VET notes
• What tetanus is
• How it affects horses
• How it can be prevented and treated
TETANUS, WHICH WAS first described more than 3,000 years ago in Egypt, is caused by toxins, the main one being tetanospasmin, which is produced by the bacterium Clostridium tetani. This is found primarily in spore form and is a common soil organism. Tetanus toxin binds irreversibly to nerve endings causing spastic or rigid muscle paralysis.
Clinical disease generally occurs following the contamination of a wound with Clostridium tetani spores. In some cases the wound may already have closed up and the horse owner may be oblivious to it having been there.
While most cases of this deadly disease will occur within nine days of the horse suffering a wound, there have been some reports of
