Immunity after Vaccination

From Cyberhorse - comments after being asked the question how quickly does the vaccination take to build significant immunity?

mayville lodge Member since 3-Sep-0760 posts
28-Oct-07, 06:08 AM (AEST)

The situation on the Darling Downs and in the Ipswich region have been interesting to watch. Depending on who was handling the vaccine (and I don't mean the vets - I mean DPI, Thoroughbred Racing or Harness Racing) properties were vaccinated sometimes completely and sometimes to only spelling racehorses, quite often only days before it was inevitable for infection.

With vaccinated horses on properties stabled right next door to unvaccinated the difference between reaction has been great - even horses done as little as 5 days have been showing marked resistance, horses at 8 a clear moisture in the nose for a day or 2, and after 14 days almost nothing at all. This is what the various vets on the front line are saying.

I managed to get 1 vaccine for an at risk pregnant mare - we have been infected for 4 days and she was vaccinated 10 days before that. I have 19 very sick horses and she is totally unaffected, not a sniffle, nothing. She is in a paddock that is centrally located and she is running with another mare that is struggling.

As for the inactive vaccine, people I know and have done business with overseas, current breeders, equestrian centres, and one quarantine centre, in the USA, Canada and Germany, are mystified at what is going on. They all use the inactive vaccine and there are no problems.

The horses that were in Eastern Creek that were genuinely vaccinated with the inactive vaccine did not get sick, the only ones that did were the ones that had done pre-quarantine at their home stud under an honour system, and I understand from the enquiry, there are some serious questions as to whether their vaccinations were up to date.

Wallvale in another post said that their horse caught up in the Eastern Creek was vaccinated with inactive vaccine and did not get sick. I have no doubt that the canary-pox vaccine is superior to the inactive - it hasn't been around long and Australia's results will be an amazing marketing boon. But the inactive vaccine works as well, just not as spectacularly quickly.