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  Discussion on Are Boosters Really Necessary for Adult Horse?
Author Message
Member:
andreth

Posted on Sunday, Apr 6, 2008 - 11:09 am:

I board my horse at a small barn. Last spring the vet vaccinated my horse and the owner's horses and administered booster shots for flu, rhino EHV, strangles, and West Nile. It never occurred to me to second guess the vet in this matter, but this spring the owner declared she'd read the boosters were entirely unnecessary and she had no intention of getting them again this spring. Her tone was rather angry and bitter. She straight out accused the vet of recommending the boosters to make money.

The same vet had vaccinated my horse the previous fall. The owner has hers vaccinated only in the spring.

Is she right about the boosters?
Member:
eoeo

Posted on Sunday, Apr 6, 2008 - 12:14 pm:

Your barn owner is being silly. She had better vaccinate ALL the horses. However, she and you could save a lot of money by giving your own vaccinations instead of having the vet do it. Either way, VACCINATE!!! The barn owner is misinformed about boosters being needed. I am not familiar with strangles vaccine but the 5 or 6 way flu/Rhino and the WNV if you want to vaccinate for that are needed each year.
Member:
hpyhaulr

Posted on Sunday, Apr 6, 2008 - 2:04 pm:

Hi Guys,
Have been under the weather(ok,monsoon) for a while and lurking rather than posting. THIS frosted my cookies and I could not stay silent.
Mary,
PREVENTION IS ALWAYS EASIER AND CHEAPER THAN ANY CURE!!!! Any doubts? re-read Lee Anne's thread. That poor child fully vaccinates and still is begging for prayers for her beloved horse who has been exposed to a killer dz. Rather than second guessing your vet, I would have a blood and urine test done on the irate owner. Seems she has been smoking her shoes! We vaccinate our horses for anything found in the States. Walt, as a hauler, is possibly exposed to everything, and by extension, so are our horses (and dogs) who travel in that trailer and are in contact with him when he comes home. Horses transfer into barns and travel to shows, all can bring unwanted airbornes home to the barn. IMHO,it is not possible to be too careful. My vet is here annually for the coggins/RV and I booster everything else myself, including strangles semi-annually. If I didn't and any one of them got something I could have prevented, how do I live with that? I will stab away every 6 months to keep that a rhetorical question.
The air is too thin up on the soapbox, going back to the couch now.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Monday, Apr 7, 2008 - 6:26 am:

Hello Mary,
There are no equine vaccines that are known to give life long immunity. You will find the latest scientific information on the efficacy of individual vaccines in the articles on the disease. You will find general recommendations based on this information in the schedule article.

But the decision of what to vaccinate for depends on many factors, including factoring in the risk of giving the vaccine. For an explanation of that review the Vaccine Overview article. If you start with "Overview" it provides links to the other articles I reference above.
DrO
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