Craigslist and No Coggins

[ReSomething]

Can’t transport without it, or the health cert, in this state, so why do sellers put their poor, unthrifty cheap horses up for sale without one? Even some of the nicer ones don’t seem to have one.
Do they take them to the auction without one?

I know, the old fart came home without one at all. The old vet didn’t think it was a big deal based on where he was going. He had one from last year, so he could travel legally if necessary to the vet hospital or anywhere else. It was still in effect when he passed. The pony has a current one now.

I guess we all buy low end horses without them but it’s annoying and a real potential vector for disease.
End/rant.

[enjoytheride]

I’ve never bought a horse with a current coggins and some of the shows in my area don’t even require one. I’ve also never seen a horse with a current coggins at the auctions. There’s an entire world out there full of horse owners who’ve never pulled a coggins on a horse and never will. Like it or not!

[microbovine]

I hate to admit it, but I have picked up horses with no coggins or health cert. Not across state lines and they were in a bad spot they needed help out of their situation. They were, of course,
quarantined away from other horses until cleared by our vet.

I never take one of our horses off our farm without a coggins.

[Bluey]

In our area, they take that very seriously.

You can’t even enter any sale barn without the proper paperwork.
They do have a vet on the premises for sale day that will pull blood right there and provide you with a Coggins certificate, but acceptance of any horse is pending that little piece of paper.

So it is to enter show or rodeo grounds, or if they happen to stop you on the highway.

Every year, on spring shots, every horse gets one, that will be current for a year, so no problem.
Every new horse comes with one. It is the law here.

[ReSomething]

They aren’t necessary in certain states. Brand inspections aren’t necessary in certain states either, and in others they are. It would be sensible for sellers to have all that ready ahead of time. Just sayin’

[moving_to_dc]

[QUOTE=ReSomething;8664051]
They aren’t necessary in certain states. Brand inspections aren’t necessary in certain states either, and in others they are. It would be sensible for sellers to have all that ready ahead of time. Just sayin’[/QUOTE]

They may be required, but that doesn’t mean that every horse owner can afford them.

I am going to assume that the owners of said “poor, unthrifty cheap horses” probably cannot afford to have a Coggins pulled and/or health cert written, or vaccines… They likely may not own a trailer and would also have to pay a $$$ farm call fee on top of everything…

I never get wound up that Coggins and/or health certificates are undeniable proof of a healthy horse. They only prove that horse was healthy and EIA negative at that exact moment in time that the exam was done and blood was drawn. A lot can happen in the 30/365 days before either one expires.

[hoopoe]

I am going to assume that the owners of said “poor, unthrifty cheap horses” probably cannot afford to have a Coggins pulled

I will go a step further and say they probably dont know what it is

[GoodTimes]

[QUOTE=moving to dc;8664082]
They may be required, but that doesn’t mean that every horse owner can afford them.

I am going to assume that the owners of said “poor, unthrifty cheap horses” probably cannot afford to have a Coggins pulled and/or health cert written, or vaccines… They likely may not own a trailer and would also have to pay a $$$ farm call fee on top of everything…

I never get wound up that Coggins and/or health certificates are undeniable proof of a healthy horse. They only prove that horse was healthy and EIA negative at that exact moment in time that the exam was done and blood was drawn. A lot can happen in the 30/365 days before either one expires.[/QUOTE]

Exactly, virtually none of the shows in Canada require them anymore. I get that everyone should follow the laws, rules, and regulations where they live but if facilities like Spruce Meadows care more about proof of vaccines than a Coggins than I wouldn’t be too concerned.

[Jump314]

I don’t understand how blood can be drawn at a sale for a Coggins. Doesn’t it take a day or two for a lab to test the blood?

[Bluey]

[QUOTE=Jump314;8664462]
I don’t understand how blood can be drawn at a sale for a Coggins. Doesn’t it take a day or two for a lab to test the blood?[/QUOTE]

Not if the vet has a mobile lab, I guess.

[moving_to_dc]

[QUOTE=Jump314;8664462]
I don’t understand how blood can be drawn at a sale for a Coggins. Doesn’t it take a day or two for a lab to test the blood?[/QUOTE]

No. There is a Coggins test that can be run in minutes on site. Pretty sure it is an ELISA snap test, but not 100%.

