2009 Equine Health Maintenance Recommendations

Performance Horses:

This group of horses is the most in need of regular and in depth maintenance, as they are traveling the most and working at the highest levels. They consistently have exposure to other horses which exposes them to disease. Combined with shipping stressors, this predisposes this group to the whole array of equine infectious disease.

This group would include English sport horses, Dressage horses, Rodeo horses, Racehorses and Western performance horses of varying disciplines. Horses that travel frequently for other reasons and are mixed frequently with outside horses should also be fully vaccinated.

Specific programs can be suited to your horses' needs. Depending on travel or show schedule, your veterinarian may advise vaccination for diseases prevalent in the destination area.

Pleasure/Acreage Horses:

If your horses are not traveling and mixing with other horses at shows or events, then their health maintenance is much simpler. These horses need to be protected from diseases in their environment and over which you do not have control. These would be the mosquito-borne illnesses such as West Nile virus, and soil or water-borne disease such as tetanus. These horses should also be protected from any other horses they may have fence line contact with.

Broodmares:

One of the more complex issues is how to provide a good maintenance program for broodmares who are constantly either in foal or have a foal at their side. Ideally broodmares should be fully vaccinated prior to entering the breeding facility either as a young barren mare, or a returning mare and foal. Parasite control is also important as mares need to have good gastrointestinal function in both gestation and lactation. Also, foals tend to consume manure, so preventing intestinal parasites in the mare will also benefit the newborn foal. Due to the variable breeding seasons of different breeds, the management of the mare should be governed by her stage of gestation than the date on the calendar.

Broodmares are often vaccinated one month prior to foaling in order to create antibodies which benefit the mare as well as the foal through the colostrum. Prebreeding examinations are done to identify any concerns that may be present. Please consult the stallion owner/ breeding farm and the reproductive veterinarian for specific requirements such as uterine culture or biopsy.

Foals:

Newborn foals are at risk for several medical issues, and should be examined within 24 hours of birth. This also allows for examination of the placenta and treatment of the mare if necessary. The foals blood is often tested at this time to measure the amount of protective antibodies it has absorbed from the colostrum, this is called a SNAP test, or foal IgG test.

In general, foals do not require vaccination until approximately 9 months of age, when the antibodies they received from the mare begin to decline.

Parasite control in the foal is more demanding due to the confinement of the mare and foal and the tendency of foals to consume manure. This process is normal and allows the foal to "seed" its intestines with bacteria beneficial for the digestion of fibrous feeds. However, this allows intestinal parasites to enter the system as well. Caution should be exercised when deworming foals, as some broad spectrum wormers are too potent for foals, or kill off too many parasites at one time.

Yearlings:

Yearlings should be treated like pleasure horses until they enter specific training programs or stables, at which time, they become performance horses. Yearling horses should receive health maintenance on a seasonal rather than age-related schedule. Strangles vaccination is not advised in animals less than 2 years of age. Moxidectin based deworming products are also not recommended until 2 years of age.

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