A 19-Year-Old Rider's Asthma Flared at 2 a.m. Before the Final, and He Had to Withdraw — The True Story of a Pak Chong Stable Dormitory and the Dust Mite Removal Service That Fixed It

It was ten past two on the morning of Saturday, 7 March 2026, at Pak Chong Highland Riding Club in Nong Sarai subdistrict, Pak Chong district, Nakhon Ratchasima. The air outside had cooled to about 17 degrees Celsius, a thin mist hung over the jumping paddock, and in less than five hours the youth riders would be called into the ring for the 6th Khao Yai Youth Jumping Cup.

Phattharaphon Saiboonruang, known as Phat, a 19-year-old rider, sat hunched on the edge of a bunk bed in a room measuring three metres by four. His shoulders were lifted, his hands pressed on his knees, and his breathing made a thin whistle like wind through a door gap. He had pressed his reliever inhaler three times in an hour, and the third time it gave only an empty puff of air.

“I didn't want to wake anyone,” he said later. “Ek had to be up at four thirty to get Lom Nao ready. So I just sat there and told myself it would pass, like every other time.”

This time it did not pass. When Phat's lips began to pale and he could not finish a sentence, Ek, a 27-year-old groom on the lower bunk who had woken at the sound of his breathing, bundled him into a pickup truck and drove him to the district hospital, twelve minutes away.

Phat spent almost three hours on nebulised medication and oxygen. The emergency doctor was clear: no riding that day, and at least two weeks of rest. The night cost 6,820 baht. What cost more happened at seven in the morning, when he had to phone the event manager and withdraw from a competition he had prepared for over eleven months.

Everyone at the club assumed the same thing: the boy was not physically strong enough. The truth, which surfaced nine days later, was that nothing was wrong with his body. The problem was the room he slept in every night, five metres from the nearest stall.

What Was Really Happening in the Rooms Beside 22 Horse Stalls

At this club the living quarters for riders, grooms and stable hands are a single-storey timber row of six rooms built onto the back of the barn, which holds 22 stalls. The reason is easy to understand: horses need someone nearby around the clock, and when a horse colics at three in the morning, a person must be there within minutes. Nobody had ever questioned sleeping that close.

The block was built in 2018. The back wall of each room is shared with the back wall of the last row of stalls, with one vent above each door and a smooth concrete floor covered by thin rubber sheeting. The bunk in Phat's room carried two thick foam mattresses in fabric covers, about four years and three months old, two blankets used year after year, and four pillows passed between whoever moved in and out.

The first person to suspect something was the stable manager, Wichai Sriuthai, 52. Since late January, nearly everyone sleeping in that row had been coughing at night, while staff living in the village outside never complained. He asked all eleven people in the block, formally, for the first time.

• Five of the eleven coughed or wheezed at night at least three nights a week.
• Four sneezed repeatedly every morning as soon as they woke, with relief once they stood outside.
• Three had itchy rashes in the elbow creases and neck, usually at night.

Wichai measured the humidity in Phat's room with an inexpensive meter from an agricultural shop. At 5 a.m. on 12 March 2026 it read 81 percent relative humidity, at a time of year when outdoor air should be drier. In the adjoining stall it read 86 percent, because water from washing the stalls, horse urine and the breath of 22 animals evaporated into a poorly ventilated building.

The Dust That Comes In With Stable Life

Every morning and afternoon the grooms strip the stall bedding, shovel out old straw and shavings, lay fresh material, load hay into nets and brush the horses. All of this lifts a pale cloud of fine straw dust, dried grass, tiny mould spores and horse hair fragments that is plainly visible in the morning light.

That dust does not stay in the barn. It clings to clothes, boots and hair and is carried into the rooms daily. Most importantly it settles on mattresses, blankets and pillows, warm fibres that hold the sweat and breath of whoever sleeps there all night.

Why Dust Mites Are Especially Harmful in a Room Beside the Stable

Dust mites do not eat straw or horse hair. Their main food is the skin flakes people shed every day. But a room next to a stable offers everything else they need in excess: high humidity, warmth and an endless food supply. It is a paradise for them.

1) Moisture seeps through the wall from the stalls all day

Dust mites absorb water straight from the air and thrive when relative humidity stays above roughly 65 percent. Phat's room read 81 percent at dawn, well above that, and the moisture came not only from rain but from the rear wall that shares a boundary with stalls washed down almost every day.

2) Mattresses and blankets that never get a full day of sun

Grooms start work at five and return in the evening, so mattresses are rarely carried out to air. Blankets are washed monthly at best, and the foam mattresses had almost never been washed in four years. Layers of fabric inside held sweat, damp and the droppings of generation after generation of mites.

