In the summer, it seems like everyone goes to horse shows. One concern about horse shows is exposing your horse to the diseases of other horses. This problem became big news in early 2012 when an outbreak of neurologic equine herpes virus developed at a national cutting horse show in Utah. Many horses were exposed, several were infected, and a few died or were euthanized. Anytime you go to a horse show, you risk your horse’s health but there are some things you can do to prevent disease transmission.

First of all, make sure your horse is vaccinated by your veterinarian because your vet knows which brands of vaccine are the most effective for the diseases in your area. Vaccination would not have helped in the herpes outbreak because there is no vaccine approved to protect against the neurological strain of herpes. However, there are other vaccines that will prevent contagious diseases so vaccination is important. Always bring your own feed and water buckets and never share with other horses without disinfecting. Try to avoid nose to nose contact with other horses as much as possible as most of the contagious diseases are transmitted through respiratory secretions. Anytime you are involved with other people's horses, wash your hands or disinfect with a 62% alcohol gel product.

Since early detection of infection is important, Dr. Roberta Dwyer from the University of Kentucky indicates in Equine Disease Quarterly to take all your horse’s temperatures twice a day. After returning home from a show, continuing to take your horse’s temperature for two weeks after returning, and if you have other horses, quarantine the show horses from the rest of your herd for two weeks

Dr. Steve O’Grady from Northern Virginia Equine indicates that owners, trainers, and veterinarians are responsible for the health and welfare of horses and I believe the horse’s health should be the primary concern of all of us. Many performance horses have medical problems and require a veterinarian to treat them with medications. However, the vet has to determine which medications can be used and which should not. Some medications could allow a horse to compete even though the horse should probably be pulled from the competition and these are decisions a vet can make only after an exam. Owners and trainers cannot make these decisions because prescription drugs can only be dispensed by vets.

Unfortunately, many drugs are used on horses that are obtained from vets as well as other sources in which the vet has not examined the horse and does not have what is called a valid client/patient relationship. To legally and ethically dispense or recommend a drug or treatment for an animal, a vet has to examine the animal to determine the correct treatment. Many owners and trainers request that vets dispense various prescription drugs to them to have on hand and to use as they see fit. When an owner or trainer asks this of a vet, they are asking their vet to break the law. Most of the time these requests are meant to gain a competitive edge. Veterinarians that write scripts or dispense medication without examining the animal are potentially endangering the animal’s health. It is important to realize that your vet must examine your animal to determine the correct medication to recommend.