Wildfires and Horse Health

Information for Evacuation of North Western Ontario Livestock – July 2026

Many community pastures are helping people evacuate and house livestock.

• Thunder Bay Community Pasture page on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Thunder-Bay-Community-Pasture/61576603862755/
• Northern Reach Network – finding foster homes for displaced animals: https://www.facebook.com/northernreachrescuenetwork/
• Ontario SPCA Emergency Response

Information on the Ontario wildfire situation

• Forest fires | ontario.ca (has an interactive map)

Information of air quality health index (AQHI)

• Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) (airqualityontario.com)

Competition/racing and air quality for horses and humans

• Equestrian Canada – Guidelines for Equine Competition and Training during extreme environmental conditions (EC Weather Guidelines – PDF)
• Racing New South Wales Air Quality Guidelines (Air-quality guidelines track work RNSW 2020)
• The Sport Information Resource Centre Understanding Air Quality: A guiding document for sport organizations (Air Quality Guiding document – final)

Exercise and air quality

• Starwood Equine Veterinary Services poor air quality recommendations
• Air quality and horses

Exposure to smoke

• Wildfire Smoke and Horses | School of Veterinary Medicine (ucdavis.edu)
• School of Veterinary Medicine – Guidelines for Horses Exposed to Wildfire Smoke
• Wildfires, smoke and livestock (smoke from forest fires – PDF)
• Smoke Inhalation in Horses – Kentucky Equine Research (ker.com)
• Guidelines for Horses Exposed to Wildfire Smoke – The Horse
• How Air Quality Impacts Horse Health – The Horse

Emergency Management

• When Disaster strikes, what will you do (UC Davis – PDF)
• Emergency management guides for small mixed farms (BC Gov – PDF)
• Alberta Government – Farm animals and livestock preparedness
• Lessons learned from an Australian bushfire with voiceover – YouTube
• Wildfires: Preparation and Evacuation Tips for Horse Owners – The Horse
• Wildfires: When Evacuation is Not an Option – The Horse
• Smoke From Wildfires and Horse Respiratory Health – The Horse
• What horse owners can do to monitor horses evacuated from fire areas (smoke-inhalation-quick reference guide – UC David, PDF)
• Firewise Tips for Horse Owners – The Horse
• Wildfire Preparedness for Horse Owners – 1.817 – Extension (colostate.edu)
• OMAFA After the Fire checklist (PDF)

For Veterinarians

• Treatment of smoke inhalation in horses (smoke-inhalation-DVM-reference, UC Davis, PDF)
• Management of Thermal Injuries in Donkeys: A Case Report – PMC (nih.gov)
• Disaster Medicine: Implementation of an animal health database in response to the 2018 California Camp Fire in: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association Volume 256 Issue 9 () (avma.org)
• Increased Weekly Mean PM_2.5, and NO₂ Are Associated With Increased Proportions of Lower Airway Granulocytes in Ontario Horses. Brankston G, Greer AL, Marshall Q, Lang B, Moore K, Hodgins D, Hennessey JTG, Beeler-Marfisi J.Front Vet Sci. 2020 May 5;7:185. 
• Efficacy of dexamethasone, salbutamol, and reduced respirable particulate concentration on aerobic capacity in horses with smoke-induced mild asthma. Bond SL, Greco-Otto P, MacLeod J, Galezowski A, Bayly W, Léguillette R.J Vet Intern Med. 2020 Mar;34(2):979-985. 
• Fire and smoke inhalation injury in horses. Marsh PS.Vet Clin North Am Equine Pract. 2007 May;23(1):19-30.
• Findings and Strategies for treating horses injured in open range fires. Equine Vet Education. April 2018 30(4):177-186.