- Definition
- Pathogens
- Cleaning and Disinfection
- Stalls, Stocks, Teasing Chutes
- Phantoms
- Breeding Shed Floors
- Miscellaneous Breeding Shed Equipment
- Hand Hygiene
- Disinfectant Choices
BASICSBiosecurity:
- All actions taken to reduce the risk of introduction and spread of infectious diseases
- Breeding shed biosecurity typically concentrates on venereally transmitted diseases; outbreaks of any contagious disease have significant impacts on horse health
- Equine herpesvirus myeloencephalopathy outbreaks affecting equine facilities have increased biosecurity awareness
- Must address contagious diseases beyond those that affect the reproductive tracts of mares and stallions
Biosecurity protocols should be tailored to the individual facility:
- Owners, managers, and veterinarians must know and abide by all current requirements for CEM testing and EAV testing and vaccination
- Examine all horses arriving for signs of disease, includes leased teaser stallions, nurse mares
- Group farm horses by use and age
- Separate resident horses from transient horses (layovers, show horses, and pleasure horses)
- When possible, personnel routinely working with pregnant mares and foals (high-risk populations) should not work with other horses
- New arrivals must be accompanied by a certificate of veterinary inspection, negative equine infectious anemia test, and complete history of vaccination and deworming
- Minimum 2 week quarantine to monitor horses (BID rectal temperature) from low-risk premises, including comprehensive vaccinations and biosecurity protocols; no active infectious disease issues, vaccination and deworming updates, and health assessments
- Minimum 21–28 days quarantine if unknown health history and vaccinations. Allow no nose-to-nose contact over fence lines with resident horses. Use separate equipment (rakes, shovels, buckets, grooming equipment, etc.) not shared with resident horse population
- Equine venereal disease outbreaks are primarily caused by Taylorella equigenitalis, EAV, and EHV-3
- T. equigenitalis—Gram-negative coccobacillus; causes CEM
- Transmission—venereal contact, contaminated semen, contaminated fomites including phantoms (stallion to stallion)
- EAV—lipid-enveloped RNA virus, family Arteriviridae
- Transmission—respiratory secretions, aerosolization of virus-contaminated materials, and coitus
- EHV-3 causes equine coital exanthema; highly contagious via natural cover, artificial insemination, nose-to-nose contact, contaminated fomites
- Dourine is a trypanosomal disease (Trypanosoma equiperdum)
- Transmission—only by coitus
- Eradicated from North America, most of Europe; exists in other areas of the world
- Veterinarians—must be aware of local, state, and national reporting requirements
- Other bacterial infections, e.g. Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Klebsiella pneumoniae, can be transmitted by coitus, artificial insemination, contaminated breeding equipment, fomites
- T. equigenitalis, EAV, and EHV—easily killed by thorough cleaning with detergent and commonly used disinfectants in the breeding shed
- Transmission (viral and bacterial pathogens) can occur any time horses are co-mingled or equipment is shared
- Of significant importance are EHVs, equine influenza virus, EAV, Streptococcus equi, and other respiratory pathogens
- Nose-to-nose contact, nasal contact of contaminated surfaces (stalls, stocks, phantoms), and shared equipment can all result in pathogen spread
- Salmonella spp. and other pathogens can be spread by the fecal–oral route
- Breeding shed biosecurity requires overall farm biosecurity measures
- Specific breeding equipment (artificial vaginas, wash buckets, etc.) is addressed elsewhere
- Must keep clean and disinfected—the breeding shed, to include teasing stalls, mare stocks, aisle ways
- Teasing stalls or stocks permit teaser stallions contact with mares to confirm receptivity. Nose-to-nose contact between the two should be avoided
Stalls, Stocks, Teasing Chutes
- Ideal surfaces are made of nonporous material, easily cleaned with detergents, rinsed, and then sprayed with an appropriate disinfectant
- Raw wood/dirt floors—virtually impossible to adequately clean and disinfect
- Wood surfaces (including stocks) can be cleaned and sealed with several coats of paint or polyurethane wood sealant to make a cleanable surface
- Concrete block stalls—porous until painted
- Any surface contaminated with bodily fluids and nasal secretions should be scrubbed with detergent and rinsed with potable water
- Avoid pressure washers—can aerosolize pathogens
- Garden hose nozzles (<0.8 MPa (120 psi) water pressure) can be used
- Mares brought only for live cover—house temporarily in stalls to be teased by stallions
- Remove manure in between mares
- Remove bedding soiled with urine and vaginal discharges; clean surfaces with detergent before the stall is used again
- Leptospires are shed in urine; vaginal discharges can be source of pathogens. If stall floors are dirt, packed clay, or sand, wet areas can thoroughly be sprinkled with barn lime to discourage pathogen retention
