Equestrian Australia Hendra Vaccination By-Law FAQ’s For Riders/Owners What is a Hendra Vaccinated Event - HVE? A Hendra Vaccinated Event (HVE) is an Event that requires all or some of the attending horses to be vaccinated against Hendra Virus. How will I know if the event I am attending is a HVE? Event Organisers will notify you at the time of entry if an event you are attending is classified as a HVE. What will I need to do if I am attending a HVE in the Endemic Region? All Riders/Owners must not enter/attend a HVE in the Endemic Region without their attending horses being fully vaccinated for HEV, regardless of the state in which your horse resides. What will I need to do if I am attending a HVE in the Non Endemic Region? Only Riders/Owners travelling from the Endemic Region must not enter/attend a HVE in the Non Endemic Region without their attending horses being fully vaccinated for HEV. What is the Endemic Region? The Endemic Region is classed as QLD and NSW. What is the Non-Endemic Region? The Non Endemic Region is classed as Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, Western Australia and the territories of Northern Territory and the ACT. Who defines the Endemic region? The Endemic and Non Endemic regions are defined by EA, based on information made available from the relevant state animal biosecurity authorities. Will horse owners be able to apply for an exemption to this By-Law? Yes – in some instances horses may be provided with an exemption. For example, horses suffering one or more severe reactions as certified by a veterinarian. Please refer to section 3 of the Hendra Vaccination By-Law for further information on exemptions. How does a horse owner apply for an exemption? The EA Veterinary Committee in conjunction with the EA CEO will assess applications from horse owners as to whether their request for an exemption will be granted. In all instances the exemption request will need to be supported by a letter from a vet. The letter will need to outline the reasons why the exemption is being requested and should be submitted by the owner of the horse. Requests will need to be made in writing and submitted to the following: Address: PO Box 673, Sydney Markets, NSW, 2129 Email: [email protected] Fax: 02 9763 2466 How long will it take for exemptions to be assessed? The EA Veterinary Panel and EA CEO will assess exemption requests. Owners of horses are encouraged to submit their request to the national office within 3 months prior to an event (in the event that your exemption is not granted this will enable you time to complete the vaccination requirements – see below). Who is on the EA Veterinary Committee and how is this appointed? The vet panel consists of: Dr David Johnson, Dr Nigel Nichols, Dr Derek Major and Dr Nathan Anthony. The vet panel is an advisory panel that was put in place by the national board. When is my horse considered vaccinated? EA considers all horses which appear in the national vaccination registry as vaccinated. This database defines a horse as vaccinated when: If just one shot has been administered the horse is not protected against the virus. If a second shot is done 21 days – 42 days after the first one, then the horse is immune from the virus. For the horse to stay protected against the virus it needs to have a booster every 6 months. I am planning to compete at a HVE, when should I get my horse vaccinated? In order to appear on the register your horse will need to have received the second dose and this can only occur 21 days after the first shot. Unvaccinated horses should therefore commence vaccination at least six weeks prior to competition. In addition to this some horses may require up to a week to fully recover from the vaccination although some may be fine. You should keep this in mind when vaccinating your horse. I have had my vaccination but what if my vet does not record this on the registry immediately? Vets are required to upload this information within 48 hours of administering the vaccine. How will EA conduct Hendra vaccine checks on horses? The onus on compliance will lie primarily with owners and riders. It is the responsibility of riders/owners to comply with any vaccination Event requirement. EA will conduct random audits on Event participating horses to determine compliance with this By-Law. If a horse is requested to participate in a random check the rider/owner of the horse will need to provide a Hendra Vaccination Certificate from Zoetis of any HEV vaccinations and/or demonstrate the vaccination status of their horse via the Zoetis Hendra Vaccination Registry. What is the national vaccination registry? The national vaccination registry is the database in which all vaccinations that have been carried out by veterinarians in Australia are recorded, allowing users to check the vaccination status of a horse. A horse’s HEV status can be checked by visiting Health 4 Horses What penalties will be imposed if a horse is found to be unvaccinated at a HVE? Will the event or the horse be penalised? Events will not be penalised if an unvaccinated horse is found to have attended their HVE. Riders face penalties if they are found in breach of the by-law as per follows: First breach: EA will issue the rider with a written warning and the horse found to have breached the by-law will be suspended from competing at HVE’s until the rider can prove the horse has been vaccinated according to the definition outlined in Annexure 1 of the Hendra by-law. Second breach: The rider of the horse found to have breached the by-law will be fined $500 and must forfeit any prize money gained from the Event where the breach was found to occur. The horse will be suspended from attending HVE competition until it can be proven the horse has been vaccinated according to the definition outlined in Annexure 1 of the Hendra by-law. Third breach: The rider of the horse found to have breached the by-law will be suspended from EA competition for a period of six months, he/she will be fined a further $500 and must forfeit any prize money gained from the Event where the breach was found to occur. The horse will be suspended from attending HVE competition until it can be proven the horse has been vaccinated according to the definition outlined in Annex 1 of the Hendra by-law. My horse lives and only travels to events in a Non Endemic Region, does this mean that it requires vaccination if it attends a HVE? No, if the HVE is being held in a Non Endemic Region and you are not travelling from the Endemic Region then your horse will horse not require vaccination. Only horses coming from the Endemic Region require vaccination at HVE’s that are held in a Non-Endemic Region. My horse lives in an Endemic Region, does this mean it is compulsory for my horse to be vaccinated when attending events? Event organisers will advise you if HVE is a condition of entry. Not every event held within the Endemic Region will require HVE status. Please refer to the event which you are attending of its HVE status. Does the requirement to vaccinate depend on which state I am a member of or where I reside? Vaccination will depend on where you reside, the state of which you are a member has no bearing on this by-law. For example, if you live in the state of Victoria but are a New South Wales member you will only require vaccination if you attend a HVE within the states of NSW and QLD. You will not require Hendra Vaccination if you attend a HVE within Victoria.
Posted on: Fri, 15 Aug 2014 07:51:27 +0000
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