Vaccinate Against Equine Flu to Minimize Spread of Disease

Equine influenza is a common respiratory infection in horses caused by the equine influenza A type-2 virus. While influenza is not particularly harmful to affected horses (i.e., it has a very low mortality rate), it is associated with explosive outbreaks that have a large economic impact on the industry. Vaccination of at-risk horses and continually updating the flu vaccines play a crucial

Share
Favorite
Close

No account yet? Register

ADVERTISEMENT

Equine influenza is a common respiratory infection in horses caused by the equine influenza A type-2 virus. While influenza is not particularly harmful to affected horses (i.e., it has a very low mortality rate), it is associated with explosive outbreaks that have a large economic impact on the industry. Vaccination of at-risk horses and continually updating the flu vaccines play a crucial role in limiting the damage caused by this virus.

“Influenza is a moving target, often changing its coat to confuse the immune system.”
–Dr. Tom Chambers
“While not considered a core vaccination by the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP), it is recommended that all horses should be vaccinated against the flu unless they are part of a closed herd,” explained Tom Chambers, PhD, who heads the OIE Reference Laboratory for Equine Influenza at the University of Kentucky’s Gluck Equine Research Center in Lexington.

All of the current influenza vaccines are believed to provide protection for at least six months duration. Thus, bi-annual vaccination against flu for at-risk horses (e.g., mature performance or show horses) is recommended. Recommendations for other horses vary and are available at aaep.org/equine_influenza.htm

Create a free account with TheHorse.com to view this content.

TheHorse.com is home to thousands of free articles about horse health care. In order to access some of our exclusive free content, you must be signed into TheHorse.com.

Start your free account today!

Already have an account?
and continue reading.

Share

Written by:

Stacey Oke, MSc, DVM, is a practicing veterinarian and freelance medical writer and editor. She is interested in both large and small animals, as well as complementary and alternative medicine. Since 2005, she’s worked as a research consultant for nutritional supplement companies, assisted physicians and veterinarians in publishing research articles and textbooks, and written for a number of educational magazines and websites.

Related Articles

Stay on top of the most recent Horse Health news with

FREE weekly newsletters from TheHorse.com

Sponsored Content

Weekly Poll

sponsored by:

Where do you primarily feed your horse?
301 votes · 301 answers

Readers’ Most Popular

Sign In

Don’t have an account? Register for a FREE account here.

Need to update your account?

You need to be logged in to fill out this form

Create a free account with TheHorse.com!