Take my breath away

When your horse exercises, it might struggle to get enough air, warns Kim Dyson.
Anyone who’s ever galloped a horse across a field will do anything to keep on riding. But this performance relies on oxygen, which comes from breathing. This statement seems obvious, but nasal tissue collapse is common to all horses, reducing the size of the airway and making the horse work harder to breathe. This lack of airflow is a potential disadvantage to your horse’s health and performance.
Horses can only breathe through their nostrils. They take the same amount of air to and from their lungs while they rest or run. When your horse is at the canter or gallop, it will take one breath per stride even over long periods, and only swallow one to two times for each minute at that gait. Nasal resistance occurs in the upper airway – the nostrils, nasal passages and the larynx – causing negative pressure and increased resistance within the lungs. During strenuous exercise, this lack of air can lead to injuries, such as exercise-induced pulmonary haemorrhage and fatigue-related breakdowns like pulled ligaments, bowed tendons or fractures.
Overseas they use self-adhesive nasal strips, a drug-free, non-invasive way to support the nasal passages’ external wall. Designed to prevent collapse or narrowing of the upper airway at the nasoincisive notch (the narrowest point, 7cm to 10cm above the nostrils), they hold the nasal passages open with a special adhesive, improving airflow.
It’s also always a good idea to increase work load gradually. Many horses will want to go faster than their bodies are ready to support. If you do short bursts of trot, canter and later gallop, your horse has a gradual increase of blood supply to the airways.
Invest in a heart-rate monitor – each horse has its own threshold, but studies show working at a safe average of 125 to 135 beats a minute will help your horse work within its oxygen supply, preventing lactic acid build up. The fitter your horse, the better it will deal with oxygen supply. Follow the six weeks legging-up programme before you start any strenuous work. I will gladly e-mail it to you on request. – Contact Kim Dyson at 082 888 6511.     |fw