Importance of Vaccinations

[katieB]

After seeing another post on vaccinations just thought id see what the feeling is towards them. Ellie is being vaccinated this week and after asking a few people who have the same vets, what im looking at paying I was suprised that some people dont vaccinate, and whats more one of the people who doesnt vaccinate is always out at shows around other horses, doesnt that increase the risk of catching something? Is there any reason why a horse shouldnt be vaccinated? How does everyone rate the importance of vaccinations? I think I know what most people will say but it will be interesting to see what some people think.

[Bertie]

Not being a horse owner my opinion is pretty limited and probably useless but I would imagine that vaccinations are essential when keeping a horse.

Many people keep there horses at livery yards where there a number of horses whether it be 2 or 22 or more. These horses get hacked out and showed so are coming into contact with many horses directly or indirectly. As a result your increasing the risk of your getting an infection as well as passing onto their stable mates.

If your keeping your horse(s) at home and do not regularly come in contact with others that's a different story and a matter of personal choice and experience.

[Jakes Mum]

I consider it to be most important for horses to be vaccinated.

Jakes injections which he had in April equates to just 56p/week!!

I would see it to be even more important for horses going to shows to be covered to prevent an influenza epidemic with it being so highly contagious.
Horses get injuries beyond our control and could easily get life threatening tetanus just from the dust, soil, droppings.

There is an old horse on our yard who has not had an influenza vaccination this last 2 years due to his age, the vet considered that the side effects from the injection could be too much of a risk to take, and being as he never leaves the yard and all the other horses are covered, they thought it best not to vaccinate, so I guess there are certain cases which are the exception to the rule.

[Alibi]

The only reason a horse shouldn't be vaccinated is if it has previously had a reaction to a vaccination (fairly rare in horses, more common in dogs). Its another part of horse ownership!

I have seen a horse did of tetanus and it is not a pretty sight, it was thought that the initial infection was picked up from a stretch of dirty, rusty old barb wire.

How much do you pay Kate? Ours are about £28 for a annual vaccination, which i didn't think was too bad.

Also some showgrounds do ask to see vacc. certificates, though not may local shows. Maybe when these passports come in to force they may do more checks.

I do mine more for peace of mind, eventhough it still doesn't mean your horse can't pick up these infections, it just means they are less likely to.

[Bebe]

I have Bebe vaccinated every year against Flu & Tetanus. It's yard policy for every horse to be done but I'd do it regardless as prevention is far better than cure.

[~Perdita.M~]

Yes I agree, one of the responsibilies of horse ownership:)

[katieB]

Not sure what the cost is, I think its about thirty something pounds. Which vets are you with Alibi?

[shandy84]

No question it's essential!

[Rosanna]

I think it is unresponsible of people to take horses to shows that aren't vaccinated, except if the horse is allergic and then they need to be very careful around other horses. I think our vet charges about £30/40 but I'm not sure.

I have to say I always keeps well away from other horses at shows, because there are plenty of nasty things you cant vaccinate against. i also never use water from a trough, only a tap.

I have to vaccinate anyway because of pc camp. No horse is even allowed of the lorry or trailer until its vaccination certificate has been checked!

[Alibi]

Kate - We use Burgess and Graham, Northwich. Who do you use?

[Yann]

I agree, it should be an automatic part of everyone's care regime, and it doesn't cost much in the long run either.

Rio wasn't vaccinated before by her previous owner, and we found out why as she's terrified of the needle going in. I don't look forward to the annual booster but it's got to be done:D

[katieB]

Burgess and Graham :)
I thought they charged more than £28, maye they like you more than me :D

[Alibi]

It could be because at the time i was literally spending thousands with them, as they were treating my old horse who had cushings. Got another one due this July so will have to wait and see how much they like me!

[Kanuma]

i think its essential and alot of shows do ask for proof before they let you in!!!! only one of my 4 doesnt get done because he is allergic (had big problems last time!!) but as we are on our own yard and the other 3 are done and he doesnt leave the yard often

[galadriel]

There are valid reasons for using minimal vaccinations. Most of the time the danger of contagion outweighs the danger of the injection. But sometimes giving the shot is more of a risk than letting the horse get sick if he's exposed to the contagion.

Horses can develop reactions to the agent in which the vaccine is delivered. The more you expose him, the more likely it may be that he will develop a reaction. Anaphalactic shock isn't pretty. Some horses may be sensitive to a wide variety of agents already, and could be more likely to develop a reaction. Horszes with any allergic condition may have a tendency to be more sensitive.

Someone mentioned that allergic reactions are more common in dogs...I've started giving my dogs the bare minimum in terms of vaccines, since they don't have interactions with other dogs. I feel fairly safe cutting back on the canines' shots.

My horses, on the other hand, may go out and around, and the vet/farrier coming through may carry infectious agents without knowing it. In my case, the danger of contagion is enough that I want to be sure the horses are protected. The horses get almost everything... and I just keep a really close eye on them for the day following any shots--mostly the next couple of hours. (I don't give Potomac Horse Fever vaccine because it's not common in my area, but the horses get rabies, strangles, West Nile, encephalitis, flu, rhino, and tetanus.)

[KarinUS]

My horse gets everything under the sun as far as vaccinations go (well and everything else actually).
But lately I have read up more on the natural horse keeping thing and even subscriped to a 'Natural Horse' Magazine.
It seems there are actually quite a few horse owners that don't vaccinate. Not because of the cost but rather because they are worried about side effects.

[KarinUS]

Here's an article about that (scroll down pretty close to the end). It's an interview with Linda Parelli:

Linda Parelli on Vaccinations and Chemical Worming, etc. (http://www.naturalhorse.com/archive/volume5/Issue1/article_5.php)

[Alibi]

When i was a vet nurse i went to the BSAVA congress and went to a seminar about vaccinations in canines, and they (not a drug brand) concluded (by doing independent testing - have the report somewhere at home) that if your dog was vaccinated for the first 5 or 7 years (can't remember the exact info as the seminar was about 6 yrs ago!) it would hold enough resistence for the rest of its life, aslong as it wasn't in a highly exposed environment. Just wondering if there is similar evidence for horses??

I don't believe in pumping myself or my animals unnecessaryly with drugs, however, until suitable evidence / testing is made available i'll still be vaccinating my horses. Although i don't vaccinate my old dog any more as he had over 7 yrs of vaccs and he never leaves our yard and is in a low risk environment.

[galadriel]

Hm, interesting, Alibi.

Somewhere recently I read that new research shows that the dog vaccines commonly used, at 1-yr intervals, should be good for at least 3 years. The most recent rabies vaccine I had administered to mine was even certified for 3 years.

But I've also read that research continues to show that equine vaccines need to be administered every 6 months or every year (depending on the vaccine). I think it probably has something to do with the fact that horses are so much bigger--just my guess--but I also suspect that it's influenced by the differences in an herbivore/prey animal's systems.

[wildponies]

There is a lot of discussion at the moment in the papers about our animals and their vaccinations. I have been told by my cats vet, (not the same one as my equine vet) that cats only need vaccs at the most once every seven years in most cases (i.e. if the vaccine has been successful) and it is quite common for cats to have the injection at a young age, and never have it again but still come into contact with the disease in question and be completely immune to it. Does anyone on here know what the position is with regards to horses? I'm guessing that it could be similar? Don't get me wrong, i'm all for vaccines and all my animals have them every year, just wondering if any research had been carried out with regards to horses?