Biosecurity Tips for Horse Owners

ANIMAL AND PLANT HEALTH INSPECTION SERVICE OCTOBER 2014 

VETERINARY SERVICES

“Bio” means life, and “security” means protection. 

As a horse owner, following good biosecurity practices 

is one of the most important things you can do 

to prevent your horses from catching contagious 

diseases. The goal with biosecurity is to reduce the 

chance that viruses, bacteria, or other germs will be 

carried to or from your property or transmitted from 

horse to horse within your property. Other horses, 

people, insects, trailers, and equipment can all carry 

germs and diseases from one place to another. 

By making good biosecurity a habit on the road and 

at home, you’ll help keep your horses healthy. Here 

are some simple steps you can take to protect them. 

Vaccination and General Health

Talk to your veterinarian about your horses and 

their particular needs. A veterinarian can help you 

maintain your horses’ good health and recommend 

an appropriate vaccination program. Vaccination 

is an important part of protecting your horses from 

infectious disease. It is generally recommended that 

all horses on the premises be vaccinated, with the 

goal of protecting the herd. Typically, horses receive 

a “core” group of vaccines and then, depending 

on specific risk factors (such as age, environment, 

geographic location, and amount of travel), additional 

vaccines may be suggested.

Leaving the Farm

Horses that leave the farm to compete, breed, train, 

or go to a veterinary hospital can be exposed to all 

kinds of disease agents. When leaving the farm, don’t 

ship your horses with horses from other farms. Use 

your own trailer whenever possible. If you must use 

someone else’s trailer, be sure to clean and disinfect 

it before loading your horse. If you can “smell horse” 

in the empty trailer, it has not been cleaned and 

disinfected well enough.

Once you arrive at your destination, don’t let your 

horse touch other horses, especially nose to nose. 

Avoid sharing equipment (such as buckets, brushes, 

sponges, or hoses) with horses from other farms, and 

never reuse needles or syringes for injections. Also, 

never put the end of a shared hose in your horse’s 

water bucket. Wipe the hose end with a disinfectant 

wipe, hold the hose above the water bucket, and 

then fill the bucket. If you don’t have a disinfectant 

wipe, holding the hose above the bucket will still help 

protect your horse.

Don’t hand-graze your horse where other horses have 

recently grazed. If you touch other horses, wash your 

hands with soap and water, and dry them well. Use 

disinfectant wipes or hand sanitizer if soap and water 

are not available. Don’t let strangers pet your horse, 

especially if they’ve visited other countries within the 

last 2 weeks.

Returning to the Farm

When you and your horses return home, you need 

to protect those that didn’t travel from being exposed 

to new germs. Clean and disinfect tack, boots, 

equipment, and grooming supplies before coming 

back. Make sure to clean off dirt and manure before 

disinfecting. Disinfectant wipes or a disinfectantdampened cloth work well for tack, and shoes can 

be sprayed with disinfectant. You should also shower, 

blow your nose (germs can survive a long time in 

nasal secretions), and put on clean clothes and 

shoes upon your return. 

It is best to keep returning horses separate from your 

other horses for at least 2 weeks. Avoid any nose-tonose touching, including through holes or gaps in 

stall walls. When doing feeding and chores, work with 

the returning horses last, wear boots and coveralls, 

and remove them before working with your other 

horses. And finally, don’t forget to wash your hands.
Don’t Carry Germs Home

You can accidentally carry germs home to your horses

on your clothes and shoes. To avoid doing this, keep 

a pair of shoes or boots that you only use for visiting 

other places with horses. If your shoes can’t be washed 

and disinfected, wear plastic shoe covers; plastic sleeves 

from newspapers work well. If you are working with 

horses on another farm, wear coveralls or plan to change 

your clothes before working again on your farm. If there 

are farms you visit all the time and you can’t always 

change clothes or clean your shoes, be sure their 

vaccination and biosecurity habits are as good as 

your own.

On Your Farm

Even horses that never travel need protection with good 

biosecurity at home. Keep visitors from bringing germs 

to your farm. When visitors arrive, have them park away 

from the horse area of your property. If the farrier or 

veterinarian needs to park closer, be sure their tires and 

shoes have been cleaned and disinfected. 

Ask visitors to wear clean shoes and clothes. Provide

plastic shoe covers, or have them brush dirt off their 

shoes and then spray the shoes with a disinfectant. 

If you have many visitors, such as a farm tour, use a 

footbath when they enter and leave your farm. 

