AHS Campaign
Last year’s outbreak of African
Horse Sickness had serious repercussions on the racehorse breeding industry.
One of the industry’s latest initiatives to prevent outbreaks, and inform and
educate people about the disease, is to erect relevant signage at demarcated
boundaries and next to roads, in order to indicate the African Horse Sickness
Control Area.
Horse sickness hobbles breeding industry
LISA STEYN - Apr
21 2011 00:00
An outbreak of
African horse sickness has brought South Africa's horse exports to a
grinding halt, costing breeders millions.
The Kenilworth quarantine station in the Western
Cape is the only African location from which horses can
be exported overseas. But now that the disease has spread to nearby areas,
exports have been suspended.
More than 1 000 horses are reported to have died since the epidemic began
in February, said Douglas Welsh, chairperson of the African Horse Sickness
Trust. But Welsh said he believed these represent a fraction of the actual
death toll.
The horse sickness virus is endemic to Africa
and the European Union put protocols in place in 1997 to ensure that it did not
spread further afield. The station is located in a "free zone" and
horses outside this and the associated surveillance and protected zones must be
vaccinated. The disease can be transmitted when horses are transported
illegally into these zones.
"A multibillion-rand industry is at the mercy of two traffic cops,"
said Bennie van der Merwe, president of the South Africa Equine Veterinary
Association.
Peter Gibson, the chief executive of Racing South Africa, said that the
outbreak was the sixth since 1960. Since the EU protocol was put in place most
bouts have been followed by a two-year export embargo. The World Organisation
for Animal Health (OIE) also requires the suspension of South Africa's
horse-sickness-free status for 12 months after an outbreak.
A movement ban has been imposed on all horses in the Malmesbury quarantine area
and horses have been vaccinated. Van der Merwe, who has been breeding
thoroughbreds for more than 12 years, said that last week's national yearling
sale in Johannesburg
was one of the worst in years.
"Our horses are some of the best in the world, but people won't buy them
because they can't take them out," he said.
The earnings of stud farms have declined by up to 40%, with a knock-on effect
on the racing industry, he said. He estimated his breeding operation would lose
about R6-million this year.
Alan Guthrie, director of the Equine Research Centre at the Onderstepoort
Veterinary Institute, said that of the 300 000 horses in South Africa, 75 000 were in one of the
worst-hit areas, the Eastern Cape,
where they were used mainly for transport. The recent death of several hundred
horses in the province "has a major impact on their [the population's]
existence", he said, pointing out that "we have lost some
irreplaceable genetic material".
Van der Merwe said an aggravating
factor had been the location of the outbreak in the poor community of Mamre,
60km from Kenilworth. Because of the poverty
in the area it had been particularly difficult to stop. A solution to the
problem of moving horses abroad is for the animals to be rerouted via Mauritius, where they undergo a costly and
time-consuming 90-day clearance before entering Europe.
The only other option, Gibson said, was to negotiate with the EU and the OIE.
African horse sickness, characterised by respiratory and circulatory damage
accompanied by fever and loss of appetite, has a fatality rate of about 90%. It
is spread by a blood-sucking midge.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON SOUTH AFRICAN HORSE EXPORTS
South Africa has exported over 350 000 horses to the world since the 1700’s, but has never exported African horse sickness (AHS) to any country.
In 1997, the EU ratified the South African horse export protocol which permitted the export of horses from the AHS Controlled Area in the Western Cape. Since then, South Africa has exported close to 1000 horses. The following should be noted:
There has never been an outbreak of AHS in the AHS Free Zone
AHS is seasonal and does not occur during the South African winter, providing a natural period of freedom from AHS virus
In the context of the AHS Controlled Area in the Western Cape, historically this is July to January
In 2003, the UAE adopted the South African horse export protocol which resulted in the import of 100 horses from Cape Town to Dubai until January 2004.
As a result of concerns about the risks associated with AHS, the UAE subsequently introduced import conditions which are not in line with the prevailing international veterinary regulations prescribed by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE). Practically speaking, this meant that horses were routed via the EU for a period of 30 days before being allowed entry to Dubai at significant additional cost, time and loss of fitness.
Horse exports to the UAE are currently worth R100m per annum, but once the quarantine situation improves, it is expected to explode. This is backed up by the fact that South African racehorses and endurance horses have been the most successful of all exporting countries relative to numbers.
South Africa’s message to the UAE was a horse export solution based on cutting edge quarantine and testing technologies at zero risk.
This will result in the following:
The delivery of South African horses free of AHSV
Reduction in the length of pre-export quarantine by 60% (compared with transit via Mauritius and EU = 140 days)
Reduction in cost of delivery by over 60% (compared with transit via Mauritius and EU = US$35 000/horse)
Improved safety of horses (access to world class veterinary care and only 1 flight direct Cape Town/Dubai)
Improved health and fitness levels of competition horses.
