by Alicia Skelding, Equine Guelph
The term Biosecurity refers to management practices that reduce the chance infectious disease will be carried onto a farm by animals or people and the spread of infectious disease on farms. All infectious diseases of horses result from the interactions between the animal and its ability to resist disease (immunity), an infectious agent (bacteria, viruses, and parasites) and the environment. These relationships allow opportunities for preventing or reducing infectious diseases.
The most common way infectious diseases are spread is when a new horse arrives at a property that is a carrier of the disease. A veterinary examination is recommended prior to purchasing a horse. Depending on where the horse has originated from, the veterinarian may advise for specific tests to be conducted to rule out infectious diseases.
New horses should be isolated from resident horses for thirty days. The horse should be checked daily for signs of illness, including monitoring the horse’s temperature, food and water intake. Separate stable/yard equipment, buckets, grooming supplies, tack etc should be used for new horses and marked with red tape. The new horse should be handled last, morning and night, and hands should be washed upon leaving the horse’s stall or paddock.
Vaccination can be a critical aspect of controlling infectious diseases because in many instances owners cannot prevent exposure. It is important to remember that vaccination cannot prevent disease. Vaccines perform best if the disease challenge is minimized. In some instances, vaccination does not provide protection against infection but merely decreases the severity of clinical disease. Vaccination serves to increase resistance against certain diseases in individual horses as well as horse populations.
A vaccination program is most effective when it is planned to meet the particular needs of a farm. Setting up a strategic vaccination program means:
Your veterinarian will provide guidelines for a vaccination program that suits your needs.
Quarantine, in which a horse is completely separated from contact with other horses, is a smart strategy for limiting the transmission of disease. It’s a good idea when you have a sick horse to separate him from his apparently healthy barn mates. When you have a new arrival they should be quarantined from resident horses.
When setting up a quarantine facility whether it is one stall or many, consider how you will best limit the spread of infection.
Quarantine is not strictly for sick or new horses, horses that have left the farm for showing or breeding purposes also have the potential to bring home germs. These horses should be isolated for at least two weeks, making sure there is no noseto-nose contact.
Assign specific individual(s) to care for affected horses. Ideally a caretaker should not be responsible for both healthy and exposed/affected horses. If unavoidable, care of healthy animals should be completed first; exposed animals next; affected animals last. Disposable gloves, plastic booties and barrier clothing should be used when working with sick horses.
After handling sick horses, gloves and booties should be disposed of in a sealed trash container and clothing placed in a covered hamper. Hands must be washed under running water with liquid soap for a minimum of 15 seconds.
Ideally there should be only one entrance / exit into your farm, marked as the main entrance. Parking should be away from horses to help keep disease-carrying organisms from being tracked from car floors or tires to your horses. If the farrier or veterinarian needs to park closer, be sure their tires and shoes have been disinfected. Ask all visitors to wear clean clothes and shoes. Give visitors plastic shoe covers, or brush dirt off their shoes and spray with disinfectant. If you have many visitors, such as a farm tour or open house make a footbath for them to walk through.
Records of visitors to your farm with date, time, name and purpose of visit should be kept. On larger properties, record details of horse(s) the visitor came in contact with.
Coming into contact with a diseased horse at an event/activity is another way in which horses can be infected with a disease. When attending events take your own equipment (buckets, tack, grooming supplies), do not share your equipment or use communal water troughs. Monitor your horse’s health while at the event. Avoid tying/yarding your horse with other horses thereby minimizing direct contact and always wash your hands if you have touched other peoples horses. Good records of horse movement should be kept as well as disinfecting equipment, tack and transport vehicles after returning from the event.
Waste management procedures are not limited to organisms shed in feces but are applicable to all infectious agents. Manure on wheelbarrow tires, tractor tires etc is a potential source of the infectious agent and can be tracked everywhere on the grounds if tires are not properly cleaned and disinfected. Do not put waste material from the stalls of affected horses onto open-air manure piles/pits. Do not spread manure from affected horses onto pastures.
Horse-specific equipment (fed-tubs, water buckets, halters etc) should be clearly identified as belonging to an individual horse and be used only by that horse. Shared equipment (lead shanks, lip chains, bits, twitches, thermometers etc) should be cleaned of organic debris and disinfected between horses.
