Seems like there have been more horses with reactions to their annual vaccinations in the past few years – at least in my herd. I think it is because we are giving more different kinds of vaccines all the time. Most often see it when all of the vaccinations are done at the same time. Generally we give 4-way, WNV and often Rabies all at the same time. Common reactions are hives or swelling, lameness or soreness in the shoulder on the side the WNV is given and sometimes they go a little off feed and feel punky too. Last year, Radar had swellings on his ventral side (belly) that lasted for nearly a week. This year my friend’s mare Dee got hives on her face, belly and neck along with being very stiff and sore in the front end. Since I give our own horses their vaccinations, its not that much trouble to separate them out over a few weeks – this isn’t so easy if you have the veterinarian out and don’t want to pay multiple ranch calls. But, just from my recent experience I would say that spacing out the vaccinations is best. A little extra work, but then your horse doesn’t miss a week of training just getting over the necessary vaccinations. Most of the horses have recovered within a week without any treatment other than bute for the most sore ones, but its a good idea to let your veterinarian know about the reaction, just in case.