Quality of the air/environment/comfort in the stables : good practices

Right from the design/ building stage through to daily management, numerous parameters will have an influence on the quality of the air and the general atmosphere in the stables, and consequently on the horses’ comfort and health.

Think about the location of the building beforehand

Building a stable should give rise to careful prior considerations regarding the location (at the bottom or a valley, on a plain, altitude…) and the orientation taking into account the dominant winds. If located at the bottom of a valley for example, the stables will be more readily subject to humidity. The ground will in all likelihood need to be drained to avoid possible resugences of water.

Implementing a good ventilation system

Ventilation serves to ensure the renewal of air, so as to guarantee good air quality and to regulate ambient humidity. This inhibits the development of pathogenic agents (germs, airborne particles…) which could be harmful to the health of the horses. As a key feature in any stable, the ventilation system requires thought from the design stage through to daily implementation (e.g. opening doors or any other air vents).

Be logical when thinking through the layout of the infrastructures

Limit sources of humidity

Having a work area which is regularly watered (indoor school, loose jumping arena, outdoor arena…) or a shower built up against, or within the stables, generates more ambient humidity, especially in winter when evaporation is low due to low temperatures. Likewise, in summer, hot humid air is very bad for horses’ well-being and general health (heat stroke….)

Limit sources of dust

On the other hand, dry working arenas, or paddocks (sandy, dirt soils, or over grazed areas) close to the stables are a source of dust, especially in summer when it is dry. The grain silos, hay barns, and manure heap should be far enough away from the buildings where the horses are stabled

Give thought to the small details in the surroundings of the buildings

Other details should be taken into account when designing/ building an equestrian building :

• Location of the manure pit with regard to the stables.
• Presence of a stream or pond near the location, which will possibly attract insects in the warmer weather. .
• Presence of certain plants near the buildings:
  • Be mindful of plant poisoning ! Numerous garden and ornamental plants in flower beds, hedges and gardens are poisonous.
  • Some plants will produce pollen in large amounts poplar trees for example), this can invade the stables and give rise to allergies.
• Presence of cultivated fields or fields for hay making close to the stables : producing dust during hay-making or harvest, spreading of fertilisers and pesticides...
•  …

Airborne particles and heat on the one hand, humidity, toxic and irritating gas fumes linked to the accumulation of manure in the stables on the other hand, are among the risk factors for developing various pathologies. The choice of bedding and the frequency of mucking out will therefore have an influence on the animal’s confort, and hence on his well-being and the health of :

• The breathing system : Equine asthma
• The musculoskeletal system : various pathologies of the hoof like thrush on the frog, abscesses, white line disease…

Renewing the straw regularly and in sufficient quantity

Consequently it appears necessary to state that stables need to be mucked out on a regular basis, and regarnished with fresh, dry bedding in sufficient quantity. The ground should not be visible. Do not hesitate to be generous when renewing a straw bedding, especially around the sides of the box and in the corners, so that the beding does not get soiled too quickly.

Choose a type of bedding adapted to each horse

Straw, dust-free woodshavings, linseed or other pellet beddings… all the types of bedding do not generate the same amount of dust. Avoid short stem straw, harvested in poor conditions, or presenting traces of mould, untreated wood shavings or from treated wood, which  are especially allergenic for sensitive respiratory tracts, and which can lead to chronic infections, difficult to detect. Basically, the choice of bedding depends on the horse’s state of health :

• Avoid straw for do-gooders, or for horses who eat too much straw, to avoid the risk of colic..
• Favour dust-free wood shavings for horses with a sensitive respiratory tract…

Keep the horses in groups according to how they are managed

Stabling a horse with sensitive breathing tract on dust-free shavings, and feeding on steamed hay is a good thing. But if this same horse is kept stabled among horses on straw and fed on dry hay, all the efforts to preserve his health will be reduced to nothing. To avoid that happening,  keep the animals in groups according to how they are kept (on shavings, steamed hay…) in the stable, or even if possible dedicate a seperate building to those horses wherever possible. This will also make the staff’s work easier.

When in the stables, the priority is to keep the dust levels low to protect the horses.

