Conference noted::equitation

    A Coggins test is a blood sample which is drawn and sent to the
    lab for examination. You will receive the results (ie. the "proof")
    in about 2-3 weeks after the test is taken. Different vets charge
    different amounts for calls but the test itself is about $15.00
    and then add on the fee for the call. A recent Coggins means that
    the test must have been done within that state's required time frame.
    Different states have different time frames. I think that for Mass,
    in-state horses must have a Coggins within 24 months but NH and
    VT are either 6 or 12 months. In other words, if you live in Mass
    and want to show in Mass then you have to have a Coggins once every
    24 months but if you plan to go elsewhere, you will need a new Coggins
    every 6-12 months (I can't remember which it is!)
    
    Generally, within New England, only the Coggins however some types
    of competitions/shows/etc will require health papers within 10 days
    and proof of shots.
    
    Hope this helps a little!
    
    Good luck in your show!
    
    Linda
    
    P.S. Where, when and what type of show?
    
    Have FUN!
    

    If your show is coming up soon, you might not get the results back
    on the yellow 'owner's copy' in time, but you might ask the vet
    to call the lab within a week to see if they can give him a verbal
    conformation of the results, then ask him to write you a note or
    something (also, ask the show manager if this is acceptable).  
    This happened to me when I was moving a horse into my barn, and the coggins
    didn't arrive in time, but the vet was able to get a 'neg.' results
    from the lab to tell the owner of the barn.  You also need proof
    of neg. coggins when transporting horses, esp. across state borders.
    

	I live in NH and bring my horse into Mass frequently;
	I read somewhere it was within 6 months for an out of
	stater to bring a horse into Mass.

	Coggins is a test for "swamp fever", also know as equine
	infectious anemia.

    I had to get a Coggins test before shipping may mare from California
    to Washington.  Since my vet had is own lab, I had the results back
    in less than a week.  I think it was $25 for the test.
    
    In Washington, the certificate is good for 30 days.  My vet said
    that some state are good for only a couple of week, which means that
    if I lived in one of those state and went on vacation to another
    state, I'd have to get a Coggins test comming and going.
    

    re.4
    
    I am surprised that a vet could do a Coggins test in his/her own lab.
    As I understand it, labs that perform Coggins are few. The procedure
    is tedious and takes two days for the results. The labs are under
    federal control. Should a coggins test give positive results
    a whole train of events is trigered including a retest at a federal
    approved lab, isolation of horse in a bug free environment (mosquito
    netting all around the stall), etc.
    
    Here in Colorado, if knowledge of the results is important the lab
    can call the results to the vet two days after the test is begun.
    when we had our horse tested to take him to shows, out of state,
    etc the vet usually calls the results after two days anyway and
    the paper folloes two weeks later.
    
    From talks with our vet the choices the owner has should a Coggins
    verify as positive are:
    
    1. Put the horse down.
    
    2. Keep the horse in a completely bug free environment.
    
    3. Keep the horse at least 300 yards from other horses (not sure
       about the actual distance). This choise is full of legal problems.
       If a horse is kept this way and other horse(s) become sick legal
       suits would follow!
    
    4. send horse to a refuge with other horses that hace the
    disease/antibody. There are few places like this. And since a horse
    can not cross state lines if it has positive Coggins, the only hope
    is that the refuge be in your state.
    

	I had no idea the seriousness of this disease - and the importance of
getting a neg. Coggins when buying a horse, also.  

    Even though the state of Massachusetts may require a Coggins every
    24 months, some of the shows may require more recent testing.  Most
    of the shows I've been to in the last 14 years require a negative
    Coggins within 12 months of the show date, regardless of the state
    the show was in.  Some even require one within 6 months.
    
    Currently there is no vaccine for EIA so testing and isolating positive
    horses is the only method of control.  There was an article in EQUUS
    a year or so ago about a vaccine being developed in China.  However
    the gene pool for their horses is different and it was thought that
    the vaccine may not work on American or European horses.
    
    Most boarding stables require Coggins tests, too.
    
    						Jan

    One thing about Coggins tests, they only tell you that the horse
    did not have EIA at the instance that the test was taken, which
    is better than nothing but does not mean the horse couldn't get
    it a day later.
    
    

    A lot of the shows and events that I go to are dropping the Coggins
    requirement for in-state horses.  There is some evidence that the
    test is prone to erroneous results and just about useless.  My own
    horses are done every six months whether they need it or not.  It
    turns out that you and you trailer can be stopped and asked to show
    health certificates (complete with vaccination records) and coggins
    tests.  Specific requirements differ between states, but if you
    don't comply, your horses can be quarantined.
    
    In Ohio, Coggins tests must be done by state of federally certified
    labs. The blood sample must be drawn by the vet and he/she must
    certify what horse the sample was taken from.  The lab cost is $10
    and wait it 10-14 days.  Results are sent to your vet.
    

Is anyone aware of an increase in illnesses among the horse
population in Eastern Massachusetts?  Especially among horses
that are brought together at events, rides, or shows?

Dave

    I have not seen any increase in illnesses among our horses this
    year.  In fact it has been a pretty clean year in that respect.
    Any time you bring a number of horses together for a competition
    or any other event, you run the risk of spreading some infectious
    disease.  The most common of these are Flu, Rhinopnueminitis, and
    colds.  Sometimes these common diseases take on the name of the
    first place that they appear during the show season.  (e.g. the
    dreaded Northampton disease from several years ago on the Morgan
    circuit or the Hudson Valley show flu on the Arab circuit last year)
    Most shows ask for Vet certificates on all horses, but they are
    easy to circumvent and don't mean anything other than the horse
    didn't look sick when the vet saw them.  It has become nothing more
    than a big pain in the ---.  Some shows even let you show but don't
    let you leave the show grounds until you pay the show vet $25 for
    one.  Big deal, the damage will already be done!  The only defense
    is to vacinate often and regularly, know who you are stabled next
    to, or don't go at all.
    
    Bob