Rabies Vac

[akstaj]

Just curious of what everyone's opinion is regarding the necessity of the rabies vaccine. My mare seems to have a reaction to it every year, and every year it gets a little worse, to the point I am considering skipping it next year.

[AKB]

Check and see if a blood test titer can be done to check her immunity. There is a blood test for humans, done at Kansas State University, but I don't know about horses. If she has a high titer, you may be skip the vaccine for a year or two. I would be reluctant to skip the vaccine unless I had good evidence that she didn't need it. If she catches rabies from a raccoon bite in the field, she will die. All of the humans who were around her will need thousands of dollars (and many injections) of rabies immune globulin and vaccine. Rabies isn't a disease to be fooled with. We have had lots of rabid animals on our street in Virginia over the years we have lived here.

What kind of reaction did she have to the vaccine?

[MikeP]

My vet recently told me that dogs only need to be vaccinated for rabies every two years. I don't know if this applies to horses, but in your case it may be worth checking into.

[Ghazzu]

There is no rabies vaccine licensed for 2 year intervals in horses.
What that means is that, after the DOI label claim, the horse is considered unvaccinated for regulatory purposes.

Intervet has just come out with an equine rabies vaccine with a label for 14 month intervals.

You might aks your DVM whether s/he has tried switching manufacturers with your horse.

If yes, and the reactions are still getting progressively worse, you need to weigh the likelihood of exposure against the reaction from the vaccine.
And titers might help in making the decision.

[QM2]

I would NEVER skip a rabies vaccine. God knows how often your horse comes accross rabid animals in the field. We had a rabid raccoon walk through our barn right down the aisle last year. I would switch manufacturers and pretreat with banamine right before you give the shot. Don't skip it.

[jaimebaker]

I I would switch manufacturers and pretreat with banamine right before you give the shot. Don't skip it.

Do you mean banamine or Benadryl? Just curious as my vet administers Benadryl before a shot if he thinks the horse might have a reaction. Haven't banamined mine before a shot though.

[Monarch]

Just something else to think about, if your horse were to bite someone & break the skin and they want to know if horse was vacc. You could lose your horse.

My one experience with this was up in WY at a hunting camp. One of the guides had reciently moved from WV bringing his horses with him. The camp cook had fed the horses one morning and went back to do something with her own horse. All the horses were in a corral. The guides horse lunged at her and bit her in the face. Needless to say we had to get her back from camp a 14mile ride on horse back and to the hospital. Because this horse had never done anything like this before and because of the area it had come from the doctors wanted to know if it had been vaccinated for rabies? It had not been so the horse was put down that night and his head sent off.
My understanding is that horse can not be quarentined (sp?) like dogs or cats can be.

M

[McVillesMom]

To add to what Ghazzu said about the Intervet vaccine - a lot of their vaccines are non-adjuvanted, so they are less likely to induce a vaccine reaction. The new Equirab vaccine claims to be 97.7% reaction free, so it might be a better choice for your horse. I would either vaccinate or check titers to make sure your horse is protected; you'll have to weigh the benefits of vaccinating versus the risks of not vaccinating if she is not.

[Blu]

Around here, in GA I would vaccinate... absolutely no questions asked (except of course with a horse with a known reaction to a specific brand).

http://www.gainesvilletimes.com/news/archive/6161/

Its actually up to over 35 now. Rabies is for life. Vaccinate your animals!

[Guilherme]

A few years back the TN State Vet started recommending rabies vaccination in at least East TN due to increasing numbers of rabid skunks moving west from NC border area. We do ours every year IAW that recommendation.

We've not had any reaction to the vaccine used so we've never worried about it. Check with your vet on alternatives but maybe dealing with a vaccination reaction is preferable to dealing with a rabid horse.

G.

[bludejavu]

My vet recently told me that dogs only need to be vaccinated for rabies every two years. I don't know if this applies to horses, but in your case it may be worth checking into.


We always gave our German Shepherd the three-year rabies vaccine, but with our horses, they have always needed a rabies vacc. every year. I'm not sure all states allow the 3-year rabies for dogs but Georgia is one state that does.

As for the necessity of giving a rabies vacc to horses every year - we just had a bad incident with a skunk that convinced me they are necessary every year. Skunk was way too bold and actually went after a stray Beagle dog that had taken up residence here a few weeks ago. I called animal control and they attempted to trap the skunk but it ran out right in the middle of our 8 mare horse herd. It didn't go after them but a few of them were not vaccinated (for rabies) this year and I was really worried. It was too dark to shoot the skunk and unfortunately, we never caught it. The poor stray dog had to be put down because she was bitten by the skunk.

[Sandy M]

My guy always got a stiff neck after his rabies vaccination, so we just gave him bute at the same time. That seemed to get him through the day or two of stiff neck comfortably.

A friend's horse once reacted with hives, and we had to emergency call the vet back to give him epenephrine (sp?) before his nasal passages closed: He just started popping up hives all over his body about 10 mins after the shot. Fortunately, we caught the vet before he drove all the way back to his office (40 mins away).

[amastrike]

Reactions are treatable. Rabies isn't. That's one vaccine I absolutely would not skip.

[2DogsFarm]

Ask your vet if the vaccine is recommended for your area. I am guessing since your mare is getting it, that it is.
Although it wasn't a recommendation in my area - Midwest - until this year, I asked for it anyhow 3 years ago after finding skunks & possums inside my barn.
(my vet teased me that JVM gave me a credit in their report)

As for the reaction - my TWH had a very stiff neck - couldn't lower his head to drink or eat off the ground for a day after the first time he got the shot. The next year's booster he got in his hip and had no reaction at all unless there was minor muscle soreness not visible - he wasn't off at all.
Older TB had no reaction to the shot so he still gets it in the neck.

I'd rather deal with a reaction (unless it's very severe) than take a chance. There's too many varmints in my area, not to mention stray cats.

[dwblover]

I agree to check about other manufacturer's vaccines. If your horse reacts to one company's vac., they may not react to another company's. I would not skip the rabies vaccine. It's a public safety concern as well as your horse's life at stake.

[ttldr1]

My mini gets a stiff neck for a few days after her Rabies vaccination every year also. I just deal with it, give her a little bute, place her food in a manner that makes it more comfortable for her yo eat and drink. I also do not give any other vaccs at the same time as the Rabies (other give a couple of weeks later). I would hand feed her every meal for a week before I would forgo the Rabies vaccination.

Rabies = un-treatable certain death for horse with the possibility of transmitting to humans and other animals

Rabies Vacc = Stiff neck for a few days, treatable reaction

Sorry, no brainer. Get the vaccination.

[QM2]

Do you mean banamine or Benadryl? Just curious as my vet administers Benadryl before a shot if he thinks the horse might have a reaction. Haven't banamined mine before a shot though.

I guess it depends on the reaction. I've never had a horse have a reaction to a rabies vac but other vacs the reactions are sore neck, maybe a little temp, looking a but punkish, I would give banamine for those if it were hives then I might do benadryl.

What kind of a reaction was it?

[jaimebaker]

I guess it depends on the reaction. I've never had a horse have a reaction to a rabies vac but other vacs the reactions are sore neck, maybe a little temp, looking a but punkish, I would give banamine for those if it were hives then I might do benadryl.

What kind of a reaction was it?

If you are asking me (and not the OP) the reaction my vet was talking about was a horse going into shock. Not mine, but he said he had a horse that went into shock every time he had a rhino shot. He had to give him the epinephrine two years in a row to get him out of it. The third year he gave benadryl before the shot and the horse was fine.