150,000 Vials Of Vaccine To Ease EI Pain

Monday, 30 November -0001 00:00

The thoroughbred industry and Australia's Olympic equestrian hopes received a welcome boost on Sunday with the approval of a large scale vaccination program to combat equine influenza (EI) in NSW and Queensland.

NSW Primary Industries Minister Ian Macdonald said a shipment of 20,000 doses of the vaccine would arrive from France on Thursday with the bulk to be distributed in the two states which have the disease.

A thousand vials of the vaccine will go to Victoria to be used on racehorses competing in the rich Melbourne spring carnival and Mr Macdonald says he hopes some horses from NSW may still be able to compete once they are inoculated.

"Next Thursday 20,000 doses will arrive in NSW for distribution across the states," Mr Macdonald said.

"One thousand doses will go to Victoria with the rest split between NSW and Queensland in the first instance.

"The following week another 30,000 doses will arrive and after that we are ordering tomorrow a further 100,000 doses."

Mr Macdonald said the plan was to vaccinate what he called working horses - "breeding and racing horses and the high level equestrian horses".

"NSW has an adequate allocation in the first instance to start the buffer zone work as well as to vaccinate horses in areas which have not so far contracted the disease," he said.

"Primarily horses at Rosehill, the Central Coast and Newcastle will be vaccinated and we will discuss other areas with NSW racing.

"The ability of NSW horses to compete in Victoria would be very beneficial to the racing sector here and we hope we can deal with this issue at a national level."

The first case of EI in Australia was detected in a stallion at the Eastern Creek quarantine centre on August 23 after the horse arrived from the northern hemisphere for stud duties.

How EI spread from the federal facility will be the subject of an inquiry by retired high court judge Ian Callinan.

In the meantime, the multi million dollar racing and breeding industries in NSW and Queensland have been devastated while several Olympic equestrian qualifying events have been cancelled.

The first racing centre to be shut down was Randwick where more than 700 horses are trained and on Saturday EI was confirmed at Sydney's second biggest precinct, Warwick Farm.

Rosehill, which is home to around 350 horses, remains EI free and Racing NSW chief executive Peter V'Landys said it would be a priority for vaccination.

"We will start it straight away on Thursday night if we can," Mr V'Landys said.

"We will be micro chipping horses because those over five have not been micro chipped and we can record those vaccinated.

"We will have a staff of 100 vets if we can get them.

"This is a floodlight at the end of the tunnel but up until this stage the equine influenza train keeps running us over.

"Hopefully this is the big breakthrough we have been looking for."

Mr Macdonald and Federal Agriculture Minister Peter McGauran said they were still committed to eradicating the disease but widespread vaccination had not been ruled out.

"That is our aim. It is too early to give up on that objective. All governments remain committed to the eradication policy but we're not going to stubbornly cling to it," Mr McGauran told reporters in Melbourne.

"If the scientific evidence in coming weeks shows that it's like trying to hold back the tide then, of course, we will have to vaccinate the wider horse population.

"We're not prepared, however, to concede that the containment battle has been lost."

Horses receive a booster shot two weeks after the initial vaccination by which time immunity should be established.

Mr V'Landys said 4,000 of the first doses would be used on thoroughbred and harness racehorses in NSW.

Queensland Primary Industries and Fisheries Minister Tim Mulherin welcomed the move to give NSW and Queensland the bulk of the vaccines after discussing the matter with national, state and territory agriculture ministers.

"This is not only a good result for Queensland but the correct result.

"The NMG (National Management Group) decision, endorsed by the ministers, also will allow under strict and consistent biosecurity measures the protection of high value horses in restricted areas of NSW and Queensland including thoroughbred and standard bred horses, horses for the Olympic Games and stallions involved in breeding.

"The question of vaccinating brood mares will be considered by the Consultative Committee on Emergency Animal Diseases this week," Mr Mulherin said.

"We still remain confident that the disease can be controlled and eradicated and the strategic use of the vaccines will play a vital role.

"The priority has to be the buffer zones and treating the infected areas in Queensland and NSW, although I acknowledge that it is important that the Victorian racing is protected as it is a major asset of the national industry."

Queensland Premier Anna Bligh earlier called for the EI vaccine to be available nationally, not confined to eastern states.

"It's Queensland's view that any vaccinations available for equine flu should be available nationwide and that all who are affected by it should have equal access to it."