Horse Deals Catches Up with Denis Goulding re EI

Tower Of Babel

By Anna Sharpley 28th September.


In an effort to find out what is really happening with the fight against and protection from the unprecedented EI outbreak in Australia, Horse Deals spoke to Olympic Team veterinarian, Denis Goulding. What is evident and very frustrating for Denis is the Tower of Babel situation amongst the states regarding the fight against the spread of EI. It seems we are back to changing trains at Albury, with all the states having a different width railway line.

Our first question to Denis was; why given the experience of overseas countries, in particular South Africa was Australia trying to fight Equine Influenza with isolation and standstill alone?

The epidemiologists have spent years writing the Ausvet plan and they are determined to stick to it. However, the initial effort to contain the virus has failed and now we are in stage two, which is ring/buffer vaccination.

Are you for Vaccination?

I am for vaccination, there is not question about it. Apart from New Zealand, we are the only country in the world not vaccinating and now we have EI. The only way to halt the disease is through vaccination. The argument that the anti lobby put forward is that vaccination does not stop an outbreak. That is true, as the virus can alter, but in an immunised area the illness is mild and the outbreak easily isolated, the country does not shut down. Vaccination is something we have to live with and we need it to halt the disease and enable the general equine population to get on with their lives. That does not necessarily mean mandatory vaccination forever. A few years down the track we might decide to try and live without it based on the fact that Australia is an isolated continent and that does help in keeping the virus out.

As Australian Team Vet what are you doing to protect the Olympic horses?

I have put in applications to the various states to vaccinate the elite horses. David Lawrence, President of the NSW EFA, has obviously spoken to the right people and has done a good job in acquiring vaccine for the elite horses and elite training squad horses there. Queensland rang to say they are giving the elite horses priority and how much vaccine will be required. An application to Victoria received a "that won't happen" reply, and that elite horses would not be vaccinated there, despite the 4000 plus vaccines going to racehorses at Flemington. A special exemption to the rule is being given to Group 1 racehorses and I explained to them that these FEI elite horses were Group 1 horses too, and every one of them deserves that vaccination as much as any horse running in the Melbourne Cup. They say there is not enough vaccine available, but there will be plenty of people nominating their horses for the Cup meetings; it's quite a farce really.

It will take just one horse to have EI in Victoria and we will all be vaccinating then, but it will be too late. If EI gets across the border, the Victorians will be up in arms regarding the discriminatory nature of vaccination there. Victoria has always been very opposed to vaccination, as has South Australia, more so than the other states. At the moment we are going to get all the elite horses vaccinated and (regrettably), in the larger community outside the ring/buffer zone nothing will happen until it gets across the NSW/Vic border and then we will all be lining up for vaccination.

There is some confusion as to what vaccines are to be used, what will be used?

"There are three types of vaccine, live EI virus, recombinant, and inactivated. The inactivated vaccine is the one that is used widely all over the world and it is the vaccine all our horses are vaccinated with when they go overseas to compete, and AQIS have some in hand for that purpose. Whatever other vaccines horses have received, they will probably have to be vaccinated with the inactivated vaccine before they travel. The vaccine that is being used in NSW and Queensland, to put the fire out as it were, is a recombinant vaccine, with a genetically altered DNA canary pox virus. This vaccine is said to give an earlier cellular immunity. However, Tasmania and WA will not accept genetically modified vaccines. I don't think we should continue with the canary pox vaccine, as it is too complicated. I think we should stick with the inactivated, which provides good immunity. I have been traveling overseas with horses for 20 years now. We vaccinate and we have traveled through many countries and we have never had a problem. The elite horses outside the zones will be getting inactivated vaccine. The horses are being vaccinated on a value basis, but the virus does not understand value; it does not make sense not to vaccinate all horses. We need plenty of vaccine and plenty of vets to administer it. There is some light being shed with this second phase of the Ausvet plan, at least vaccination is beginning to some degree.