Core Vaccinations

Core vaccinations are recommended and essential for all horses, annually, with boosters dependent on age, seasons and travel. A vaccination schedule should be made with your veterinarian for your individual horse based on their competition schedule, sensitivity to vaccination, travel and time of year.

Rabies

All horses should be vaccinated yearly. This vaccination is effective for 12 months.

Rabies is a neurologic disease caused by a virus that is most often transmitted by a bite from an infected wild animal (racoons, bats, skunks, foxes). It can also be transmitted by fresh saliva from the infected animal coming into contact with open wounds or mucus membranes.

While rare in horses, this disease is 100% fatal.

West Nile Virus

All horses should be vaccinated yearly, with boosters recommended if traveling to a warm weather region in the winter season.

WNV is a disease with a range of symptoms from mild flu-like signs to neurologic behavior, signifying inflammation of the brain, which can be fatal. It is transmitted via mosquito bite and becomes a concern in New England in the summer and fall months.

For the best efficacy, we recommend vaccinating your horse around mid-late spring. If traveling south in the winter, make a plan to booster your horse prior to travels or 6 months from previous vaccination.

Eastern & Western Equine Encephalitis

All horses should be vaccinated yearly, with boosters recommended if traveling to a warm weather region in the winter season.

Similarly to WNV, EEE and WEE are mosquito-borne viruses that cause inflammation of the brain and spinal cord, resulting in neurologic impairment.

EEE and WEE become a concern in New England in summer and fall. Vaccination is recommend in mid-late spring with a booster in the fall if traveling south.

Tetanus

All horses should be vaccinated yearly with boosters recommended if your horse had sustained a wound more than 6 months after last vaccination.

Tetanus is a disease caused by a neurotoxin produced by a bacteria - Clostridium tetani. These organisms lay dormant in the soil and their spores can enter open wounds/punctures, reproduce and die, releasing the neurotoxin, causing the clinical symptoms - muscle spasms, stiffness, lameness, colic

We offer all of these core vaccinations as the 5-in-1 combination Core vaccine. We also offer these vaccinations as individuals, if you wish to split up your horse’s core vaccinations into multiple appointments or just need individual boosters.

We preform wellness exams with each horse’s annual rabies vaccination.

Risk-based Vaccines

We recommend risk-based vaccines for individual horses based on multiple variables such as their competition schedule, home environment, diet, past exposure, social life and seasonal changes. These factors are very important to mention to your veterinarian when developing your horses vaccination schedule.

  • Equine influenza is a respiratory disease that is highly contagious, causing symptoms of fever, cough, nasal discharge, lethargy and inappetence.

    Equine herpesvirus (Equine Viral Rhinopneumonitis) is a respiratory disease with symptoms and infectiousness similar to the common cold in humans. Some organisms of this virus can extend past the respiratory system and cause abortion in pregnant mares while other strains can cause herpesvirus myeloencephalopathy (EHM). EHM is an inflammation of blood vessels that supply the brain and spinal cord, causing neurological symptoms.

    We offer a flu/rhino combination vaccine and recommend this vaccine every 6 months for horses who compete, board at facilities that house other horses, travel, or are in contact with other horses. It is also recommended for broodmares and foals with different booster intervals. Speak with your vet for recommendations.

  • Strangles is a highly contagious respiratory disease characterized by infected, swollen lymph nodes that can cause constriction of the upper airway, fever, anorexia and nasal discharge.

    We offer an intra-nasal vaccination for Strangles and recommend it to horses that travel or are in contact with other horses who travel, compete, or are boarded at large/active facilities.

    If your horse has never had the strangles vaccine before or has unknown vaccination history, talk with your vet about doing a Strep M titer. This test determines if your horses is at risk of developing any complications from the strangles vaccine such as purpura hemorrhagica or metastatic abscess formation. There is a discount on this test from January 1st-April 30th.

  • PHF is a non-contagious bacterial infection caused by the organism Neorickettsia risticii. It is most often transmitted by the accidental ingestion of contaminated aquatic insects such as mayflies.

    Symptoms include high fever, diarrhea, depression, anorexia, colic and laminitis/founder.

    We recommend this vaccine be administered in the late summer/ early fall, for horses that live near rivers or creeks.

  • Lyme is a non-contagious disease caused by the organism Borrelia burgdorferi, spread by the blacklegged tick (deer tick).

    Clinical signs of Lyme disease vary widely and include stiffness, increased sensitivity to touch, behavioral changes, “spookiness”, uveitis, lameness, bursitis and neurological behavior.

    While Lyme disease is prevalent in the Northeast our best preventative measures to keep our horses Lyme free is environmental management and frequent tick checks.

    We offer the canine Lyme vaccine for off label use in horses, but it’s efficacy does vary. This vaccine is recommended every 6 months.

  • Botulism is a rare disease caused by the bacterium, Clostridium botulinum. This bacterium is most often transported via ingestion of contaminated hay. Contamination occurs when spores are in a low oxygen, high protein and low acidity environment (decaying plant matter or animal carcasses) where the toxins can thrive.

    Clinical signs can include weakness, muscle tremors, drooling, reduced tongue strength, paralysis, labored breathing and difficulty swallowing.

    We recommend this vaccine annually for horses that are regularly fed round bales.