Controlling Infectious Disease Outbreaks

When an infectious disease is suspected, Scollay said to first establish a perimeter to contain infected and exposed horses, communicate the plan, and only then attempt a diagnosis.
Share
Favorite
Close

No account yet? Register

ADVERTISEMENT

Effective outbreak management is implemented before a single horse gets sick, according to Mary Scollay, DVM, track veterinarian at Calder Race Course and Gulfstream Park racetrack in Florida. Scollay advocated having a plan in place and tailoring that plan to the particular disease situation as needed, in her presentation at the 52nd annual American Association of Equine Practitioners Convention, held Dec. 2-6, 2006, in San Antonio, Texas.

When an infectious disease is suspected, Scollay said to first establish a perimeter to contain infected and exposed horses, communicate the plan, and only then attempt a diagnosis.

"Act decisively, then explain why you did it and go from there," Scollay said. Raising an alarm about a potential outbreak before setting the perimeter can prompt some horse owners to leave the premises, leading to the spread of the pathogen. If you cannot establish a diagnosis, Scollay recommended maintaining infection control measures for at least 21 days.

Management of resources is key before an outbreak occurs, according to Scollay. Establish a chain of command, assess the facility, and take inventory of available testing materials and biosecurity supplies (gloves, etc.) available. Horse entry requirements should always be strictly enforced. Have a disease-reporting system in place so that people know what veterinary officials should receive information on a suspected case

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:

Erin Ryder is a former news editor of The Horse: Your Guide To Equine Health Care.

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?
300 votes · 300 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!