Winter Immunity and Natural Remedies for Horses, Dogs, Cats & People

Maintaining a strong immune system is crucial for overall health, especially during winter when bodies are more susceptible to illnesses. A robust immune system helps fend off these seasonal ailments, keeping our horses, dogs, cats and ourselves healthy and active. And should illness strike, a well-functioning immune system can promote a quicker recovery and help chronic conditions from worsening.

In this blog post we look at natural remedies for horses, dogs, cats and people that can support immunity, as well as remedies that can be used to prevent winter ailments from taking hold.

Remedies to support immunity

Maintaining a healthy, balanced diet and regular exercise regime can all help to keep immune systems of horses, dogs, cats and people in good shape. Staying hydrated during winter is just as important in winter as in summer. Dehydration can compromise the immune system, making the body more prone to winter colds and flus.

Immunity support for Horses:

Supporting liver health

A healthy liver is vital for a horse’s overall health and immunity. A horse’s liver performs around 500 distinct functions. It aids digestion produces bile that helps with the processing and absorption of fats and fat-soluble vitamins, detoxifies the body of any trace chemicals that are ingested, manufactures albumin and proteins that carry hormones or minerals, produces coagulants for blood clotting, and so much more. Ensuring your horse has strong liver function is crucial to their overall health, particularly in wet and cold winter conditions. Liver Plus - Equine supports liver function, which in turn helps bolster the immune system, ensuring your horse stays healthy through winter.

Loss of appetite

Reduced appetite due to stress or recovery from injury can impact food intake which in turn reduces vitamin and mineral uptake, making it difficult for the horse to maintain a healthy liver and immune system. Appetite Plus - Equine helps re-establish a healthy appetite, ensuring your horse gets the necessary vitamins and minerals to support its immune system.

Immunity Support for Dogs and Cats:

Kidney & liver support

The liver, often referred to as the powerhouse of the body, manages, processes, and filters almost everything, playing a crucial role in overall health. It detoxifies chemicals, metabolises hormones and drugs, and produces bile to aid in digestion. Meanwhile, the kidneys are vital for more than just urine production; they manage hydration, blood pressure, red blood cell production, pH balance, and the balance of calcium and phosphorus. Together, these organs support overall immunity by ensuring the body efficiently filters out toxins and maintains essential chemical balances.

Older cats often need support for kidney and liver function, and that’s where our remedy comes in. Kidney & Liver Health supports improved organ health to help your pet’s immune system stay strong.

For more senior pets who need kidney and liver support as well as support for other organ functions, joint stiffness, mental clarity and vitamin and mineral uptake, there’s our Senior Drops – Pets.

Maintaining appetite

Pets or those experiencing issues with appetite may not be getting enough nutrients to maintain a healthy immune system. Our Appetite Plus – Pets remedy promotes appetite and digestion for more efficient uptake of the vitamins and minerals in their food. Physical or emotional trauma or old age can be reasons for a lack of appetite, however this can also be a sign of a more serious underlying condition, so we recommend taking your pet to the vet if you have concerns.

Vaccinations

Ensuring your dog or cat is up to date with vaccinations is the best way of providing immunity to a range of illnesses, but sometimes the vaccination itself can cause problems, especially for young animals and older pet with changing health. Vaccination Support – Pets helps dogs and cats respond well to vaccinations by supporting their immune system during and after the vaccination has been given.

Immunity Support for People

Immune system support

Unlike other immune support supplements, our Immune System Plus – People remedy supports overall gut health to promote the more efficient uptake of the vitamins and minerals in a normal, balanced diet. This remedy can be used as an everyday tonic to support immune function, or taken more actively if you have a cold or minor infection. It’s also suitable for people who experience an impaired immune system.

Minor throat or sinus infections

We also have remedies that can provide support and promote recovery from illnesses once they’ve taken hold. For a sore throat or minor throat infection, use Throat Plus – People for extra immune support. If your sore throat persists or is very sore, we recommend talking to your doctor to see if antibiotics are needed. For sinus infections, try Sinus Plus – People. This remedy assists with a healthy immune response to temporary discomfort and headaches due to congestion.

Overcoming fatigue

Our Fatigue Plus remedy is formulated to support people during periods of acute fatigue or weariness while battling or recovering from a virus or minor infection.

Vaccinations

For those who need additional immune support while being vaccinated, try Vaccination Support – People: It’s suitable for people of all ages – even babies – and can help to ensure a smoother process and better overall immunity.

Remedies that help to prevent winter ailments

They say prevention is better than cure, which is where these remedies come in. If your horse, dog or cat is prone to a particular condition, then starting dosing early with these remedies can help to prevent the onset of symptoms, or make them milder and easier to manage.

For Horses:

Keeping hooves healthy

Cracked or chipped hooves can let in bacteria that leads to more serious infections. Healthy Hooves can help to prevent these issues by promoting the uptake of vitamins and minerals from your horse’s diet to keep hooves free from chips and cracks. Read this blog post for more tips on seven common hoof conditions and how to manage them.

Laminitis prevention

For horses prone to laminitis, LamiPrev supports a normal immune response and helps prevent or lessen the impact of laminitis episodes, especially important during periods of lush grass growth or episodes of grain gorging. Read this blog post for more information about the causes, symptoms and management of laminitis.

Mud fever

Winter weather can lead to conditions like Mud Fever/greasy heel. Our Mud & Rain remedy can be used as a preventative if dosing starts before the wet weather arrives. Read more in our guide to the prevention and management of Mud Fever.

For Pets:

Dental health

Poor dental health can interfere with appetite and nutrition which in turn impacts on the immune system. BioPet Dental helps soften tartar, and promote gum health which can keep your pet eating healthily. Plus it promotes fresh breath too!

For People:

Getting a good nights sleep

Studies show that not getting enough good quality sleep can affect the immune system, making it more likely you’ll pick up colds and viruses that are doing the rounds. Our Sleep Plus remedy assists with getting to sleep, and also getting back to sleep for those that tend to wake during the night.

Preventing hangovers

Our Hangover Plus remedy might not prevent a hangover completely, but it can help to reduce the severity of the nausea, headaches, muscle cramps and sensitivity to noise, light and smells that can be part of the body’s response to overconsumption. It’s been a welcome friend to many!

A little proactive care can go a long way in maintaining the health and wellbeing of our horses, our pets and ourselves over winter, so we hope you’ll find a few of these remedies useful!

General Disclaimer

Always follow dosing instructions. Our remedies are formulated to support the natural immune system of horses, pets, and livestock. We do not claim to treat, medicate or cure any health conditions. If you are worried an animal may be in pain or suffering please contact your veterinarian.