ridecamp@endurance.net: Re: Panting

Re: Panting

George R. Hall (geohall@pacbell.net)
Wed, 30 Jul 1997 08:14:50 -0700

> On Tue, 29 Jul 1997 18:22:13 -0400 (EDT), PEGGASIS@aol.com wrote:
>
> >In a message dated 97-07-29 02:53:09 EDT, you write:
>
> ><< Are there any suggestions for helping horses that pant? >>
> >My quarter horse used to pant also. He wasn't in condition and couldn't =
> cool
> >off fast enough. After your horse is in better shape, she porbably won't=
> do
> >it anymore. Lots of LSD. After he was conditioned for slow 50's, he =
> never
> >panted again.
>
> You've made a false assumption -- that panting is a sign of lack of
> condition or overstress in the horse.
>
> On the contrary, panting is normal (IMO actually desirable) in a fit
> endurance horse competing in humid conditions. It allows them to more
> effeciently cool themselves while conserving bodily fluids. It is not
> uncommon for a horse to actually learn to pant as he gets more fit and
> competes at higher levels.
>
> > Joe Long
> jlong@mti.net
> Business Page http://www.mti.net
> Personal Page http://www.rnbw.com
>
> You are both right to some extent. A horse who is not in condition will have an elevated respiratory rate when it comes into the vet check and may stay elevated for an extended period of time if it is exhausted. Some of that may be simply due to psycological stress and/or habbit. Another sutuation is if they have been charging up a hill, creating lactic acid. Hyperventilating can neutralize some of that acid by blowing off a lot of carbon dioxide. True panting, though, is to cool the body. Air rushing in over the intricate scrollwork of mucus membrane tissue will cool the blood. Exhaling the warm, moisture-laden air will carry off a lot of heat. The trouble is when the air temp is greater than 105 or so, panting won't help much. Cool water, and lots of it, over your horse will help minimize the panting. Even if the humidity is such that not much evaporation takes place, at least the cool water will pick up a lot of heat and run off the body.

George Hall, DVM

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