NOAH comment on equine influenza
12th February 2019
NOAH supports the veterinary profession as it works to tackle the current Equine Influenza outbreak.
With racing set to resume, horse owners should remain vigilant and to be aware of the clinical signs of equine influenza and to contact their vet as soon as possible if they have any concerns.
Dawn Howard said: “There is much excellent advice available. For example, the Animal Health Trust gives step-by-step advice for horse owners on reducing the risk of getting flu at a yard, giving guidance on how to detect and prevent the spread of this infectious disease. This includes following good biosecurity and vaccination protocols. Any unvaccinated horses, or horses whose vaccinations have lapsed, should be vaccinated as soon as possible. It is also recommended that if vaccination was carried out over 6 months ago, horse owners should talk to their vet about re-vaccinating their horse, in order to maximise protective immunity.”
“The following links give access to excellent information, but do not hesitate to contact your own veterinary surgeon if you think you may have a problem or for advice – this way any further spread can be restricted as far as possible.
Suggested further background information from the Animal Health Trust can be found at https://www.aht.org.uk/disease-surveillance/equiflunet and to keep up to date follow @equiflunet
For horse owners:
AHT Equiflunet helpsheet: https://www.aht.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/What-to-do-with-equine-flu.pdf
British Equine Federation (BEF) has a Q&A https://www.bef.co.uk/repository/EquineDevelopment/QA_Equine_Flu_120219.pdf
British Horse Society update http://www.bhs.org.uk/our-charity/press-centre/news/2019/equine-influenza
For veterinary surgeons:
AHT advice https://www.aht.org.uk/disease-surveillance/equiflunet/equiflunet-for-vets