3) Several allergens stacked in one room

This is what sets the case apart from an ordinary bedroom. A person with sensitive airways is not exposed to a single trigger but to many at once, for hours each night: mites, straw dust, mould spores and animal dander. The doctor who treated Phat explained that when the body is stimulated continuously like this, the airways grow more reactive until one day a small trigger produces a severe reaction.

The Damage That Goes Far Beyond the Attack: Health, Money, Family and Reputation

1) The health of Phat and the whole row

Phat had never been diagnosed with asthma. He had childhood hay fever and occasionally took an antihistamine. After the night of 7 March, the respiratory physician he saw on 16 March prescribed a daily controller inhaler and advised a systematic reduction of triggers in his bedroom. He lost 19 days of training and 3 kilograms, and lost more than that in confidence.

No one else in the block reached the emergency room, but two grooms took a combined 11 days of sick leave because of unrelenting coughing and poor sleep. Phat's mother, Khun Somsri, 47, who works at a factory in Nakhon Ratchasima, asked him to quit competitive riding the moment she heard the news, afraid that stable life did not suit her son. For two weeks he came close to agreeing. The World Health Organization notes that reducing exposure to triggers is a key part of asthma care (WHO — Asthma fact sheet).

2) The money actually lost

• Emergency night care and medication: 6,820 baht
• Check-ups and the first three months of controller medication: 9,300 baht
• First prize he had a realistic chance of winning: 80,000 baht (about 107,000 baht lost in total), in a class he had already won twice in 2025

Why What Most Stables and Clubs Do Does Not Work

Know the Dust Mite: Biology, Life Cycle and Why It Thrives in Thailand

The dust mite is an arthropod in the arachnid family with 8 legs, only about 0.1 to 0.3 millimetres long, far too small to see. It likes dark, damp places and clings to the fibres of mattresses, pillows, blankets, sofas, carpets and curtains.

Where the allergen lives

The mite itself does not bite or sting. The allergens that cause symptoms are mostly in its droppings and the remains of dead mites. These particles are light and tiny, so they become airborne when a mattress is moved or a blanket shaken, and are inhaled. Dust mites are associated with allergic disease, rhinitis, conjunctivitis, asthma, dermatitis, itchy rashes and headaches.

The Solution the Club Chose: a Complete Dust Mite Removal Service From World Health Disinfection

On the evening of 14 March 2026, a week after Phat had recovered at home and returned to the club, Wichai sat reading on his phone outside the dormitory and found the dust mite removal service for mattresses, carpets, sofas and complete disinfection from World Health Disinfection, described as the first of its kind in Thailand. It cleans mattresses, sofas, carpets and curtains on site, and curtains can be done without taking them down.

What he liked from the first conversation was that the team did not say “replace everything.” They asked about the rooms, the humidity and how people lived day to day in the stable, then explained:

• The machine is the SIRENA System dust mite removal unit, which uses water filtration with HEPA to trap dust and allergens in water rather than releasing them back into the room.
• It removes 99.99 percent of allergens and filters down to 0.02 micron.
• An optional disinfection spraying service covers viruses, bacteria and mould.

For someone who works with horses, the phrase “trapped in water, not blown back” answered his one real worry. In a barn that is already full of dust, nobody wants cleaning to throw more of it into the air.

The Technology Behind It: SIRENA System, Water Filtration Plus HEPA From Canada

SIRENA System is designed in Canada and driven by a 1200-watt cyclone motor from Italy. It works differently from the familiar bag vacuum.

How the water filtration works

The air pulled in with dust, animal hair, straw fragments and mite droppings is forced through water first. Most particles are captured and held in the water immediately, and only then does the air pass on to the filter. The dust does not return to float in the room, unlike a machine whose bag fills up and then leaks fine dust.

10 Reasons to Choose the WHD Dust Mite Removal Service for Rider and Groom Quarters

1. Traps dust in water, no blow-back, ideal where straw dust and animal hair are already present.
2. Removes 99.99 percent of allergens, not just surface dust.
3. Filters to 0.02 micron with water filtration plus HEPA.
4. A 1200-watt Italian cyclone motor with steady suction that reaches deep into thick foam.
5. Done on site at the stable or club, with no need to carry mattresses far or stop barn work.
6. Covers mattresses, blankets, sofas, carpets and curtains, with curtains cleaned without removal.
7. Optional disinfection spraying for viruses, bacteria and the mould that comes with damp.
8. You see the real result in the filter tank, as the team opens it to show the dust, straw and hair before emptying.
9. Free gifts after service: WELLGIENIC disinfectant wipes and CHEMGENE HLD4H disinfectant.
10. Certified equipment, including by the Asthma Society of Canada and TUV Rheinland.

