ABSTRACT
At the time of the initial notification of the occurrence of equine influenza (EI) in Australia in August 2007, vaccination was restricted to horses for which it was an import requirement and only with the approval of the state or territory Chief Veterinary Officer. This paper describes the complexities involved in the selection of a vaccine and its distribution. A combination of ring, predictive and blanket vaccination was implemented during the response. The specific vaccination programs, including its use in buffer zones and for movement of horses, the performance of the vaccine, any adverse reactions and the effect on exposure of vaccinated horses to circulating virus, are also described. Vaccination is considered to have made a valuable contribution to the containment and subsequent eradication of EI from Australia and to risk management in the resumption of horse activities in affected areas from December 2007. Movement restrictions and other biosecurity measures were critically important in controlling the spread of EI and contributing to its eventual eradication, and vaccination was an aid to these measures.
Subject(s)
Disease Outbreaks/veterinary , Horse Diseases/prevention & control , Horse Diseases/virology , Influenza A Virus, H3N8 Subtype/immunology , Influenza Vaccines/administration & dosage , Orthomyxoviridae Infections/prevention & control , Orthomyxoviridae Infections/veterinary , Animals , Australia/epidemiology , Disease Outbreaks/prevention & control , Horse Diseases/epidemiology , Horse Diseases/immunology , Horses , Orthomyxoviridae Infections/epidemiology , Orthomyxoviridae Infections/immunology , Vaccination/methods , Vaccination/standards , Vaccination/veterinarySubject(s)
Education, Veterinary/trends , Veterinary Medicine , Animals , Australia , Cattle , Humans , Sheep , Swine , WorkforceSubject(s)
Awareness , Disease Outbreaks/veterinary , Animals , Australia , Foot-and-Mouth Disease/economics , Risk FactorsSubject(s)
Animal Rights , Dogs/surgery , Newspapers as Topic , Societies , Tail/surgery , Veterinary Medicine , Animals , Australia , Humans , South AustraliaSubject(s)
Education, Veterinary/trends , Veterinary Medicine/trends , Australia , Humans , New ZealandABSTRACT
The paper describes a program to import and breed black rhinoceros ex situ at Western Plains Zoo in Australia. Nine rhinoceros (7 females and 2 males) captured in 1992 in Chete National Park, Zimbabwe, were transported to Australia via Cocos Island. The veterinary treatment of the animals before and during quarantine in Zimbabwe and on Cocos (Keeling) Islands is described. Three animals died; an adult male on Cocos Islands and a juvenile male and an adult female at Western Plains Zoo, Dubbo, New South Wales. The juvenile male died as a result of trauma sustained shortly after arrival and the two adults after developing a severe hepatopathy. The group of 6 females and an additional 4 males imported from the USA in 1994 have adapted well to captivity and to the climate and environment of central west New South Wales.
