Paul Nicholls said the coughing which affected around a dozen horses at his Somerset stables remained under control.
With the Cheltenham Festival just a fortnight away, the health of his string is more important than ever, especially as the trainer is preparing the likes of Big Buck’s for his fourth Ladbrokes World Hurdle and Kauto Star for a third Betfred Gold Cup.
After announcing last week his Betfair Hurdle winner and Champion Hurdle contender Zarkandar was one of the key members of the team to be suffering, Nicholls reports the five-year-old to be firmly back in training now.
“Obviously we’ve had a few little problems and my job is to ensure it’s not being spread,” he said.
“It just seemed to have affected the younger horses – the main ones are OK.
“Zarkandar came back with a cough after Newbury and I banged him full of antibiotics for six days.
“He had a couple of days walking then cantering but he worked this morning and everything was normal, so it doesn’t take long to get over it.
“When you have a lot of horses in training you are always going to have a few coughs and splutters, and I’m sure we’re no different to anyone else.”
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