All equipment should be thoroughly scrubbed and cleaned with detergent and water, rinsed, disinfected and followed by a final rinse. This should be done in an area with minimal foot and traffic flow that can be cleaned and disinfected after this procedure. Cloth items (saddle pads, towels, bandages) should be laundered and thoroughly dried between each use (disinfectant may be added to rinse water). Equipment that cannot be effectively disinfected (sponges, brushes) should not be shared between horses. Multiple dose medications should be labeled for use by a specific horse and not shared.
The number one rule for disease control is cleaning. This means the removal of all manure and feed, followed by washing, scrubbing, rinsing or pressure washing, all surfaces with hot water and detergent. This is followed by the use of a disinfectant.
There are three steps in order for this process to be effective. Step one: remove loose material. Surfaces must first be cleaned in order for disinfectants to be effective. Ensure all manure and dirt is brushed off the surface. Step two: wash. Wash the item or surface with warm soapy water and rinse thoroughly and dry. Step three: disinfect. Once the item or surface is dry, disinfectant can be applied.
Tack items and footwear can be wiped with a disinfectant wipe or can be sprayed with disinfectant and wiped over with a clean dry cloth. Horse transport vehicles and floors of stables can be sprayed with disinfectant made up in a spray bottle or large surface sprayer.
When choosing a disinfectant, it is also important to refer to the specific product claim including the spectrum of activity. It is important to read the labels carefully and to follow the directions including accurately calculating the dilutions and respecting the recommended contact time.
Vermin control is critical, as pests can transmit a number of diseases. Rodent, bird and insect control should be evaluated and upgraded as necessary. Screens should be installed in stall windows. A control program may include the use of traps, repellants and/or insecticides/rodenticides. Non-equines (goats, cats, dogs) should not be permitted within the primary perimeter.
Every horse owner needs to do everything they can to reduce the risk of an infectious disease from being introduced to their property and horses. Taking basic precautions is common sense and once you are in the habit, they are quite easy to implement. Reducing the incidence of infectious disease in our animals, saves time, money and enhances the quality of life for both horse and owner. Prevention is always easier than cleanup.
Equine Guelph is the horse owner and caregiver’s Centre at the University of Guelph, supported and overseen by equine industry groups, dedicated to improving the health and well-being of horses.
This article originally appeared on Equine Guelph The University of Ontario, Canada, and is published here with permission.
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There have been impressive advancements in equine dentistry during the past few years. From cavity filling, periodontics, and root canals to orthodontics and oral surgery. Today Dr. Brad Tanner, one of the few boarded equine dentists in the world, treats an overbite in a thoroughbred foal.
Read more: Treating a foal's Overbite with Dr Brad Tanner from Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital
Your isolation plan involves both physical structures and your management practises.
Equine Guelph would like to extend thanks to Dr. Josie Traub-Dargatz and Dr. Alanna Kirby, Colorado State University for input and content review of this infosheet.
To learn more about equine biosecurity, register for Equine Guelph’s online course and visit the biosecurity risk calculator online tool. Isolate Sick, New & Travelling Horses
This article originally appeared on Equine Guelph The University of Ontario, Canada, and is published here with permission.
You can DOWNLOAD a PDF of this checklist.
You can find more informative articles in our section on Health & Education.
In this excerpt from RIDE BIG, human performance coach John Haime describes how confidence is a choice, and how it impacts whether we ride big or small.
Without confidence, achievement in competition is unattainable. When pressure is greatest, confidence is best tested.
“Riding Big” has nothing to do with riding a small pony or a big Warmblood. And no, it’s not about a long or short stride, or competing in a big or small competition.
When I refer to Riding Big and riding small, I am often asked where this idea of “big” and “small” came from. In 2018, I was sitting with some riders at the edge of the international ring in Wellington, Florida, watching a Grand Prix show jumping class. As the competitors completed their rounds, one of the riders at my table asked me what I thought about each rider and how he or she rode. I explained that when I watch a class, I quickly assess all the riders by their body language entering the ring, how they approach the first fence, the level of risk they are prepared to take throughout the course, the quality of the rollbacks, their body posture and how it changes through the round, how they seem to handle early difficulties.
Watching the riders, it was clear to me that they entered the ring looking “big” or “small” and would either grow—or shrink—in the saddle from the time they enter the ring to the time they depart. The competitors were either riding confidently, and trying to win the class, or they were tentative, and trying not to lose the class. It was a simple way to explain whether the riders were riding with confidence or not. The people at the table easily understood this idea, liked the simplicity, and we had fun assessing whether each rider was Riding Big or riding small.
Equestrian athletes who Ride Big are riders who:
A rider who Rides Big grows in the saddle.
