Antibiotic Awareness in Horses: What to Know

It’s “Antibiotic Awareness Week.” Find out how antibiotic resistance affects horses and how vets are remedying it.
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Horses worldwide are suffering the effects of antibiotic resistance, rendering antibiotic treatment for a variety of infections ineffective. However, better education of both veterinarians and owners—especially in developing countries—and ongoing research can help reverse this trend, said the head of the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE).

And there’s no better time to become educated on the topic than during World Antibiotic Awareness Week, taking place Nov. 16-20.

“We’re seeing a recent phenomenon where more therapeutic treatments (against bacteria) are failing, whereas 20 years ago these same treatments worked well,” said Bernard Vallat, DVM, director general of the OIE, in Paris, France. “These failures are happening more and more often—and not just in equine species, but in all species, including humans.”

Antibiotic resistance occurs when certain bacteria survive an antibiotic treatment. These bacteria might have survived the treatment because of a genetic ability to resist that particular treatment, or a mutation that helps them overcome the antibiotic’s effects. As survivors, they reproduce and create an entire colony of treatment-resistant germs that can then spread to other animals, or people, according to the OIE

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Passionate about horses and science from the time she was riding her first Shetland Pony in Texas, Christa Lesté-Lasserre writes about scientific research that contributes to a better understanding of all equids. After undergrad studies in science, journalism, and literature, she received a master’s degree in creative writing. Now based in France, she aims to present the most fascinating aspect of equine science: the story it creates. Follow Lesté-Lasserre on Twitter @christalestelas.

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