How the On-Site Service Works: 18 March 2026 in Pak Chong

Two technicians arrived at nine in the morning, after Wichai had moved residents to the canteen for the day. Across all six rooms the job covered 26 mattresses, 31 pillows, 24 blankets and 6 blackout curtain sets, and took about nine hours.

Step 1 — Remove mites with SIRENA System

Both sides of each mattress, its edges, the pillows and the blankets were vacuumed one by one with a bedding nozzle, taking 12 to 15 minutes per mattress.

Step 2 — Open the filter tank and show the result

After the first room the team opened the water tank for Wichai and Phat. The water had turned a cloudy grey-brown with short hairs and fine straw floating on the surface. Phat stood looking for a long time and said quietly, “So that's what I've been breathing every night?”

Step 3 — Deep wash, optional disinfection and handover

Stained, musty mattresses were washed with MASTER VACUUM, every room was sprayed with disinfectant for mould, and the team left WELLGIENIC wipes and CHEMGENE HLD4H behind.

Comparison Table: Ways to Deal With Dust Mites in Stable-Side Quarters

Before and After the Service at Pak Chong Highland Riding Club

Common Myths About Dust Mites in Stables and Groom Quarters

“One treatment and it's gone forever”

Not true. Mites regrow if the room stays damp and skin flakes keep arriving as food. Removal should be part of regular room care, alongside humidity control and frequent changes of bed linen.

Voices From Real Customers

The End of Phat's Story: From the Emergency Room to Second on the Podium

Phat formally returned to riding on 4 April 2026, starting with half an hour a day. His doctor adjusted his medication and taught him breathing control. It took four full months to rebuild fitness, and on 9 August 2026 he rode in a regional youth event at the same venue, finishing second, only 1.8 seconds behind the winner.

“I didn't get the cup,” he said with a smile. “But the night before, I slept all night and didn't use my inhaler once. That was my win.”

Wichai redesigned the care of the whole row afterwards: beds moved away from the back wall, ventilation fans fitted, bed linen washed weekly, and a WHD dust mite removal visit scheduled every four months. In June, Khun Somsri visited the club, walked into her son's room, sat on his bed and said, “This room doesn't smell musty any more.” Nobody mentioned quitting riding again.

Everything in One Visit, With Free Gifts After Service

Besides dust mite removal with SIRENA System and deep washing with MASTER VACUUM, every customer receives gifts for continued care:

• WELLGIENIC disinfectant wipes, 99.99 percent disinfection, for hands and surfaces after returning from the barn.
• CHEMGENE HLD4H disinfectant spray and solution (product page), 99.85 percent in 1 minute, with protection lasting up to 14 days.

For disease information and prevention, see the Department of Disease Control, Ministry of Public Health.

If the Rooms Beside Your Stable or Club Are Hurting the People Who Sleep There, Don't Wait for the Night Before the Show

Let the team assess and remove dust mites at the source, on site, across mattresses, blankets, pillows, sofas, carpets and curtains, all in one visit.

See service details and pricing — click here

Frequently Asked Questions About Dust Mite Removal in Stable Quarters

Why remove dust mites when a stable dormitory already has straw dust?

Because straw dust and dust mites are different things that often occur together in damp rooms. Mites live in bedding fibres and multiply in damp air, and a machine that traps dust in water reduces both mite allergens and other fine dust.

Was the young rider's asthma definitely caused by dust mites?

The article cannot confirm that, and only a doctor can diagnose. Triggers differ and can include dust mites, straw dust, mould spores and animal dander. Reducing exposure in the bedroom is one approach doctors often recommend alongside treatment.

How long does the WHD dust mite removal service take for several rooms?

It depends on the number of mattresses, pillows, blankets and the floor area. In this story, 26 mattresses, 31 pillows, 24 blankets and 6 curtain sets took two technicians about nine hours in one day. The team estimates the time after a survey.

How is SIRENA System different from an ordinary vacuum cleaner?

SIRENA System is designed in Canada with a 1200-watt cyclone motor from Italy, plus water filtration and HEPA filtering down to 0.02 micron. Dust and allergens are trapped in water 100 percent and do not blow back into the room, and 99.99 percent of allergens are removed.

How often should a stable or riding club have the service, and how do I book?

For rooms next to stables or other damp areas, about every 4 months is suggested, more often if someone with allergy or asthma lives there. The service is done on site. Call 065-556-6294 or add LINE @whd268 with the number of rooms and mattresses, and the team will advise and arrange an inspection.

Related Articles and Services

• Dust mite removal service for mattresses, carpets and sofas
• SIRENA System water filtration plus HEPA
• Disinfection spraying service
• CHEMGENE HLD4H disinfectant

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