Strangles Outbreak

L

Lol09

Member
Joined
11 August 2009
Messages
24
Visit site
I would appreciate comments on the following - not sure if I am over-reacting. Local livery yard has recently announced they have their second strangles outbreak in less than a year. However, they are still allowing their liveries to go out and compete at BE events. I am sure the competing horses are not directly suffering from strangles but surely a livery yard in this position would go into "lockdown" until given the all clear?
 
If you contact Redwings they will hopefully send you a brilliant pack about strangles, it contains useful advice and posters etc
Its called Strangles speak out!

This may also help you, its all about the biosecurity of it all and how important it is which may be taken place at the livery yard you speak of, no harm in asking them just to put minds at rest
http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/news/unforgivable-pony-dumped-advanced-strangles-628947
 
Lol09 said:
I would appreciate comments on the following - not sure if I am over-reacting. Local livery yard has recently announced they have their second strangles outbreak in less than a year. However, they are still allowing their liveries to go out and compete at BE events. I am sure the competing horses are not directly suffering from strangles but surely a livery yard in this position would go into "lockdown" until given the all clear?
Click to expand...

VERY unprofessional and dangerous and inconsiderate of this yard.


Indeed lock down with NO hacking and jeyes fluid for the infected horses with only one person caring for them. I would have words with your YO and advise them to speak to this yard and say how selfish they are being allowing potential infected horses out in public.
 
I was on a yard some years ago that had a case of strangles - with very careful management (it was summer and virtually all the horses were out) one person looked after and checked the horses which were out. mine and another were in so I did them. the horse with strangles was isolated and moved to a separate yard with no-one and no other horses there. with no-one coming or going on the yard we didn't get an other case. the horse who had it was a youngster who had come over from Ireland. we were very lucky - after four weeks we were back up and running - we were lucky that the owners were understanding and stayed away -the girl looking after the those that were out rang the owners daily to give an update. it was worth the hassle
 
Last edited:
Thanks for all the replies. The very fact that they are re-infected within a few months is a worry. I know from first hand experience that the biosecurity is not up to standard and I completely agree that they are being selfish and unprofessional. I will talk to my YO and see if she will contact them - or possibly the local vets.
 
Lol09 said:
Thanks for all the replies. The very fact that they are re-infected within a few months is a worry. I know from first hand experience that the biosecurity is not up to standard and I completely agree that they are being selfish and unprofessional. I will talk to my YO and see if she will contact them - or possibly the local vets.
Click to expand...

I have rather recent and not great experience of yard biosecurity re: strangles.

The vets cannot give out information on a different yard. They couldn't even give information to individual liveries on a yard with a suspected strangles case without permission. They can advise on quarantine, but can't enforce it. They can't even enforce that people test their horses.

Its not a notifiable disease and to be fair the vast majority of horses develop antibodies and no symptoms. I'm torn between wishing it was notifiable and yards had to enforce lockdown and thinking that we should just let outbreaks run their course and horses build up their immunity (& I say that as someone who had a whopping strangles related vets bill)
 
The problem is that strangles has such a reputation that yards are often afraid to openly say they have it or to lock down. The redwings pack mentioned earlier is very useful. But the only thing you can really do is protect yourself and your horse as much as possible. There will always be folk at shows etc who have been exposed and don't know it or horses who are carriers - again without the owner knowing. Hopefully those who have been exposed and do know it would be more responsible -but not always.
 
Strangles has such a stigma attached to it and so many yards do not understand biosecurity
I have livestock so biosecurity is second nature to me as every time something breaks out like F&M its sends a raging fear around the country
I have never seen or had to deal with strangles (I also don't ever want to) but if it were to happen increased biosecurity would be sorted within the hour, visitors would be kept to the absolute minimum and I would put signs up warning of strangles on my fences and gates, the world and his wife would know it was on my yard
The horse world really have never had to deal with biosecurity or the risk of outbreaks of disease and having their animals put down by Defra and I would hate to see that happen but it changes your whole perspective on things, biosecurity isn't difficult or even that time consuming it just takes effort and understanding as to how important it is
 
When we had a suspected case the horse was isolated, vet advised to keep every horse where they were, so if out they stayed out if in stayed in. Yard was on lockdown no visitors just those who had to come to do their horse and only did their horse and never touched another, we were all feet dipped, gel antibacterial etc, we disinfected all the stables, fences everything, had all rugs washed, car tyres disinfected, farriers cancelled. Isolated horse was only touched after everything else done and then took overalls off and went straight home to shower change clothes. We had to wait for swabs done and bloods taken from ALL horses. The horse that had it had to have 3 clear swabs before we could hack out again or leave the yard. Basically summer was cancelled. Its what we all wanted, we didn't want all the others to get it. Mine had had it about 25 years before.

I know of a yard that had it and it went through most of the yard due to the person working there going from horse to horse !!!!!!!

It is totally disgusting for people from the effected yard to continue as normal - very frustrating
 
Last edited:
Lol09 said:
I would appreciate comments on the following - not sure if I am over-reacting. Local livery yard has recently announced they have their second strangles outbreak in less than a year. However, they are still allowing their liveries to go out and compete at BE events. I am sure the competing horses are not directly suffering from strangles but surely a livery yard in this position would go into "lockdown" until given the all clear?
Click to expand...

I wonder if you are thinking of the same yard as I have been wondering about...I was very shocked that a local livery/comp yard with their second outbreak in less than a year has people out and about at BE events/clinics/comps etc. I was considering commenting on a picture of a rider of theirs going BE and ask if they were now all clear.
 
I think I probably am thinking of the same yard. That is a very good idea - it is so incredibly selfish and unprofessional. This awful disease could easily spread through all the local yards.
 
Lol09 - you're not in Derbyshire are you? We have a local nightmare yard like this and it wouldn't surprise me.
 
I think it all depends on what biosecurity measures they have in place. The animal may have been in a quarantine area and have been no where near the rest of the yard.

The fact they have another case may have no bearing, if an infectious animal was brought on the yard or a person brought the infection in on their hands or clothes its difficult to prevent.
How many times have you been to events where people go from horse to horse touching them, or stand close to other horses?

There seems to be such hysteria about strangles, which is probably less infectious than human norovirus which can kill people and spreads really easily. In both cases its in the outside environment, simple handwashing can prevent spread, with separation of the infected with infection control measures put in place.
One of our ponies was at a PC camp at Stoneleigh where a pony was suspected of having strangles, all the ponies were sent home. We quarantined ours as a precaution, thank god we were not on a livery yard we would have been hung drawn ad quartered.
 
honetpot said:
I think it all depends on what biosecurity measures they have in place. The animal may have been in a quarantine area and have been no where near the rest of the yard.

The fact they have another case may have no bearing, if an infectious animal was brought on the yard or a person brought the infection in on their hands or clothes its difficult to prevent.
How many times have you been to events where people go from horse to horse touching them, or stand close to other horses?

There seems to be such hysteria about strangles, which is probably less infectious than human norovirus which can kill people and spreads really easily. In both cases its in the outside environment, simple handwashing can prevent spread, with separation of the infected with infection control measures put in place.
One of our ponies was at a PC camp at Stoneleigh where a pony was suspected of having strangles, all the ponies were sent home. We quarantined ours as a precaution, thank god we were not on a livery yard we would have been hung drawn ad quartered.
Click to expand...

Some sense, and yes I have dealt with strangles many years ago and discussed it in recent years with equine vets I work with
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top