Equine Health

Medicine & Husbandry

Strangles: What you must know now!

Strangles is a highly infectious disease caused by the bacteria Strep equi. As most horse owners know, it can cause severe illness, serious complications, and even death. Last year we saw an increase in cases around our area, especially in training stables, mare motels, and barns with a high rate of new horses.

Although good stable management is the key to reducing the spread of disease (avoiding horse to horse contact, do not share grooming materials, wash all tack and water buckets, etc), there are several vaccines also available. However, new scientific studies have shown that horses that have previously been exposed to strangles (but have not shown signs of the disease) can become severely ill from vaccination.

We are now recommending that all horses that are to be vaccinated for strangles first undergo a blood test, or titer, to check their immune status. Horses that have high titers should NOT be vaccinated due to the extreme risk of complications. If you think that your horse may be at risk from strangles, we do advocate vaccination, but after a blood test. Please contact us to speak with one of the doctors if you have questions or concerns.