Blog
Spring Wellness Exams and Vaccines
- By Stephanie R. Shen, DVM
- •
- 24 Mar, 2025
Keeping your horse healthy coming out of winter and into the more active time of year (for all of us)
Rabies is an invariably fatal virus. Rabies vaccine is the most effective vaccine we have available and due to the possibility for human exposure, is required by NBEA to be a patient. Potomac horse fever is a mayfly/snail vectored bacterial disease that is more prevalent near water and in wet conditions. While we fortunately did not see much of this disease in the Northeast for many years, it has become more common in recent years.
EWT/WNV-
Eastern and Western Equine Encephalitis (EEE & WEE) & West Nile Virus are neurologic viruses which spread to horses by mosquitos. These are diseases are usually fatal. The diseases cannot be spread from horse to horse. The immunity for EEE and WEE is short lived providing protection fro only about 6 months in most horses. NBEA recommends a once yearly vaccine in the spring for all horses with boosters in the late summer of the local prevalence of disease is high and before traveling south for winter. EEE is usually fatal but some horses can pull through with extreme supportive care.
Tetanus-
Tetanus is caused by the toxin of a soil bacteria that infects horses through puncture wounds or lacerations. It causes complete paralysis, including the heart. Horses are uniquely susceptible to tetanus and require annual booster of this vaccine.
Influenza/Rhinopneumonitis ("Flu/Rhino")-
These are viral infections of the respiratory tract causing fever, cough and nasal discharge. While rarely fatal, they are extremely contagious and spread rapidly through barns and show grounds. This vaccine is required within 6 months for all horse’s showing at USEF rated shows.
Strangles-
A bacteria that is highly infectious to horses of any age. It is transmitted through direct contact of infected horses and indirect contact with anything the infected horse is in contact with, including handlers, buckets, tack, ect. Common clinical signs include fever and thick nasal discharge. Noteworthy is that Strangles is classified as a reportable disease in Massachusetts, triggering mandatory quarantine measures for affected farms. While the vaccine can be administered intranasally or orally, it does not provide full immunity but effectively reduces the severity of the illness.
Botulism-
Another bacterial spore borne disease, botulism is fatal without early diagnosis and treatment. It is present in the dirt in some geographic regions and can be found in contaminated water and round or compressed hay bales. The vaccine is highly effective and has one of the lowest reactivity rates. We recommend this vaccine to anyone feeding round or compressed bales or horses traveling south to Aiken for the winter.
Recent Posts
Pasture Management for Springtime Grass
After months of barren ground or snow covered fields, we are slowly starting to see the gorgeous signs of spring in New England once again. The horses are shedding and eagerly awaiting any chance they have to nibble some delicious green grass. Below we provide very helpful guidelines for the slow controlled introduction to keep our horses safe and healthy.
Horses that always live outside have the benefit of mother nature's slow introduction to grass as it grows through the first weeks of spring. Horses living in stalls with only partial day turnout have to be more strictly controlled in their introduction to pasture to prevent the serious trouble that can occur with too much fresh grass too quickly. Over indulgence in grass can result in gas colic and laminitis. So what can you do to protect your horse from the potential hazards of too much grass too quickly?
Here are guidelines to assist you in coming up with a pasture introduction plan:
Horses on 2-12 hours a day of pasture:
If you have limited pasture but still want your horse to reap the benefits of daily turnout you probably fall into this category. Most horses in a boarding situation with access to grass will be in this group. Take care to closely follow a pre-determined time scale of introduction for these horses. We recommend the following graduated schedule:
Days 1-3: 20 min/day
Days 4-6: 1hr/day
Days 6-9: 2 hrs/day
Days 10-12: 3 hrs/day
Day 13 and beyond: unlimited in horses who are not overweight or sensitive.
You can also use a grazing muzzle (see below) if you need to introduce pasture more rapidly. With a grazing muzzle you can add 20 min per day of turnout until on full turnout. Once on full turn out keep muzzle on for about a week then alternate every other day for a week then it should be safe to remove the grazing muzzle.
