WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind., April 3 (UPI) -- Purdue University veterinarians in West Lafayette, Ind., say its time to vaccinate horses against several potentially life-threatening diseases.
Equine herpesvirus-1, or EHV-1, also known as rhino, is a respiratory ailment easily controlled by vaccinating horses two to four times per year.
A second form causes pregnant mares to abort and also can be controlled with a vaccine. The third type, equine herpesvirus myeloencephalopathy, is an often deadly neurologic disease, for which there is no vaccine.
"This is not a new disease, but most people know EHV-1 as rhino and don't associate herpes with an equine disease, although this is not the same as human herpes," said William Hope of the Purdue Community Practice Equine Clinic. "A good vaccination program and quarantines, when horses move to new barns, are the only tools we have."
Along with rhino vaccinations, in the early spring and fall horses should be vaccinated against West Nile virus, tetanus, flu, eastern and western equine encephalitis, and Potomac horse fever. Rabies vaccine should be given annually.
