07/15/2026
๐ซ๏ธ ๐ช๐ถ๐น๐ฑ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐บ๐ผ๐ธ๐ฒ & ๐ฌ๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ฒ'๐ ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐น๐๐ต ๐ด
With wildfire smoke affecting air quality across parts of Ontario and Quebec, it's important to remember that if the smoke is bothering you, it's likely affecting your horse as well.
Horses have an enormous lung capacity and breathe in large volumes of air. The tiny particles found in wildfire smoke can travel deep into the lungs, causing irritation, inflammation, and reduced respiratory function.
โ ๏ธ During smoky conditions:
๐ด Avoid strenuous exercise or training.
๐ Watch for coughing, nasal discharge, or increased breathing effort.
๐ก๏ธ Monitor your horse's resting respiratory rateโit should normally be 12โ24 breaths per minute.
โ๏ธ Contact your veterinarian if you notice persistent coughing, flared nostrils, noisy breathing, abnormal nasal discharge, or a resting respiratory rate above 30 breaths per minute.
Even horses that appear healthy can experience reduced lung function and performance after prolonged smoke exposure.
๐ ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ป ๐บ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ผ๐๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฒ๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ถ๐น๐ฑ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐๐บ๐ผ๐ธ๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ป ๐ต๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ฒ๐, ๐๐ถ๐ด๐ป๐ ๐๐ผ ๐๐ฎ๐๐ฐ๐ต ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ, ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฑ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฎ๐ด๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐บ๐ผ๐ธ๐ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐:
๐
Smoke from wildfires can cause serious health problems for horses. Smoke contains toxic chemicals, such as carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, hydrogen cyanide, hydrogen sulfide, and ammonia. These substances, in addition to particulate matter and superheated gases, can lead to thermal and chemical irr...