STATE VISIT TO THE UAE – NOVEMBER 2011
President Jacob Zuma raised the matter of South African horse exports during the recent State visit to the United Arab Emirates. In his meetings with the President and Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE, HH Sh. Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan and HH Sh. Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, respectively, President Zuma urged their Government to review the ban on imports of horses and red meat from South Africa.
Racing South Africa’s marketing arm, The SA Equine Trade Council, was invited by the Department of Trade & Industry (DTI) to support the State visit which was intended to grow trade links between the two countries. The SA Equine Trade Council is a non-profit organisation jointly funded by Racing South Africa and the DTI and is specifically tasked with promoting South African bloodstock (of all breeds) to global markets. Equivalent organisations from other parts of the world include French Racing & Breeding, AusHorse and Irish Thoroughbred Marketing.
Council took a small delegation made up of the CEO, Mr Peter Gibson, prominent racehorse owner and breeder, Mr Hassen Adams, leading International trainer, Mr Mike de Kock, and AHS expert and Director of the Equine Research Centre, Prof Alan Guthrie, to attempt to break the horse export deadlock to the UAE. It was hoped that the Presidential platform could greatly assist the process.
Following Council’s briefing of the Minister of Trade & Industry, Mr Rob Davies, his Chief Director, Mr Yunus Hoosen and the South African Ambassador, HE Yacoob Omar, Government agreed to prioritise horse exports to the UAE.
At all subsequent official meetings with the UAE Government and business community, the horse export and red meat industries were singled out as the only sector that required political intervention
The delegation arranged separate meetings to explore collaborative opportunities between the two countries and it is hoped that genuine progress can now be achieved by the start of next winter, when the bulk of the horses destined for the UAE (and other Middle East countries like Qatar and Bahrain) are purchased for export.
As a consequence of the visit, Council was also able to grow Government’s understanding of the entire value chain of the South African equestrian industry, in particular that of the Sport of Horseracing, and how it positively impacted the South African economy. Internationalising the equestrian industry via horse exports and international competition will go a long way towards achieving Government’s objectives of growing the economy and creating much needed jobs, especially in the historically disadvantaged rural communities.
Source: http://www.horseracing.com/blog/african-horse-sickness-prevention
African Horse Sickness Prevention
African Horse Sickness, or AHS, is a phrase that every horse owner, trainer and exporter fears the most in South Africa and other African countries. It is a fatal disease that affects all breeds of horses, donkeys and mules, and has a very low recovery rate. The disease is not contagious and cannot be spread directly from one horse to another, but is spread by midges that carry the infection after biting an infected horse. Steps to prevent the spread of the disease have been put in place, and infected animals are isolated so as to save others from running the risk of getting African Horse Sickness.
Midges are most active in the early morning and just before sunset, which is when horses usually contract the disease. The summer months are the most dangerous, as midges die in the colder months. There are two forms of the disease that can be found, namely the lung form (dunkop), which is the most dangerous, and the heart form, referred to as dikkop. The symptoms connected to the lung form include an extremely high fever, struggling to breathe, nasal discharge and sudden death. With the heart form, horses start to get a fever, after which swelling can be noticed around their eyes and head. Horses will lose the ability to swallow and membranes by the mouth and eyes start to bleed. Fortunately, death only comes approximately four to eight days after the initial fever, providing an opportunity for treatment after it has been diagnosed, and therefore the heart form has a lower death rate. Diagnosis of the disease is done through blood tests in a laboratory.
Owners are required to report any AHS incidents to the State Veterinarian so that other owners in the area can be warned and prevention methods put into practice. Firstly, owners should ensure that their horses, donkeys and mules are vaccinated with the state approved AHS vaccination at least once a year. To reduce Cluicoides midge species activities, owners should keep their animals in the stables until after sunrise and let them back in before sunset. Known insect repellents, such as Tabbard cream, are used in South Africa to also reduce the risk of midges feeding on the animals. When an outbreak occurs, horses are prohibited from moving from one region to another, reducing the risk of moving a potentially infected horse to a clean area. Horses, or other animals, suspected of having AHS should be moved to an isolated area and monitored until a diagnosis can be made and the horse’s fate decided. Animals that are beyond rescue should be euthanized and disposed off in a safe manner, to further curb spread of the disease. Areas that have been affected by an AHS outbreak are monitored closely for at least a year after the incident.
Prevention methods and early protection against AHS are the only way that owners can really guarantee the health of their animals. Owners who are unable to call in the assistance of veterinary services due to costs involved, should either contact the African Horse Sickness institute or their state veterinarian, who will be able to help them with vaccines and education on prevention methods.
If you suspect that your Horses have African Horse sickness contact your vet immediately or go to http://www.daff.gov.za/vetweb/