Oz Horses

EI UNBLOODYBELIEVEABLE!!!

9th November, 2007

UNBLOODYBELIEVEABLE!!!
There is no other word for it! The three monkeys could have done a better job of organising this eradication campaign.

For over 10 weeks my pleasure/ performance horse clients have watched this virus spread & watched their Thoroughbred & Standardbred neighbours getting vaccinated.

Finally word comes through; “There is a new buffer zone along the ---- --------. They are going to vaccinate all horses in a 10km strip. Can we order vaccine?” “NO” says the DPI; There is no buffer zone. Even if it is on our web page; there is no buffer zone. It is a mistake! For 3 days!

Finally on Friday they ring to confirm that there is, in fact, a new buffer zone along the ------- ------ & we can order vaccine. All weekend we spend organising it; trying to get as many of our pleasure/performance horse clients done as possible.

Monday- we start vaccinating as many horses as we can get our hands on. Monday night they announce “----- ------ has decided to move the buffer zone” No more vaccinations can be done. Just by coincidence, it now passes right through ----- & his practice will do most of the vaccinating!

I do understand his motives & probably the correct thing has been done but how did it get there in the first place & why did it take so long to be corrected? It is probably just another example of bureaucrats making decisions without consulting the people on the ground. I do feel for the DPI personnel; they are under-trained, under-informed & overworked but this is our livelihood they are playing with. Their decisions are sending people to the wall & changing our lifestyles for ever!

I am appalled to see that they are now offering to let some pleasure/ performance people pay their veterinarians to do their vaccinations. I urge you not to accept their offer. To ask you to do that would be grossly unfair & unAustralian! The Thoroughbreds & Standardbreds have been done for free & the buffer zone horses will be done for free. To make the others pay is unjustifiable. It is the thin edge of the wedge to making everybody pay!

Having said that, I can understand that some of you might feel you have to vaccinate at your own expense. You must still apply to the DPI for approval. The attached file is the official application form.

There are people who have the disease who are not reporting it. I do understand why you might not, but I strongly believe you should. Firstly it puts the lie to their ridiculous comments that they are containing the virus but, more importantly, it will be necessary for the DPI to have you registered as a infected property when the time comes for movement permits. When we finally start to move horses again there will undoubtedly be restrictions on horses that have not been vaccinated & have not had the infection.

The other thing which is unfair at the moment is the movement restrictions. Thoroughbreds can move to studs for service 2 weeks after their first vaccination. Other breeds must wait for 2 weeks after their second vaccination at 30 days! A little racist don’t you think?

Just forgetting the mistakes that have already been made in this eradication campaign, let us at least go on & finish the job and do it fairly.

There are a limited number of ways we can go on from here. We have established our “RED ZONE” & our buffer around it. Excellent! Now we must let the virus spread throughout the zone until every horse has been in contact or we must vaccinate 90% of the horses inside it. The trouble with the first option is the number of horses that have already been vaccinated. Only the small isolated groups are left & spread will be very slow. We will still be locked down this time next year waiting for it to gradually spread. It will keep showing up & at the most inopportune times i.e. at the start of the next breeding season!

We must vaccinate---everything! We must make it compulsory & if it is compulsory, it must be free!!!

NB this is an opinion peice. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors. Oz Horses does not necessarily support the opinions expressed but we do support people right to express their opinions.