TOP TIP
If your horse must be stabled, pay close attention to the quality of your pick of feed, forage and bedding. These are the main sources of dust.
Equine asthma
Most horses are stabled for at least some portion of time during winter and are therefore exposed to a higher-dust environment than they would be in the field. Unfortunately, with increased exposure comes a heightened risk of developing equine asthma (also known as RAO or COPD), a condition that results from a hypersensitive response to dust particles, especially to those found in poor quality hay or straw.
Equine asthma is typically identified by a cough. Your horse may only cough when ridden but it might also happen in the stable – and this may be accompanied by nasal discharge. Whatever the circumstances, a cough is always worth investigating.