Donkey Nares

Re: Donkey Nares

Tim Cheyne — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 19:08:42 GMT

[quote] bob lehner wrote the following post at Tue, Dec 14 2010 10:07 PM:

[quote user="Clive Ansell"]The idea is it helps them breath more easily,[/quote]

Well, if donkey nostrils are anything like horse nostrils, I guess there's no need to enlarge them: [/quote]

.........unless, of course, the soft tissue tended to collapse on forceful inspiration.

Tim.

Re: Donkey Nares

bob lehner — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 19:07:39 GMT

[quote user="Clive Ansell"]The idea is it helps them breath more easily,[/quote]

Well, if donkey nostrils are anything like horse nostrils, I guess there's no need to enlarge them:

Re: Donkey Nares

Hannah Wynne Richards — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 15:10:42 GMT

I checked the Brooke newsletter,and some people definitely slit donkey's nostrils in Pakistan

Wynne

Re: Donkey Nares

Tim Cheyne — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 19:08:16 GMT

[quote user="Richard Stephenson"]

Tim,

In fact nasal strips (Flares) or whatever you want to call them have been banned by the racing authorities in the UK for some years and were never very common.

Yours,

Richard S.

[/quote]

Richard,

That is interesting because I think that they were still in use here last season. I haven't noticed whether they have been in use this winter; I must check. The supply of the common brand comes from the US I believe.

Tim.

BTW: 'Flares' is the brand name, not a generic name.

Re: Donkey Nares

Richard Stephenson — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 18:23:21 GMT

Tim,

In fact nasal strips (Flares) or whatever you want to call them have been banned by the racing authorities in the UK for some years and were never very common.

Yours,

Richard S.

Re: Donkey Nares

Tim Cheyne — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 17:40:52 GMT

It has been, and probably still is, quite common practice to use 'Flares' (nasal strips) in racehorses here. These are similar to (but obviously much larger than) those used by footballers, and also as a 'cure' for snoring in humans. The benefits are debatable; as usual with such performance enhancing devices, beauty lies in the eye of the beholder and the profits fly into the pockets of the distributor.

Cynic? Me? You must be joking.

Tim.

Re: Donkey Nares

Hannah Wynne Richards — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 14:27:00 GMT

I'll double-check the Brooke literatue tonight-but I don't think they operate in Tajikstan

Wynne

Re: Donkey Nares

Clive Ansell — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 14:21:50 GMT

There was certainly no noticeable difference in their ability to work and carry loads between those that had had the procedure and those that had not.

Re: Donkey Nares

Richard Stephenson — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 14:13:38 GMT

Presumably stems from a lack of knowledge of anatomy - the narrowest part of the airway is the larynx not the external nares - it follows that this must be a useless procedure!!

Yours,

richard S.

Re: Donkey Nares

Clive Ansell — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 13:32:51 GMT

I've not seen it in Pakistan in either mules or donkeys.

Re: Donkey Nares

Hannah Wynne Richards — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 10:10:16 GMT

Some eventers use plasters to widen their horse's nares, but the efforts of eventing-very fast, but very short XC speeds,and draught work, all day slow work with heavy loads are so different it doesn't necessarily follow that what improves 1 will improve the other. I believe this practice is also widespread in Pakistan,where there is no altitude effect, and the Brooke veterinary surgeons condemn it, as they believe it is useless and unnecessary cruelty

Wynne

Re: Donkey Nares

bob lehner — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 09:50:22 GMT

There was a vogue some years ago for athletes to stick plastic gizmos up their noses to widen the airway - don't seem to hear of it nowadays ? Tho' if a collapsed laryngeal opening in a horse reduces airflow significantly, then maybe a very narrow nostril would do the same and there might be some benefit in widening it. Who nose ?

Re: Donkey Nares

Hannah Wynne Richards — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 09:44:21 GMT

One of the charities I regularly support is the Brooke Hospital for Animals. According to their literatue,it's a common practice in many under-developed areas, and they think totally useless

Wynne