*VIDEO* Owner tells how the way his yard dealt with Strangles became point of pride as part of this year’s awareness week

‘No one chooses Strangles. But we can choose how to respond to an outbreak’ is the message of a new film, due to be shared as part of this year’s Strangles Awareness Week (5th – 11th May), and one owner is telling how his yard decided their dealing with the contagious disease would be something to be proud of.

Jonathan Cleaver, co-owner of Ivesley Equestrian Centre in County Durham, said: “We actually sat down on that first day and said right, what we’re going to do is, we’re going to solve this. And we’re going to smash it. And we’re going to turn it into a point of pride for ourselves and for the yard.”

A film about Ivesley’s experience will be released in full during SAW, which aims to get everyone in the horse world working together to minimise the scale and impact of a Strangles outbreak, which can be financially and emotionally costly.  

Horse owners, yard managers, vets and equestrian professionals are still being urged to become Ambassadors, to help promote SAW’s important messaging during the week – SIGN UP HERE. 

Strangles is the most diagnosed equine disease worldwide. Signs vary, but can include a high fever, laboured breathing, difficulty eating, depression, thick nasal discharge and painful abscesses. In severe cases it can pose a risk to horse’s lives. 

There were over 260 lab-diagnosed cases recorded last year by the Surveillance of Equine Strangles scheme, with many more cases going unrecorded. More than 100 diagnoses have already been made this year.

On Ivesley’s outbreak, Jonathan said: “We had a lot of positive comments online (and) when our liveries go out and about competing, other people will say to them how well we handled it.

“You’ll always have people that don’t agree with the things that we did or the way that we set about doing it…but ultimately, to get it clear, to get the yard open again, the business open again, and to get our liveries out enjoying their horses again, we had to act decisively, we had to act fast, so we did.”

Watch a short extract of Jonathan’s interview on YouTube here, now.

Kathryn Douglass, a vet at Durham Equine, worked closely with Ivesley during the outbreak, and said: “Dealing with an outbreak of Strangles is never easy for anyone affected by an outbreak, including us as vets! But from the moment Ivesley found out they had Strangles they were absolutely committed to doing everything possible to protect their horses whilst keeping their owners well informed. 

“They contacted us for assistance immediately and together we came up with a plan, which was shared with the owners on the yard by way of an evening meeting. They locked down with no movement on or off the site, or between different zones set up on the yard, and cancelled all upcoming events.

“Everyone really pulled together to work towards a successful outcome of an all clear, which took four months of dedication due to one horse which was suffering with persistent infection, despite all others testing negative on guttural pouch wash. 

“Only six out of 48 horses at Ivesley contracted Strangles, which is testament to the vigilance of everyone on the yard to stick to quarantine procedures and stop the disease spreading. This is also a good example of how a very contagious disease can be brought under control using good biosecurity, hygiene and yard management.” 

Approaching its sixth year, SAW has achieved international recognition, bringing together leading equine welfare charities, educational institutions and research organisations.

The campaign is promoting the use of BEST practice to protect horses from Strangles – the acronym stands for ‘Boost immunity with Strangles vaccination’; ‘Engage with trusted information’; ‘Separate unfamiliar horses’ and ‘Temp check routinely’.

Those signing up as Ambassadors will be sent a suite of social media assets ready to download and share during SAW, including the link to the full Ivesley film, their own digital Ambassador badge and updates about the campaign.

A comprehensive package of resources, developed from the very latest research from world-leading experts, are available on the SAW webpage and SAW pages on all the social media platforms, to share from and tag the campaign in.

For more information, and to SIGN UP NOW, please visit www.redwings.org.uk/strangles/strangles-awareness-week or go to the SAW Facebook page.