April Knudson, DVM, is an Equine Specialist with Merial Veterinary Services. She has a special interest in sport horse lameness and internal medicine. She holds a doctor of veterinary medicine from the University of California-Davis. Below, she responds to a question about the threat of rabies.
Question: I haven’t heard of any cases of rabies in my area, do I really need to vaccinate for it?
Answer: It would be very exciting for me to tell you that rabies had been eradicated in the United States. Unfortunately, the threat of rabies still exists. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 49 states and Puerto Rico reported 6,690 cases of rabies in animals and four human cases of rabies in 2009.1
Wild animals account for 92 percent of those reported cases, with raccoons being the most frequently reported rabid wildlife species.1 However, dogs, cats, horses and other domestic animals remain in danger if not vaccinated.
Although rabies in horses is rare, the threat does exist. In April, 2011 a seven-year-old Quarter Horse died and subsequently tested positive for the disease. During the weeks prior, the horse had participated in two competitions in Texas, potentially exposing humans and other horses to the disease.2
Because the disease is always fatal in horses and has such considerable public health significance, the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) recommends that all horses be vaccinated for rabies.3
Transmitted to horses via saliva from the bite of an infected animal,3 the incubation period varies from two to 10 weeks; depending on what part of the body is bitten.4
The onset of rabies is marked by variable clinical signs which are similar to other diseases affecting the horse’s nervous system. Those clinical signs can include, but are not limited to, going off feed, depression, excessive salivation, difficulty swallowing, lack of coordination, aggressive behavior, hyper excitability, colic, convulsions or paralysis.4
Although there may not be any reported incidents of equine rabies in your area at this time, the disease may be present in local wildlife and the only surefire way to help protect your horse against the disease is to vaccinate with a product like Merial’s IMRAB®rabies vaccine.
While the best way to help prevent equine diseases like rabies is to vaccinate, horse owners can also take advantage of Merial’s new free “Outbreak Alert” program, which will tell them about the presence of confirmed equine disease in their area.
Those who sign up at www.outbreak-alert.com will receive text and/or e-mail notification of disease threats within a 250-mile radius of any ZIP code provided. The site also includes maps showing the presence of disease throughout the country and general information about common equine diseases.
About Merial
Merial is a world-leading, innovation-driven animal health company providing a comprehensive range of products to enhance the health, well-being and performance of a wide range of animals. Merial employs approximately 5,600 people and operates in more than 150 countries worldwide. Its 2010 sales were more than $2.6 billion. Merial is a Sanofi company.
For more information, please see http://www.merial.com.
1 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Rabies Surveillance Data in the United States. http://www.cdc.gov/rabies/location/usa/surveillance/index.html. Accessed May 4, 2011.
2 “People May Have Been Exposed to Rabies at Local Horse Show.” Available at http://www.kwtx.com/home/headlines/People_May_Have_Been_Exposed_To_ Rabies_At_Local_Horse_Show. Accessed June 23, 2011.
3 Guidelines for the vaccination of horses: Rabies. American Association of Equine Practitioners. Available at: http://www.aaep.org/rabies/htm. Accessed May 9, 2010.
4 Marteniuk, J. Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine. Available at: http://cvm.msu.edu/alumni-friends/information-for-animal-owners/rabies-in-horses. Accessed July 5, 2011.
®IMRAB is a registered trademark of Merial Limited. ©2011 Merial Limited, Duluth, GA. All rights reserved. EQUIBIM1104(07/11).