posted 10-19-2003 02:33 PM         

When I know that my horses vaccines are coming up..about a week before, I start giving her echinaccea in her grain. It is my thought that by boosting up her immune system the multiple 5 way shot she is about to get won't overwhelm her as much. I have for a long time not liked combination vaccines given all at once, jmo of course but it makes me uncomfortable. My question is...if the idea of the vaccine is to actually give her a tiny bit of the disease in order for her body to build immunity to it...am I reducing it's effectiveness by giving her the echinaccea?

posted 10-20-2003 11:38 AM         

Myself, while I am not really into a lot of homeopathic stuff, I am more inclined to take a natural approach than a medication approach.

People look at me funny when they find out I did not give my child tylenol or advil when running a fever. Naturally if the fever were too high or the child was really miserable, I would give them something to lower it. But in the absence of either of those cases, the fever is there to destroy the bacteria or virus making the child sick, so why would I want to make it go away? It's just common sense to me.

Likewise, when the doctor wanted me to give my son DDAVP when he was wetting his bed (it lowers the production of urine) I thought that was nuts. How would decreasing the amount of urine help him? He would just start doing it again when we took him off the medicine. Talk about masking the symptoms.

I'm always afraid to go TOO natural, however. I feel like I don't have enough information and by insisting that I don't need to give medicine or somesuch, if something were to happen....

Maisey, I think my daughter is going to come live with you if you mention horses one more time.

posted 10-20-2003 05:26 PM         

"My question is...if the idea of the vaccine is to actually give her a tiny bit of the disease in order for her body to build immunity to it...am I reducing it's effectiveness by giving her the echinaccea?"

**No you're building her immunity up so it can respond to the disease quicker and easier. Cell memory is cell memory and you're not canceling out the vac, your just helping her react to it. I think this is a smart thing to do, and have seen holistic vets successfully use immunity boosters with dogs for different things.

"My question is that if she were just recovering from illness, should she have been given a vaccination like that?"

**If your horse was ill from that virus but got better (and I don't know anything about that virus) it sounds like she was fighting off - therefore no, i don't think I would have let a vet vaccinate her, and also if Strangles is what she had then yes, you're right she had already built immunity to the virus naturally. Did they just use antibiotics to treat the other horses?

What type of things are horses vaccinated for? Do horses get the same sort of series of shots that some canines get (not for same diseases of course) but is it recommended they get shots as a baby and then yearly or every 3 years...or?

posted 10-20-2003 08:01 PM         

*What type of things are horses vaccinated for? Do horses get the same sort of series of shots that some canines get (not for same diseases of course) but is it recommended they get shots as a baby and then yearly or every 3 years...or?*

I haven't had a foal in forever, since I was a kid. I believe they get them at 6,7,9 months of age and then the influenza one is given at like 9 and 11 months..if it's the intranasal one, I think there are three for the shot.

For my area we vaccinate for, Rhinopneumonitis, influenza, Tetanus, Eastern and Western Equine Encephalo- myelitis. Some vaccinate for the Strangles and some choose not to. I give my mare the "big one" a 5 -way once a year and then she gets a Flu/Rhino 6 months later. She had gotten a Strangles vaccine when I bought her at 3 yrs old, 4 and 5. Then I decided that I felt she was pretty well covered for it, I didn't feel like she needed the vaccine every year, so I stopped. She is now 7. I think when she was exposed to the strangles, she was protected enough from the vaccines she had gotten before, to only get a very slight case, but the other horse had not had any protection. Of course that just my thoughts.
This year was the first year West Nile was available and a bunch of us asked my vet to do a clinic where it was explained and all the horses were vaccinated.
With horses what and how often you vaccinate depends on where you live and what you use your horse for. My mare is used mostly for pleasure, I don't haul her around to other barns or show arenas so I only vaccinate for influenza/Rhinopneumonitis every 6 months. People who show or travel around with their horses usually do it every 3 or 4 months.
There may be other vaccines for other areas, I think Rabies is given to horses who live in areas endemnic with that.

**I love horses! What type of horse do you have? Do you bring your doggies along when you ride?

I have a 7 year old Paint mare, she is the smoothest horse I have ever been on...and I have been on alot! You could hold a full cup of tea while she is in a working trot and never spill a drop. She is awesome on the trail. I think what I love most about her though is her personality. She is smart and curious and always getting into something. She is comical and I swear she knows it. I take Dooley with me on trail rides, but Witt has only followed me around on the property. He bays at me when I am mounted...he thinks I don't belong up there.LOL.