TEXAS VET NEWS By Dr. Bob Judd, DVM and the Texas Farm Bureau Texas Farm Bureau Radio Network

The last four programs I have talked about vaccines in horses that your vet may be recommending and today I am going to finish this series by talking about strangles vaccine.  Strangles is an upper respiratory disease in horses caused by a contagious bacterium so vaccination for this disease would sound like something you would certainly want for your horse.  However, it’s not that easy as there are concerns with both types of strangles vaccines available.  Commercial vaccines have been used for many years in an attempt to control the disease. 

Vaccination with the killed injectable vaccine has not been shown to actually decrease the incidence of the disease.  The injectable vaccine has been shown to reduce the severity of the infection in some animals but the risks of vaccination may outweigh the benefits.  After injection, some of the strangles vaccines can cause soreness and even infections to develop at the site of vaccination.  An intranasal modified live vaccine is also available for strangles that provides local immunity to prevent the infection.  However, because the vaccine is live, it must not be handled before other injectable vaccines because if this live vaccine is on a person’s hands and another injection is given, it is likely that an abscess will develop.  Also, some horses vaccinated with the intranasal product will develop a nasal discharge and swollen lymph nodes similar to infection with the actual disease. Whether or not to vaccinate a horse for strangles is a big debate among veterinarians and there is really no consensus among vets about the right course to take as all the vaccines can cause some problems.

Date Published: 7/6/2009 10:17:00 AM