Introducing a new monthly guest blogger - Miss Rodeo Montana 2009, Lesli Furniss from Frenchtown, MT.  Lesli will be a guest blogger for me in the coming months.  She’s not only beautiful but very knowledgable on anything “horsey.”  This is Lesli’s first guest blog for me.  If you want to hear more from her check out her blog among other information at www.missrodeomontana.com

Imagine hauling horses between Canada and the United States and being informed that you have to go back to the vet to get more paperwork.  This is frustrating, time consuming, and hard on livestock.   It is imperative that people involved in rodeo and the equine industry keep up to date on new disease outbreaks.  A good trip can go downhill quickly with troubles at the border because of paperwork misconceptions.  

With a new outbreak of CEM (Contagious Equine Metritis) found in at least 40 states including Montana, regulations for crossing the Canadian border are changing.  CEM is a venereal disease of horses that is highly contagious and can cause infertility and abortion.  About ten to fourteen days after breeding with an infected stallion, the mare will have purulent vaginal discharge can be found on the tail and the inside of the legs.  After this discharge subsides, the mare can still be infected chronically.  In January, a quarter horse mare in Montana was found to have the disease and it was traced to shipped semen from a stallion in Kentucky.  The mare is now being quarantined and more research is being done on the disease.  CEM was absent from the United States for 30 years until a small outbreak in Kentucky and Indiana in December.    The disease can spread among stallions, but is not routinely spread through casual contact or shared boarding facilities, and horses can be treated with antibiotics.   Currently nine stallions in four states have tested positive.

In the equine industry, being informed is the key to success.  New diseases show up frequently and regulations can change rapidly.  There are many Montanans who rodeo and travel with their horses to and from Canada, as well as stock contracting firms.  Sometimes it is difficult, however, to know how to find information on travel requirement changes.  The best way is to first contact Department of Livestock Brands Enforcement Division, Helena, Montana, (406)-444-2045 or Animal Health at (406)-444-2043.  People in these fields will be aware of needs pertinent to travel with stock in Montana.  To find more Canada specific information, I recommend looking at this website: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/regulations/vs/iregs/animals/downloads/ca_eq.pdf

The APHIS (Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service) website is very helpful and stays current  with equine traveling needs.

            Canada has tightened rules for imports of semen and embryos, and anyone traveling with a horse into Canada needs to have additional certification from their veterinarian (other than a negative coggins test and standard health papers) that the horse a) has not been on a premises where CEM has been isolated during the 60 days preceding exportation or at a premises currently under quarantine or investigation  b) mares must not have been bred naturally or A.I. with semen from a stallion positive for CEM, and c) show no signs of CEM on the day of inspection.

            Being prepared and having correct paperwork will make your travels this upcoming rodeo season a lot more enjoyable.  I wish you all the best of luck on the road and hope to meet many of you soon!

“It is not your aptitude, but your attitude that will determine your altitude.”

Lesli Furniss

Miss Rodeo Montana 2009

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