VET’S GUIDE Vaccinations
Confused by the different vaccinations available and wondering what your horse really needs? Vet Ben Gaskell shares all you need to know
Photos: Bob Atkins, Jon Stroud, Macrovector/Shutterstock.com. With thanks to XLVet practice Bishopton Equine Vets for their help with this feature, bishoptonvets.co.uk xlvets.co.uk
Much like humans, there are a number of vaccinations horses need on a regular basis to keep them healthy and safe from diseases. With the overall aim of inoculation to reduce the risk of an outbreak, minimise its spread and reduce the severity of the symptoms should the horse develop the disease, there’s really no reason not to.
While every horse should be vaccinated against tetanus and flu, there are a number of other vaccines your horse may need if he’s travelling abroad or used for breeding. But despite the prevalence of these vaccinations, many horse owners don’t have more than a passing knowledge of how they work. Let’s take a look at some of the most common questions.
Our expert
Ben Gaskell BVSc MRCVS is Director of XLVet practice Bishopton Equine Vets. He graduated from Bristol Vet School in 2000 and his clinical interests include racehorse and sports horse performance.
DID YOU KNOW?
It’s believed that for herd immunity to be achieved, 80% of the population should be vaccinated.
How do vaccinations work?
Vaccines contain modified forms of viruses or bacteria (pathogens). When the vaccine is given, your horse’s immune system generates a response that causes him to produce antibodies to that particular pathogen. If your horse then meets that disease again in the future, they’ll be able to produce a fast, robust immune response and fight it.