- Routinely used to collect semen, constructed of a variety of materials
- To significantly reduce the risk of venereal transmission, phantoms, regardless of surface material, can be wrapped in disposable plastic (available in 50 cm (20 inch) wide rolls, discount warehouses/online)
- Wrapping includes any padded area for the stallions’ front legs, and bite bars, with sufficient overlap of layers to prevent it from being dislodged during collection
- Afterwards, workers wearing disposable gloves tear the plastic, carefully fold the edges towards the top to contain any bodily fluids before throwing the material away, followed by discarding their own gloves
- Care must be taken to minimize the spread of any bodily fluids back onto the phantom or onto the floor while disposing of the plastic
- Any areas of the phantom visibly contaminated or dirty should be washed with detergent, rinsed with potable water, and allowed to dry
- After every use (whether washed or not), the entire phantom should be sprayed with 70% isopropyl or ethyl alcohol and allowed to dry. Workers should then don new disposable gloves and completely wrap the phantom with plastic wrap before the next stallion is collected
- Covering only parts of the phantom in contact with the penis is inadequate; nasal secretions can spread respiratory pathogens
- If covered with a washable, nonporous fabric, at the very least, wrap the phantom closest to the hind limbs of the stallion in disposable plastic. After use, discard the plastic, wash the entire phantom, rinse. When dry, spray with alcohol; allow to dry
- If fleece padding is used to protect the stallion's medial carpi, plastic wrap can also protect this material
- Alternatively, individual fleece can be used for each stallion and routinely washed with detergent
- Floors of dirt, sand, shredded rubber, and other loose material cannot be cleaned and disinfected, but provide traction and cushion to horses
- Can reduce dust by wetting down with water prior to using the breeding shed
- Textured rubber mats with sealed seams provide a cleanable surface
- Keep the breeding shed floor clean and free of organic matter
Miscellaneous Breeding Shed Equipment
- Leather shrouds (bite covers) to protect mares’ necks from stallions’ teeth, should be cleaned with detergent and water in between uses; could be contaminated with nasal secretions
- Leather aprons used to prevent the teaser stallion from accidental penetrating a mare should be dedicated to one stallion; thoroughly clean after each use
- An apron used by several stallions must be cleaned with soap and water, rinsed, sprayed with 2% chlorhexidine solution and allowed to dry before reuse
- Leather is a porous material and cannot completely be disinfected
- After completing one mating or semen collection, discard any disposable gloves in a proper receptacle
- Thoroughly wash hands with liquid soap and water; dry with disposable paper towels
- Antimicrobial hand soap is unnecessary and recommended only during disease outbreak situations
- Avoid bar soap, it can harbor pathogens
- Disposable gloves do not guarantee that glove tears do not occur, inadvertently contaminating hands
- Proper handwashing is critical for biosecurity
For stall surfaces, stocks, padded breeding chutes, and barn aisle ways:
- Commonly used horse barn disinfectants include peroxygenase compounds, phenolics, and quaternary ammonium compounds
- Bleach is quickly inactivated by any organic matter; use only on hard, nonporous materials that are thoroughly precleaned
- Ethyl or isopropyl alcohol (70%) are disinfectants used on cleaned phantoms, but are not routine stall disinfectants. Phantom disinfectants readily evaporate and leave no chemical residue that could irritate stallions
- Remove organic matter by thorough scrubbing with detergent and water to remove >90% of bacteria and inactivate lipid-enveloped viruses on barn surfaces
- Avoid power washing. Any disinfectant will be compromised by organic matter; cleaning cannot be overemphasized
- Some detergents (cationic, anionic, or nonionic) can inactivate certain disinfectants and must be considered in the choice of cleaning products and disinfectants
- No disinfectant is effective against all known equine pathogens and also safe. No product is currently available that cleans and disinfects in one step. Active ingredients and directions for use must be understood by all farm employees as misuse can cause significant injury. Never mix different disinfectants together
- Manufacturers of disinfectants approved by the United States Environmental Protection Agency provide label instructions that must be followed. Recommended personal protective equipment (glove type, eye protection, etc.), dilution and application instructions, and surface contact time should strictly be followed. Thorough knowledge of Material Safety Data Sheet information is also necessary
MISCELLANEOUS