Vaccinating Weanlings
By: Dr. Cole Sciba
Resident Veterinarian for the Texas Division
It is the time of year to begin thinking about vaccinating weanlings. The last issue of our news letter discussed vaccinating broodmares and how important the colostral antibodies are. Vaccinating weanlings is important to their overall health, but vaccinating too early can interfere with the maternal antibodies that came from the colostrum. At JEH Stallion Station, Texas we follow the AAEP guidelines for vaccination. Weanlings born of vaccinated mares should be vaccinated at six months of age for tetanus, eastern and western encephalitis, influenza, rhinopneumonitis, streptococcus, west nile and rabies. For all of the vaccines except rabies, these initial vaccines should be followed by 2 additional boosters at one month intervals. Rabies should be boostered at 7 months and 12 months of age. These are the most important vaccines for this area, if your horses will be traveling please contact us to discuss any other immunizations that may be necessary.