Making a Footbath

To make a footbath, you will need:

1. A low plastic pan or bin, wide enough to fit an 

adult’s foot and shallow enough to step into easily.

2. A plastic doormat (the “fake grass” mats work well).

3. A disinfectant that works well for most situations, 

such as Tek-trol or One Stroke Environ.

4. Water.

Mix the disinfectant with water according to the label 

instructions. Put the doormat in the plastic pan. Add the 

disinfectant so that the bottom of the mat is wet. Ask 

visitors to walk through the footbath, wiping their feet on 

the mat. The mat scrubs their shoes as they wipe them 

and applies the disinfectant. When the liquid starts to get 

dirty, empty it and put in new disinfectant.

Adding New Horses

Bringing a new horse home is one of the most likely ways 

for diseases to enter your farm. Keep new horses away 

from your other horses for 30 days. Use a separate set of 

pitchforks, grooming tools, and feed and water buckets 

for the new horses. Work with the isolated horse last 

each day, or wear boots and coveralls and take them off 

before working with other horses. You can keep these in 

a plastic, covered tub near the new horse’s field, stall, or 

barn. Always wash your hands with soap and water, and 

blow your nose (to clear debris and germs) after working 

with the new horse. 

Keep Germs From Spreading

If one of your horses is sick, isolate the animal and put 

up signs to keep everyone away. Make sure the sick 

horse can’t have nose-to-nose contact with other horses. 

Also, put a footbath at the entrance and exit to the 

isolation area, and keep coveralls and boots or plastic 

foot covers near the sick horse isolation area. In general, 

you can follow the same isolation guidance as for new 

horses, but seek your veterinarian’s advice on how long 

to keep the sick horse isolated and how to clean and 

disinfect tools and the stall after the horse is well.

Insects, birds, and rodents can all spread disease-causing 

germs to horses. Use effective insect and rodent control 

methods on your farm and when traveling. For example:

• Keep weeds and grass cut down.

• Prevent and remove pools of standing water 

wherever possible, including those formed from 

rain or wash stalls and in unused buckets, tires, 

and other objects.

• Use fly predators, traps, or fly spray.

• Store feed in closed, rodent- and insect-proof bins.

• Empty and clean water troughs at least weekly.
Disinfectants

Dirt and manure lower the germ-killing power of 

most disinfectants, so you need to remove these 

first. Wash the surface with soap and water, and 

use a brush as needed. Rinse the surface off, then 

apply the disinfectant and let it dry. Always follow 

the label instructions when mixing, using, and 

throwing away disinfectants. Be sure to use care 

and keep disinfectants away from children and 

animals—these products may be harmful. 

When choosing a disinfectant to use in the 

footbath, also consider the weather. For example, 

frozen disinfectant in a footbath won’t work.

Some common disinfectants include:

• Household bleach—Mix three-fourths of a cup 

of bleach per gallon of water (177 milliliters 

disinfectant to 3.8 liters of water). If you don’t 

have a measuring cup handy, you can mix 

1 part bleach to 10 parts water. 

• Spray disinfectant—Be sure the label says 

that the product kills bacteria and viruses. 

Sprays work well on clean shoes, tack, and 

grooming equipment. 

• Waterless hand sanitizer—Gels or hand wipes 

are easy to use for cleaning your hands at 

a show or after visiting other horses. Be 

sure to get between your fingers and 

under your nails. 

• One Stroke Environ and Tek-trol—These 

disinfectants work when dirt and manure 

can’t be removed. They are good choices 

for disinfecting trailers and tires and for 

use in footbaths. These usually come as 

concentrates and must be mixed with water 

before using. 

Questions?

If you have questions and would like to speak 

with someone directly, call the U.S. Department 

of Agriculture (USDA) Veterinary Services office in 

your State. Visit our Web site at www.aphis.usda.gov/

animal-health/state-offices for a listing of offices and 

phone numbers.

To learn more, go to or contact:

www.aphis.usda.gov/animal-health/equine-health

Equine Commodity Group

USDA/APHIS, Veterinary Services

4700 River Road

Riverdale, MD 20737

Email: vs.sprs.equine.health@aphis.usda.gov

Mention of companies or commercial products does not imply recommendation or endorsement by USDA over others not mentioned. USDA neither guarantees nor 

warrants the standard of any product mentioned. Product names are mentioned solely to report factually on available data and to provide specific information.

USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. 

This factsheet replaces Program Aid No. 1825, “Biosecurity—the Key To Keeping Your Horses Healthy,” which was published in June 2005.

APHIS 91-55-096