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jmz-grlz wrote on Mar 24, 2008 8:02 AM:

" The immunity a foal carries from the mare's colostrum (note I said colostrum, not milk) is limited in time-frame. Responsible owners/breeders take it upon themselves to have a mare & foal vet-checked as soon as possible after foaling. Your vet can pull a blood sample from the foal on site and with a simple test determine if the foal has garnered enough antibodies from the mare and correct the issue then and there. This family should quit blaming the community at large for their own lack of action. "

Arial wrote on Mar 22, 2008 11:32 AM:

" There was NO dog reportedly found or tested, only the young horse. Interestingly, the insurance company will only pay for shots if it's a proven rabid dog attack. "

another horse (and dog) lover wrote on Mar 22, 2008 8:24 AM:

" My sincere condolences to the Meisenbach family. Although the focus of this article is not really leash laws, I must say that in Lynchburg we do have a leash law. Many of my neighbors (including us) have dogs who are in fenced yards or in homes, and do not cause any rucus from being confined. Their responsible owners pay attention to them, and walk them on leashes. In my ten years in this neighborhood, I have only seen one stray, and that dog was soon recovered by his owner. Leash laws protect everyone! "

Kris wrote on Mar 21, 2008 9:00 PM:

" The colt was KILLED BY A RABID DOG, he was not rabid himself. The DOG THAT KILLED HIM was rabid.

Get the story right! Mrs. Meisenbach wasn't in town when the incident happened. The paper owes the family an apology! "

American Against NAIS wrote on Mar 20, 2008 6:09 PM:

" Susan did not suggest this was connected to NAIS. She said that NAIS would not have helped to contain or control this disease. USDA is claiming NAIS is needed to protect cattle that are exposed to bovine TB by wild deer and elk. It is no leap to say they would make the same claim with horses and rabies. Rabies is listed as a disease of concern in USDA documents.
In this particular case, NAIS would have been no help in locating and controlling the spread of rabies any faster than without NAIS, but it would have required Mrs. Meisenbach to file a report of the death of her colt within 24 hours. I suppose she could have found time to squeeze that into her busy schedule to avoid a possible fine.
For the truth about NAIS, go to
http://arkansasanimalproducers.8k.com/about_11.html "

Sue wrote on Mar 20, 2008 4:59 PM:

" It's very sad news that this foal died! According to UC Davis, if the mare was vaccinated against rabies (prior to breeding) the foal should have been vaccinated at 6, 7 and 12 months of age. Then once yearly.

If the mare had not been vaccinated against rabies prior to breeding, then the foal should have been vaccinated at 3 or 4 months of age and then again at 12 months of age. Yearly thereafter. "

A Frustrated Veterinary Technician wrote on Mar 20, 2008 2:43 PM:

" At what point will citizens take responsibility for themselves and their own property? The Meisenbach family should have vaccinated this colt starting at 3 months of age. (Source: Compendium of Animal Rabies Prevention and Control 2008) It's quite possible this entire incident could have been avoided with a simple vaccine given at the appropriate time. To suggest that a "leash law" could have prevented this, is absurd! Particularly, since the chances of this bite coming from a dog are fairly slim. Wildlife is a much more common carrier of Rabies!

On another note: "Susan" (in the comments section) suggested that this incident might be connected with NAIS. I must say that "Susan" could not be more MISLEAD! Since NAIS has absolutely nothing to do with small animals or wildlife, NAIS would NOT have even been on the "radar" with regard to this incident! NAIS is a tool used by state veterinary health officials to minimize the effect of disease when an outbreak occurs in the large animal/livestock community. The TRUTH ABOUT NAIS can be found at .
"

vickie wrote on Mar 20, 2008 12:39 PM:

" brookneal has a large skunk population, this paper printed a photo of skunks in the yard of the community building, the picture was in daylight, skunks are night time animals, something was unusual then, there are many, many places in the town limits that are great places for skunks to live, abandoned buildings, brush piles, construction debris or should i say left over demolition debris and much unkept property. if a colt in a stable or at least a fenced in pasture could die of rabies we definitely have a rabies problem in town. we have animal control from the county to pick up strays and such but what do we do about the skunks, this is a problem we have had for several years we need to look into what to do as a town, # 1 would be to enforce ordinances dealing with condemned buildings and yard maintenance. "

C ate McManus wrote on Mar 20, 2008 12:11 PM:

" Mammals, including humans, are exposed to rabies through bites or nonbite exposures to saliva or brain tissue from an infected animal. An exposure occurs when infectious saliva or nervous system tissue enters a bite wound, open wound or a mucus membrane. The most efficient route of transmission of the virus is through a bite.
The rabies virus cannot cause an infection through contact with intact skin. Contact with fur, blood, urine or feces from an infected animal doses not constitute an exposure. Mammals are classified as either low or high risk species for rabies. Bats and certain carnivorous mammals such as raccoons, skunks, foxes and bobcats are considered to be high risk species. In Virginia, some non-carnivorous mammals, including opossums, groundhogs and beavers, are also considered high risk because of spillover of rabies from our raccoon population. Please contact your local health department with any questions about rabies.

Horses can be vaccinated with a one year vaccine starting at 3 months of age.

Please contact your local health department with any questions about rabies.

Virginia’s state guidelines for rabies prevention and control can be viewed at:
http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/epidemiology/DEE/Rabies/vgrpc.htm

"

Vet wrote on Mar 20, 2008 5:41 AM:

" Intramuscular shots do not get flushed out. There are no baby or adult rabies' shots, only one shot for all. A foal is considered too fragile for a rabies shot, and must wait until he's a yearling. This foal never had a rabies shot, and in all likelihood harbored the disease for sometime after being bitten by a wild animal. It explains his sudden behavior and why ALL the family needed shots. "

susan wrote on Mar 19, 2008 2:29 PM:

" My sincere condolences to the family for their loss and having to take the rabies shots. It is events like this that show why the USDA program called NAIS (national animal id system) will not work to prevent/stop diseases...under NAIS whether it was a dog or wild animal that carried rabies, the colt still died and no way of trace back to where the disease originated but under NAIS, if disease is suspected, the USDA can come in and kill all animals in a 6 mile radius (140 sq miles)...there are many many other holes in the program...see nonais dot org for more info. "

horse lover wrote on Mar 19, 2008 1:06 AM:

" This is indeed a sad story, but I don't see the point in blaming the community for what was most likely caused by a wild animal. I've also never heard of a rabies shot being flushed out.
My condolences on the loss of the colt. "