Objective Data Plead to Suspend Import-Bans for Seroreactors Against Equine Arteritis Virus Except for Breeder Stallions (original) (raw)
1992, Journal of Applied Animal Research
A seroepidemiobgical test survey by micro-serumneutralization test for equine arteritis virus (EAV was conducted in 4 breeds of horses. T h e incentive for the present investigation was successful isolation of EAV virus from 3 aborted foetuses, one each from three different breeds during 1989-90 in Austria. Randomly sampled sera of 130 riding horses revealed 12.1% cases positive to EAX Contrarily, 78.1% of Austrianbone Lipizzun mares from the stud, in which one of the virologically proved EAVabortion had occurred, were semreactors. Moreovel; 51.6% of Lipizzan mares imported from 5 European countries, were also seropositive. Results also revealed high semreactor rates in Austrian stateowned stallions, i.e. 55.6% of the Haflingel; 73.3% of the Norikel; 84.6% of the Warmblood and 93.3% of the Lipizzan stallions were seropositive to EAV The duta revealed that stallions did not acquire EAVinfection from mares during their 4 months' covering stay on field stations. As no artificial insemination was practised, they could also not h u e contracted EAV from the artificial vagina. Furthermore, Lipizzan stallwna are never used for breeding up to 18 years old, nevertheless they showed the highest reactor rates. Thus genital aquisition of EAV, on which literature has focussed these last years, does not account fbr the extremely high seroreactor rates determined. Instead, 31 J. Appl. Anin. &a. 0971-2119/9~06.000 GSPJndia conditions prevalent f i r 70 Lipizzan stallions as well as for the 270 stallions kept at the Austrian National Stud, semen-shedders contaminated their bedding by masturbation, as i s pmctised by idle stallions, which spread the EAV infection horimntally to neighbour stallions. The high reactor mtes of Austrian Haflinger, Noriker and W a r m b M stallions was of minimal or pmbably no impact on breeding swress as well as on overall health of the Austrian horse population. Conceptwn rates and birth m t e s recorded for 5 years for over 7000 mares served by state-owned stallions were normal. Similar observations on smaller number of horses, have very mcently been reported from Australia, Norway and Sweden. Acordingly, hygienic measures were recommended by these countries including Austria. Present findings revealed that the importbans as imposed by some countries for all EAV seroreactors are scientifically untenable for mares and geldings which are never persistently infected