What vaccinations your horse receives should be dependent on their specific risk of exposure to given diseases.  For horses that do not travel to other barns, shows, or arenas, and do not mix with other populations of horse, vaccination against respiratory pathogens that are passed from horse to horse such as herpesvirus, influenza, and Strep equi (“Strangles”) is probably not necessary.  However, not all diseases that are commonly vaccinated against do not pass from horse to horse.  The bacterium that causes tetanus is ubiquitous in the soil, and enters the body via wounds—no contact with other horses is necessary to be afflicted with tetanus.  Other diseases can be spread by blood-sucking insects, namely West Nile Virus and Eastern and Western Equine Encephalitis (EEE/WEE).  The source of the virus that the mosquitos carry is not other horses, but rather wild birds.  Finally, rabies virus is found in the saliva of an infected animal, and is usually spread by bite wounds from infected bats, skunks, raccoons, foxes, or other infected animals.  Although a “pasture ornament” may not require all the same vaccines as an actively competing show horse, we still recommend that they are vaccinated against these diseases that are not spread by horse to horse contact—tetanus, West Nile virus, EEE/WEE, and potentially rabies.

What is in a “3-Way” vaccine?  A “4-Way?” “5-Way?” “6-Way?”

              We get a lot of questions about these confusing terms!  The “3-Way” vaccine has long been used to describe the combination vaccine containing Eastern Equine Encephalomyelitis (EEE), Western Equine Encephalomyelitis (WEE), and Tetanus.  For a “4-Way,” add influenza to those three vaccines just listed.  A five way provides protection against EEE, WEE, Tetanus, Influenza and Equine Herpesvirus (“rhinopneumonitis”), and a “6-way” contains all 5 components of a 5-Way, plus West Nile.  Although there is a combination vaccine that includes EEE, WEE, tetanus, and West Nile, the combination of EEE,WEE, tetanus, and influenza was on the market for years prior to the introduction of the combination with West Nile, so the “4-Way” term is usually reserved for the vaccine containing influenza and not West Nile.  Clear as mud?

Contact the clinic and we can help you determine what vaccinations are appropriate for your horse.  Stay tuned in the coming days for more information on these diseases and why we vaccinate against them, as well as more answers to your frequently asked vaccination questions.