• Horses are prone to a number of diseaseshorse image by Penny Williams from Fotolia.com
  
  The term "healthy as horse" can be very misleading. In fact, horses are uniquely susceptible to a number of serious, and at times deadly, diseases. It is important for all horse owners to discuss vaccination schedules with their veterinarians; a regular schedule of vaccinations against serious diseases is the best defense, if one is available.
  
  

Equine Infectious Anemia

• Equine infectious anemia (EIA) is one of the most serious illnesses horse owners can face. One of the things that makes this disease so serious is that it can spread so rapidly, and there is no vaccine available, according to The Equestrian Group. EIA is so highly communicable that a single infected horse on a show grounds or in a boarding stable can infect all the other horses in the area. This is why many shows require horse owners to supply a negative EIA report before being allowed on the show grounds. Many boarding stables require the same type of certification any time a new horse arrives on the grounds.
  
  

Rabies

• Many horse owners do not realize that their animals can get rabies, but in fact horses are very susceptible to this almost uniformly fatal disease, according to Horses & Horse Information. Since horses live outdoors, they are even more at risk of contracting rabies from an infected wild or domestic animal. That is why horse owners should be sure to vaccinate all their animals--including indoor dogs, barn cats and horses--against rabies.
  
  

West Nile Virus

• The West Nile virus used to be quite rare, but this tropical disease is becoming more prevalent even in temperate zones, according to the United States Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. West Nile virus is carried in the saliva of mosquitoes, so if you have ever seen a mosquito in your backyard, your horse is at risk of infection. Fortunately, there is a vaccine for West Nile virus available, so be sure to ask your veterinarian about the vaccination.