At the opposite end of the equestrian spectrum are riders who “ride small.” These are riders who:
A rider who rides small shrinks in the saddle.
Which rider are you? Do you Ride Big or ride small?
Maybe you are a combination of the two but still falling short of where you’d like to go, or not quite getting what you want from the sport.
The objective of Ride Big is to help you achieve more and enjoy the sport more. And, as a bonus, developing confidence in yourself and your horse can help you build confidence in all areas of your life.
Let’s do a little check-in on your confidence. The questions below a good starting point to gauge where you are with your confidence. If you can answer “yes” to at least 15 of these questions, you are likely confident and Riding Big. If you have between 10 and 13 positive responses, you might be shrinking in the saddle, and your confidence is lacking. Fewer than that and you are riding small, have some work to do, and need to build up your confidence.
No matter what your score on the quiz, there are many strategies and exercises that can help you gain more confidence and Ride Bigger.
Answer each question “yes” or “no.”
1. I feel confident and self-assured about my riding skills and abilities.
2. I clearly understand all my strengths and limitations when competing.
3. I am always aware of how my emotions are impacting my performance.
4. My internal voice is positive and does not create doubt before I compete.
5. I am my own best friend before competition. I always treat myself well.
6. I don’t worry about the results of the competition. I am only focused on my process of doing it.
7. It is easy for me to take some risk in competition to try to win.
8. I believe I can win when I compete.
9. I have a defined plan with steps and actions that helps me believe in what I want to achieve.
10. When I make a mistake in competition, I don’t dwell on it.
11. After I compete, I reflect more on the positive parts of my performance than my mistakes.
12. I tend not to focus on other riders’ accomplishments.
13. I look at failure as an opportunity to grow.
14. I rarely feel anxious or scared when I compete.
15. I prepare well for competition and always test my training beforehand.
16. I perform better in competition than in training.
17. I never feel low when I see how other riders are doing on social media.
18. I enjoy pressure–I feel it gives meaning to my riding.
19. I always pursue excellence over perfection. I know the difference.
The word “confidence” is frequently used in our everyday lives and often revered as the secret weapon in any performance endeavor. It can be the X factor in how well you perform as an equestrian athlete. The Cambridge Dictionary defines confidence as “the quality of being certain of your abilities or of having trust in people, plans, or the future.”
In my experience, when you boil it all down to its simplest form, confidence is really about “knowing.” No matter what the situation, competitive environment, or degree of pressure, you know in the depths of your heart you can do it and can have the performance you envision. Authentically knowing you can do it fuels the game-changing quality of confidence. So, let’s agree that “knowing” is a simple definition of confidence.
Proactive confidence is a decision that you will be sustainably confident from all the great, positive experiences you’ve had in your riding life, all the training you have done, all the help from coaches, supporters, and general success at a variety of levels. These experiences, support system, and successes are the foundation of your belief in your abilities. Proactive confidence is the choice you make to rely on a solid foundation no matter what happens. With proactive confidence, your belief in yourself does not disappear and is not shaken by small periods of less-than-ideal performance. The focus is on the all the positives and all the great things you’ve already done. Your proactive confidence should be a wall of “knowing” and belief that cannot be penetrated by short down cycles.
Many equestrian athletes get caught up in what I call reactive confidence—deciding that one small collection of challenging circumstances will overcome all their successes and create a noticeable crack in their “foundation” of confidence.
A young rider once called and explained to me that she was upset that her confidence suffered as a result of not achieving short-term results—in her case, not winning a class for a few weeks. By choosing to make recent, short-term results the foundation of her confidence, this rider decided to only focus on the small picture and forget about all the great results she’d had over a longer period.
I often hear how a rider has lost confidence after a month, a week, or even just a day of so-so riding. These riders let a few mistakes suddenly become the basis for their confidence and tend to allow others to have an impact on their confidence in a negative way. So, for my young rider client, and all the other riders I hear from who have “lost their confidence,” the truth is, you really haven’t lost it at all. You chose to lose it by allowing the short “down cycles” of the sport to be the basis for your confidence.
Remember that anything that involves performance goes in cycles, and there will be ups and downs. This is important to understand, because confidence is built in steps over time, and will last through those small down cycles in your performance if you choose to be proactive with your confidence.
This excerpt from RIDE BIG by John Haime is reprinted with permission from Trafalgar Square Books. For more information or to order the book visit the Trafalgar Square Books website at www.HorseandRiderBooks.com.
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