Comprehensive guide to managing equine asthma (heaves, RAO, IAD) for optimal respiratory welfare.
Equine asthma causes significant welfare impairment, particularly in severe cases. Horses with recurrent airway obstruction (RAO/heaves) experience chronic respiratory distress that impairs their ability to exercise, rest comfortably, and engage in normal behaviour. The effort required for each breath is visibly laboured — flanks heave, nostrils flare, and horses develop the characteristic heave line from chronic effort.
The welfare burden extends to the restrictions imposed by management: horses with severe asthma often cannot be stabled without triggering episodes, requiring year-round outdoor living regardless of weather. Diet must be modified — hay replaced with haylage or soaked hay, or complete feeds — which may conflict with horses' natural grazing behaviour.
Treatment with bronchodilators and corticosteroids provides relief from acute episodes. Long-term control requires committed environmental management — dust-free housing, high-quality forage, and maximising turnout time. Inhaled medications (using equine spacers) are increasingly used to minimise systemic side effects.