[alibi_18]

[QUOTE=GoodTimes;8664453]
Exactly, virtually none of the shows in Canada require them anymore. I get that everyone should follow the laws, rules, and regulations where they live but if facilities like Spruce Meadows care more about proof of vaccines than a Coggins than I wouldn’t be too concerned.[/QUOTE]

I’m sorry but you need a valid Coggin test to show in Canada. It needs to be with your passport.

[LSMarnell]

I pay for/have a coggins drawn on my horse every year and I haven’t been asked to show it at a competition in a very long time. I have never been asked to show it crossing state line either. Most show bills/organized rides etc say “coggins must be presented” and in my experience they almost never are.

So I can definitely see why people don’t see the need to have one pulled every year. Especially if they are not leaving the farm very often. A lot of my friends horse camp/trail ride exclusively. They actually leave the farm quite a bit, but they never have a coggins done and don’t seem to have any problems. Our vets don’t bat an eye if you say you don’'t want it either.

[ReSomething]

Yeah, the old vet actually discouraged the expense seeing as how we were going 7 miles and staying there. But I know someone that had her whole summer of activities come to a screeching halt due to a strangles outbreak at the barn, and I’ve read about it here as well.

I really feel like it’s sort of the anti-vaxxing of the horse world. Or maybe West Nile, Potomac or Lyme are the ones that really needed the Draconian measures and one day we’ll wake up and go how did that happen?

[Couture_TB]

I will not allow a horse to come on the property without one. Will not buy a horse without one. Period

[Halt_Near_X]

[QUOTE=ReSomething;8664545]
Yeah, the old vet actually discouraged the expense seeing as how we were going 7 miles and staying there. But I know someone that had her whole summer of activities come to a screeching halt due to a strangles outbreak at the barn, and I’ve read about it here as well.

I really feel like it’s sort of the anti-vaxxing of the horse world. Or maybe West Nile, Potomac or Lyme are the ones that really needed the Draconian measures and one day we’ll wake up and go how did that happen?[/QUOTE]

A Coggins test is nothing like a vaccine. It’s just a snapshot in time that tells you if a horse has EIA on that day. It offers no protection against EIA and no guarantees that even the horse with the “current” Coggins (taken any day but today) is actually EIA free.

As a monitoring tool, it’s done a really good job at decreasing the number of EIA cases in the country, but honestly, if you are trailering 7 miles and the vet has been testing other horses in the area and knows there have been no EIA cases in the last X years? Your risk of bringing EIA home to your barn is no greater, really, than if you bought a horse who had a Coggins pulled 9 months ago.

Get a Coggins pulled once you’re home because it’s a good thing to do, but agonizing because the horse doesn’t have a current one is like agonizing that a horse doesn’t have a current rabies vaccination.

[trubandloki]

I do a Coggins test as part of my PPE so it does not matter to me if the horse already has one or not.

[ChasPonyCat]

[QUOTE=enjoytheride;8664035]
I’ve never bought a horse with a current coggins and some of the shows in my area don’t even require one. I’ve also never seen a horse with a current coggins at the auctions. There’s an entire world out there full of horse owners who’ve never pulled a coggins on a horse and never will. Like it or not![/QUOTE]

^True. I think at one point I may have been a part of that world (as a child). Before I started showing, our horses/ponies never left the property. Didn’t own a trailer, didn’t take the horses to public places. I don’t recall Coggins being part of our lives until shows came into the picture and it was required. I’m sure some probably feel this is not responsible horse ownership, but as others have pointed out there is nothing about the coggins that prevents the horse from getting sick days after the blood is drawn.

I went to a show a couple of weeks ago which said it required a negative Coggins upon check in and prior to unloading. I had it with me ready to present, and they never asked for it.

[FLeventer]

If they don’t have a coggins they usually don’t have a vaccination record. Its the risk you take and one ive done a few times. Its something to be aware of.

[spacytracy]

PA just had an EIA case in the past month, I believe.
Yep. Here ya go.
http://www.thehorse.com/articles/37455/pennsylvania-horse-tests-positive-for-eia

I keep mine UTD if they are leaving the property. To be honest, the paper is kind of silly. It really only says “horse tested negative on this particular day” but at least it is a safeguard of SOME sort.

I don’t normally buy one without it, and if I do, I quarantine, like microbovine.