Authors: Lisboa Bruna Rafaela Ferreira, da Silva Jamile Andréa Rodrigues, da Silva Welligton Conceição, Barbosa Antônio Vinícius Corrêa, Silva Lilian Kátia Ximenes, Lourenço-Júnior José de Brito
Journal: Frontiers in veterinary science
Summary
# Editorial Summary Effective post-exercise cooling is critical for equine welfare, yet research on thermoregulation in tropical and subtropical climates remains limited. Researchers in the Eastern Amazon region compared two cooling protocols—tepid water immersion (approximately 25°C) and hypercooling (6–9°C)—in ten castrated Brazilian horses following standardised 30-minute exercise sessions, measuring rectal temperature, heart rate, respiratory rate, and body surface temperature via infrared thermography at three timepoints. Both methods proved equally effective at reducing all measured physiological parameters and thermal stress indicators (P > 0.05), with strong correlations demonstrated between ambient temperature, humidity index, and the animals' thermoregulatory responses. The findings support that room-temperature water cooling achieves comparable physiological outcomes to hypercooling whilst offering significant practical advantages in resource-limited settings and hot, humid climates where cold water availability may be restricted. Practitioners managing horses in tropical regions can therefore confidently employ accessible cooling methods without compromising recovery efficacy, provided environmental conditions are monitored and thermoregulatory stress is assessed systematically.
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Practical Takeaways
- •You don't need expensive hypercooling systems—simple room temperature water baths cool horses after exercise just as effectively, making this method more accessible for most operations
- •Monitor environmental conditions (heat and humidity) closely, as they significantly influence how stressed your horses become during and after work, regardless of cooling method used
- •Post-exercise cooling with either method effectively reduces core temperature and respiratory stress in hot, humid conditions like those found in tropical regions
Key Findings
- •Both room temperature (25°C) and hypercooling (6-9°C) water methods reduced rectal temperature, respiratory rate, heart rate, and body surface temperature with equal efficiency (P > 0.05)
- •Environmental factors (air temperature and temperature-humidity index) showed highly significant positive correlation with all physiological stress variables (P < 0.01)
- •Room temperature water cooling proved more practical for field application while achieving equivalent physiological outcomes to hypercooling methods