S/O: Are health certificates and Coggins worthless?

[Ghazzu]

[QUOTE=mbv;8992203]
But I would still maintain that identifying infected horses and effectively removing them from the horse population was, and continues to be, an important control measure for EIA.[/QUOTE]

It is the best single control measure–there is no non-equid reservoir for EIA. So if all positive horses culd be removed from the population, the disease would be eradicated.

[Halt_Near_X]

[QUOTE=CindyCRNA;8992111]
I wonder what percentage of horse owners pull a coggins? I mean, back yard people. Before I got into eventing, I didn’t know what a coggins was. If it weren’t required for show, I wonder how many would do it.[/QUOTE]

It may depend on the location. I’m in Houston and there are trail riding locations that absolutely check the Coggins before allowing horses in (and I know someone who was refused entry into a State park because their Coggins was a photo copy).

So even if people aren’t showing, if they are getting out and about with their horses at all, they almost certainly have one.

Even if they aren’t compliant, awareness seems pretty good; it’s not that uncommon to see a note on a low-dollar ad stating that the Coggins is or is not current.

[Bensmom]

Vet, here… for those saying HCs are relatively worthless: I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gone to write an HC and found a fever, respiratory infection, colic, or some other ailment that ultimately stopped the horse from shipping. Were the owners/trainers pissed? Yes, more often than not. But I won’t write an HC for a sick horse. Knock wood, I’ve never had one of those turn into something reportable, but it sure was good for that horse that they didn’t have to get on a trailer that week.

Are HCs perfect and a guarantee of good health? No, of course not, but they’re a damn site better than no eyes on the horse at all.

Thanks to Faybe for being one of the good guys! In the State of Florida, it isn’t so much whether the tests have intrinsic worth – you HAVE to have them to move your horse around - in state or out of state. Well, Coggins for in state, and a Health Certificate to go across state lines.

And Veterinarians are prosecuted in Florida for writing a HC with any incorrect info or falsifying it in any way. This state takes it very seriously.

Regardless of whether the HC is a valuable item, when you are sitting on the side of the road, in small town Georgia, and you are stopped and your paperwork checked (I can name several people that this has happened to) you will want to be sure your paperwork is correct and recent and in order.

And, just FYI to anyone coming to FL for the Winter Season – do not EVER alter or write on a Coggins test in ANY way. I brought home a horse from Rocking Horse once that someone had gone over the writing on the Coggins (old style) just to make it dark enough to fax with a show entry.

Yikes! I was detained at the Ag Station, and only released to go home under quarantine, AFTER we woke up the State Vet at home, who happened to be my former personal veterinarian. Boy, was I in trouble! I was quarantined until the original veterinarian could send a copy of the Coggins that proved that nothing had been altered, but it could have been much worse. In Florida, transporting a horse with any type of falsified document is a Third Degree Felony. And Florida’s Ag Law Enforcement are serious people. Don’t take a chance, they are documents you’ve got to have. It may seem a silly law, but it is the law.

[Sing_Mia_Song]

Last March at a USDF show, the TD accused me of showing a different horse than the one listed on my coggins test (apparently, she went through all of the paper entries and coggins tests to ensure there were no discrepancies). The horse in question is a 4yo RPSI gelding who is half Knabbstrupper…he is a leopard spotted silver bay with a brand and microchip…pretty unique looking individual. She insisted that even though the coggins showed his brand (with unique number under the ‘bridge’) and unique spots, that he was a chestnut (not silver bay as written on the coggins). We had a genetics discussion regarding modifying genes and the presence of black body points verifying he couldn’t be chestnut. It got ugly because she didn’t have a chip scanner and was convinced I was trying to scam the show. She ended up giving me a ‘warning’ and directed me to change the color listed with the breed registry and USEF! Instead, I had the horse genetically tested for color and submitted the report to the USEF and now carry a copy with my coggins.

This would have pissed me off enough that I would have hand-delivered the testing results to the TDs door. How obnoxious!

And, just FYI to anyone coming to FL for the Winter Season – do not EVER alter or write on a Coggins test in ANY way. I brought home a horse from Rocking Horse once that someone had gone over the writing on the Coggins (old style) just to make it dark enough to fax with a show entry.

Yikes! I was detained at the Ag Station, and only released to go home under quarantine, AFTER we woke up the State Vet at home, who happened to be my former personal veterinarian. Boy, was I in trouble! I was quarantined until the original veterinarian could send a copy of the Coggins that proved that nothing had been altered, but it could have been much worse. In Florida, transporting a horse with any type of falsified document is a Third Degree Felony. And Florida’s Ag Law Enforcement are serious people.

My vet here in MD has a similar story–she was woken up in the middle of the night to fax the original Coggins to Florida, but the transmittal wasn’t sufficiently clear to satisfy the authorities (this was before scanning and emailing became so commonplace). I think she said she wound up having to express mail a hard copy to get the poor owner off the hook.