Sweep in a well- reasoned manner

• Take time to water the ground before sweeping, with a small watering can for example.
• Avoid sweeping dust and waste into the boxes, manually pick the manure from the aisles and evacuta it to the manure pit.
• Do not use a dust blower in a closed space !
• Only carry out sweeping operations when the horses are out !

Regularly clean out the premises and equipment

• Remove any old, dusty spider’s webs with a broom or duster. New spider’s webs will be all the more effective as insect traps.  
• Remove any dust from the horizontal surfaces (window sills, top of the partitions between boxes…) where deposits accumulate (stagnant dust, fodder and bedding residues, hair, droppings….)
• Remember to shake out the rugs where dust tends to accumulate, but do so outside .
• Storing drying equipment (rugs, saddle pads, numnahs)  in the stables will increase anmbient humidity. Carry out any drying in a seperate building, or outside when the weather permits.
• Regularly clean out the feed buckets and drinking troughs (these should be individual to each horse).

Depending on their nature and on how they are distributed, feeds can also be a source of dust.

Provide good quality hay, preferably on the ground

Firstly, any fodder provided should be of good sanitary quality, i.e. dust-free, mould-free, and free from any other pathogens (bacteria, pollen…). For horses with sensitive respiratory tracts, hay can be soaked/dampened/steamed. Remember that the choice of treatment to the hay can also have an impact on its nutrtitional value.

Using haylage, which when harversted early, provides a higher nutritional value (higher protein content), can be appropriate for horses with a sensitive breathing tract. As it is harvested earlier than hay, (before the heading stage of grass), and characterized by a lower dry matter content, this type of forage is much less likely to be dusty (the plant has not dried out, there is no pollen…)

The forage should preferably be given on the ground so as to respect the natural position of the horse’s neck when grazing. This allows for mechanical filtering/ elimination of inhaled dust through the trachea (expectoration) and prevents any dust falling into the horse’s eyes. Favour placing the hay near the water trough at the rear of the loose box.

Avoid dusty concentated feeds

Distributing feed in a feed skip placed close to the ground, in moderate quantities and several times a day decreases the risk of oesophagus blockage due to gluttonery, and ulcers due to excess of starch. With regard to « dust », particular attention is required when giving cereals, particularly ground, and to any powder feed supplements.

Choose dut-free cereals, flaked feeds and supplements in the form of pellets.

The way horses are managed has an impact on the circulation of diseases.

Establish strings of horses

Even in a yard where the quality of the air has been optimized through good design, practices and preventative measures, management of the different strings of horses can have an effect on their health due to different germ pressure. Avoid mixing the different strings of horses (competition horses, younsters, breeding stock), even more so when there is a possibilitty of contact between boxes (open window, bars  or grids…) respect the care circuits, start with the most sensitive animals, to finish with the least sensitive or the sick animals.

Finally, keep the prophylaxis schedule up to date (vaccination, de-worming)

Plan to have an isolation/ quarantine area

An isolation/quarantine area (minimum one loose box) ensures :

• Isolation of new arrivals, so as to check up on their sanitary status, to ensure that these animals do not present a risk to the rest of the animals in the yard.
• Isolation of sick or suspect horses from the other animals while they are being treated.

The aim is once again to limit the risk of spreading a contagious disease.

Avoid changing horses from one box to another as much as possible, especially in between mucking out. Favour any changes just after mucking out, having carefully cleaned and disinfected the ground, walls, feed and water troughs.

Once again the aim is to limit dust and ambient humidity in the stables.

Use dedicated grooming areas

A part of the dust present on the horse is made up of dead squamous skin, and dried particles of manure and bedding. Avoid grooming your horse in his stable and using the feed auger to put the brushes down. Much better to favour an area dedicated to grooming and general care. In the same way, do not clip your horse in his stable either.

Always bring the horse into the stable when he is clean and dry

Horses coming back into the stable when still wet either from sweating, or from a shower contribute to the ambient humidity in the building. Take time to let them dry off in the solarium or in a dedicated area before bringing them back into their loose box. On top of the ambient air in the stable, it’s also for their health and well-being !