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At today’s largest horse shows, thousands of animals from around the country share barns, rings, and wash racks. As The Plaid Horse publisher Piper Klemm noted during a recent Plaidcast In Person event, some competitors estimated more than 3,000 horses at a single event. That sheer volume, she said, raises the question of how any facility can stay truly biosecure.
Dr. Holly Helbig, a veterinarian and trainer who serves as an FEI-licensed show vet, agreed that the numbers are alarming and that every rider plays a role in prevention.
A Sneeze That Travels Half a Football Field
“How far do you think a horse’s sneeze can travel?” Helbig asked the audience. “Fifty yards—half a football field.”
Inside an enclosed arena, that distance can spread pathogens across multiple aisles. Her number-one defense: vaccinate early and properly.
“My biggest pet peeve is when people show up at the horse show and they’re not vaccinated,” she said. “If it was up to me, I’d tell them to leave the facility, vaccinate, wait two weeks, and come back.”
Last-minute shots can do more harm than good. “Sometimes management pressures you to vaccinate on the spot,” she explained. “But when a horse runs a temperature after vaccination, now we have another biosecurity issue.”
Vaccinations need time to take effect. Helbig recommends giving core vaccines at least two weeks before travel. The FEI already enforces that interval by prohibiting vaccination within the show compound, and U.S. Equestrian is moving in the same direction. “If it was up to me, that would be the number-one biosecurity rule at every competition,” she said.
Stalls Aren’t Always as Clean as They Look
Vaccines are only part of the picture. Helbig reminded riders that pathogens can linger long after a show ends. “When I was a kid, you’d go to a show and then everyone would leave for a week or two,” she said. “Now these shows are just back to back to back.”
Even diligent staff can’t completely sanitize wooden stalls. “Fungus and bacteria can live in wood for years,” she said. Her advice: bring disinfectant, strip every stall, and start fresh. “Never put a horse in a stall with dirty shavings—that’s a huge pet peeve of mine. Get those shavings out, spray it down, and apply new bedding.”
The Startling Reality of Rabies Risk
One statistic stunned the audience: only one in six horses in the United States is vaccinated for rabies.
“That means 83 percent are not,” Helbig said. “And if a horse gets it, the mortality rate is 100 percent.”
Many owners assume their horses are protected because they’re stabled, but wildlife doesn’t respect barn walls. “They actually look like they’re colicking,” she explained. “Then you’ve got the owner, the kid, the vet, the tech—all putting their hands in the horse’s mouth thinking it’s a colic case. Rabies is zoonotic; it can pass from animals to humans.”
One Shot, Five Protections
The American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) designates five “core” diseases that every horse should be vaccinated against annually:
- Eastern equine encephalitis
- Western equine encephalitis
- Tetanus
- Rabies
West Nile virus
Helbig noted that Zoetis developed a single vaccine containing all five antigens. “They were really smart,” she said. “They put together one shot that has all five core antigens.”
Additional “risk-based” vaccines—such as flu, rhino, Potomac horse fever, botulism, and leptospirosis—depend on a horse’s location and travel schedule. “Rabies should really be given in the spring,” she added, “because that’s when most wildlife is active.”
Trust the AAEP, Not ‘Doctor Googling’
“There’s a lot of ‘Doctor Googling’ going on out there,” Helbig joked. Her recommendation: start with the AAEP website. It offers clear guidelines for both veterinarians and owners on prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. “They keep recycling their graphics and they’re awesome,” she said.
Helbig also praised AAEP initiatives that address the profession’s sustainability crisis. Programs like Decade One help new veterinarians build community and stay in equine practice. “I’m really proud of what they’re doing,” she said. “They’re focusing on keeping equine medicine sustainable.”
Helbig’s closing message was simple: responsible management is everyone’s job. Vaccinate early. Disinfect thoroughly. Learn from reliable sources.
“We’re putting thousands of horses together in one place,” she said. “We can’t control everything, but we can control preparation.”
Want more insight from Dr. Holly Helbig? Listen to episode 452 of The Plaidcast and subscribe on your favorite podcast platform for conversations with the most influential voices in the equestrian world.
