Australian Equine Influenza Outbreak: Desperate Plea for Vaccination

On one hand, the argument for vaccinating Australia's 350,000-plus horse population against equine influenza seems a no-brainer.

In the Hunter Valley, EI will cost breeders almost $1 billion in lost matings revenue if the season cannot be ignited. Foal crops will suffer, future race fields will be affected and more billions will disappear.

"Vaccinate and save us," is the desperate plea.

Every horse at Randwick contracted EI within days of the first case; except for two of John O'Shea's who had been vaccinated to travel overseas.

This, and the fact EI was bobbing up as far afield as Mt Isa -- was proof. We must vaccinate now, according to trainers like O'Shea.

Leading Melbourne veterinarian Glen Robertson-Smith said: "Anyone pontificating over containment has rocks in their head. It's not a catastrophic strain, it's just the flu. The economic impact disaster is not the virus, it's the effort to keep it out, and that's failed."

Another vet, Ballarat-based Anthony Cosgriff, who also trains, said he was "in shock" that we weren't vaccinating across the board.

Cosgriff worked in the UK, where EI is prevalent, for over 10 years. He said an 2003 outbreak had little bearing on the racing and breeding industries.

He said that while EI-affected countries get on with business we are "at a standstill and hemorrhaging".

"I'm aghast that the powers that be are happy to gamble on the livelihoods of hundreds and thousands of Australians," Cosgriff said.

Leading owner David Moodie said the non-vaccination policy of attempted containment had had a "horrendous" affect on racing and breeding.

"Vaccinate and let's get on with life," Moodie said.

But there is also a counter-argument.

Dr Hugh Miller, Victoria's head vet insists vaccination will not magically clean up EI's trail of destruction. The fact horses at Eastern Creek in Sydney who had been vaccinated were getting the flu proved it was not foolproof.

"It's handy, but it's not a panacea," Miller said. "It masks some signs but does not necessarily stop the infection. It does make it harder to detect and control, however."

He said vaccinated horses who had the flu, but did not show signs, could easily infect other horses.

"You will still have outbreaks. One day it could knock out half a Cox Plate field. It can curtail top racehorses for up to a month," he said.

Miller said the cost and logistics of vaccination was immense. Horses would have to be vaccinated up to six times a year at a cost of almost $200.

He said it's possible the vaccine would continually have to be updated as the virus changed in form.

Nearly all of Australia's 350,000 horses, of all breeds, would have to be treated.

Miller said the containment battle had not been lost, far from it.

"The next four weeks will tell the story," he said.

Miller said even if vaccination started today, it would be six weeks before the entire horse population was covered, probably longer through red tape.

He said fears the Melbourne spring carnival would be ruined with an outbreak here were knee-jerk.

"We have a contingency plan of containment which we are very confident would allow the carnival to proceed," he said.

Sydney vet Tim Roberts, who first detected the outbreak at Sydney's Centennial Park, said random vaccination would make monitoring the disease dangerously difficult.

"Tantamount to biological sabotage," Roberts said.

Miller said experts in countries affected by EI have wondered why we're bothering to fight, refusing to hoist the flag.

"But I also bet that deep down they're thinking they'd love to be without it," he said. "And we haven't lost the battle."