1N

Thanks for your prompt reply. My horse started with a snotty nose 10 days ago - no temp - does not look or act ill - but also a minor cough with it. I soak all hay and haylage - all I can think of at the moment is that there is v little grass on the winter grazing and it has been v dry - therefore lots of mud. He is a little better with anti histamines but thought there could be a better way forward. Have been practising the 1N method according to the video on your website. Has a v dramatic affect on lowering his adrenalin levels - have another pony and have started it on him too. Both relax have a sneeze occasionally and seem to have less snot!!! Always a good thing. Now I just need to learn how to breathe properly!!! I definitely over breathe. Just done 40 mins long lining my boy and tried to keep my mouth closed - out of breathe very quickly. Looking forward to seeing the results in my boys and myself. Need to find the time to get it rolling for me - as usual I come last. Shouldnt cause if I dont get it right then they will just continue to mimic me!!!  PS Have just mucked out both stables with my mouth shut and dont feel as tired.

Thanks

Derby's symptoms were breathing difficulties, a persistent cough, no energy, head shaking and his immune system always seemed to be down. "He was such an adrenaline junky and had been since I got him. He also had nearly all the symptoms described for horses that breathe wrongly" (in “Over breathing signs to look for” in issue 4 of ‘Horse Breather’ eg dislikes being groomed ).I have to say I have a new horse or a normal horse now. No one would know it is the same horse at all. There have been a ton of improvements

Puzzle has recently arrived on my yard and with more than a few issues!!! Puzzle is a delightful 16.1 chestnut wbxtb type and he told me in no uncertain terms from the very beginning that life made him pretty anxious. I left him with the herd for about 2 weeks to chill and make friends and then began very gentle groundwork with him (he has been backed but no one has been on him for 3 years) To begin with everything made him scared, cross or both but we took it all slowly. We were in the round pen and he wasn't listening and his energy levels were sky high when I suddenly thought of you.  We quietly began 1N and after a short while his breathing relaxed. We both stood there enjoying our moment together and by the end of it his head was lowered and he was the most relaxed I'd seen him.  Now we regularly have a little bit of this special time together and I'm convinced he looks forward to it. (I know I do :-) . So thank you from Puzzle and myself for showing him how to breath again.

Trudi decided to use Equine Breathing to help her 14 year old Thoroughbred PJ. Trudi bought PJ (an ex racehorse) 12 weeks ago and is very pleased with him overall but found he had one problem - separation anxiety - as she explains below. 

The only problem I have with him is that when I take his paddock buddy out for a ride without him he gets very stressed. This can range from running the fence line and just getting lathered up while neighing out loudly (think screaming!!) to just standing at the gate and singing out a little bit. At the moment I put him in a small yard and give him a little feed to try to distract him but it doesn’t have the effect I would like ie: that he puts his head down and just eats. At the moment I go out for no more than 10 minutes and then back again, I have tried coming and going but that just seems to escalate the situation." ..."I did the 1N technique for the first time last night and was impressed with the change in him just in that short time.  I did two sessions of 5 minutes on each nostril and then when I took him back to the paddock his buddy nickered out (Oakey doesn’t suffer from any anxiety about being left behind and it is rare for him to even say hello like that), normally PJ would light up a little in the sense that his ears would come forward and he would look at Oakey but this time he just marched along beside me with his head well below his wither height and this lovely relaxed look in his eye. I also noticed that at the end of the second 10 minutes I could get him to lower his head almost to the ground which is something that just wasn’t possible before, he always seemed to get so far down then he would pull his head right up as if he felt much safer with it high (which of course he would). A pleasant result, so far. I will keep it up and look forward to a generally more relaxed calm horse.

Update 2 weeks later; "Yesterday (and the day before) I managed to do 30 minutes 1N with him and then took Oakey for a little walk, PJ didn't make a sound and when I came back I could barely wake him as he rested at the gate!! He didn't greet Oakey as he normally does when he comes back into view or anything. Quite amazing!"

Pauline and Lin started doing 1N 3 months ago with their 10 year old Connemara x TB, Sam. Three years ago Sam was diagnosed with allergic airway disease following a viral infection. Despite treatment and careful management Sam continued to have breathing difficulties (double respiratory movement and heaves) that were at times distressing and even life threatening.

“Completing endurance set speed ride in June and no ill effects and then training days attended are things we would not have even contemplated this time last year. Great isn’t it!   Mates at the yard can’t believe how well he has improved both physically and mentally over the past 3 months. We are now accompanying others out on forest rides and hacking regularly, which we would not have done before due to Sam’s breathing difficulties. Its difficult to believe that what you can see is happening and how quickly progress was made even though Sam has had a few set backs due to outside interventions ie annual jabs, picked up virus from field. He is still continuing to improve and this winter will tell us more.