tetanus and vaccinations

[notpoodle]

having got some of angel's 'paperwork' i noticed that her last vaccinations againts tetanus and equine influnenza were in '99 :eek:

i have made an appointment with the vet immediately (he's coming on thursday ... poor baby ... it's going to be farrier and vet on thursday!), but am a little confused as to how often tetanus vaccinations are given. i know they are about every five years in humans, but what about horses? seeing her last jab was so long ago, i guess i'm better off starting entirely afresh?

julia
x

[katieB]

Angel will have tetanus+flu jab when the vet comes and then you book another appointment within 4-8 weeks and she has the same shot again, then 6 months after that she has ANOTHER and then I think its yearly after that :) Providing you vaccinate within the year then thats all you need to do, if a year passes then you have to start the whole cycle again

[notpoodle]

thanks for that :) is there anything i need to do before the vet comes? can she eat before the vaccination?! do i need to stable her afterwards? how long should i not ride her after the vaccination?

how do horses react to needles? she's a rather sedate and relaxed pony and not scared of vets as such...

julia
x

[eml]

It depends if you are competing or not. If you need entry to certain showgrounds the rules are very specific including and initial course and then boosters within one year.

Some vets now think that this is not neccessarily best however so do talk to yours. On our Vets advice we have our school ponies who don't go to shows so don't mix with other horses vaccinated against tetanus every three years and the competition horses according to the required annual schedule..

I agree with you that 99 is too long ago but many owners have vaccinations done but not recorded if they don't need the record for competing so she may not be so out of date.

Again ask your vet about work. Normally we plan ours so the horse has a day off the next day and does not compete for about 3 days but it varies with what specific vaccine the Vet uses

[notpoodle]

i dont compete at all :) i thought vaccinations would have to be recorded :rolleyes:

i think i'll ring the vet tomorrow and find out about any arrangements i might have to make, ie, should she have to be stabled after the jab, i got to sort out a stable as i'm technically a grass livery ...

julia
x

ps: should i have her vaccinated againts flu? she won't compete and is unlikely to go to any other yards. however, there are competitions at our yard sometimes, with 'strange' horses coming for the day ....

[Mehitabel]

we have all of ours vaccinated against flu, whether they leave ther yard or not. it's a personal choice thing, as there can be reactions to the jab, but i think it's worth it.
no need to stable or withhold food before or after - we frequently just drag them in, hold then for the vet and straight out again.
work-wise, they shouldn't work hard (ie, sweating) for a day or so afterwards as like any vaccination they may feel a little fluey the day after while it gets into the system.

[sozzie]

My youngster had her first flu + tet the day she was vetted and then had her second a month later once she was with me. On my yard your horse has to have a flu vaccination.
My horse lives out 24/7 so I just brought her into the yard let the vet do the jab, quickly check her over, and then I put her back in the field with no problems. Didn't seem to notice anything different about her over the next few days and she does little work anyway being so young. so I didn't need to treat her any differently.

[artemis]

You can get tetanus vaccine for horses that lastsfor 3 years once you have completed the course. Ask your vet.

[notpoodle]

*phew* what a day! vet and farrier, all today!

she got tetanus and flu in the end, had to start an entirely new course ... the vet was very nice and helpful (even got to listen to her heartbeat and stomach rumbles!). angel, on the other hand was only nice and helpful until the needle turned up. before that, she was all over the vet trying to make a new friend.

then, the needle came out :rolleyes: there was me, the vet and the vet assistant clutching various parts of angel (I had the headcollar), who was going a bit wild. i thought she was going to bite either me or (even worse) the vet, she seemed to consist mainly of teeth all of a sudden :rolleyes:

the first attempt failed, luckily, the needle didnt break though!

and because i got rather flustered/stressed i asked a girl from the yard to hold her for me (i figured me being nervous was the last thing angel needed!), who *almost* got bitten .... ah well, the needle went in in the end. im NOT looking forward to the next appointment in 4 weeks time though ...

julia
x

ps: he checked her eye as well -as is fine! he also had a look at her teeth and said i should have them done by the end of the year, as they're looking fine :)

pps: he also said she was a 'nice little horse' with 'nice clean legs' :D :D