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Biosecurity - simple procedures to prevent the spread of infectious diseases - is being taught to trainee equine dental technicians during their two-year certificate course with the University of Melbourne, and has been written into the Equine Dental Association of Australia's "Code of Conduct".

"Potentially, we are one of the most dangerous vectors for disease in the horse industry," says the Association's president, Mark Burnell. "Equine dental technicians visit literally thousands of stables and properties a year, each carrying anything from one to 100 horses."

As a group, the Equine Dental Association has a reputation for operating in a professional manner.  The code formalises their obligation to ensure that their dentistry equipment is of an impeccable standard of hygiene. They are expected to disinfect their tools and wear clean appropriate clothing. Equine dental technicians also have an obligation to watch out for signs of illness in the horses they attend and urge owners to seek veterinary advice if they see anything unusual or unexpected.

"If we went around with a bucketful of bloody, saliva-covered tools and ignored a stable in which every horse had a dirty nose and was coughing, we could potentially bring the entire industry to a standstill."

The Equine Dental Association's initiative is applauded by Animal Health Australia, the agency charged with developing a national approach to biosecurity in Australia's major livestock sectors. Chief Executive Officer of Animal Health Australia, Ralph Hood, says that the more horse service providers that adopted the Equine Dental Association's proactive approach to biosecurity, the better protected our horse industry would be. 

"Australia has one of the healthiest livestock sectors in the world," says Mr Hood. "If we are to maintain that status, everyone - from government and industry leaders through to service providers and each and every producer - has a part to play."

About 90 per cent of the Certificate in Equine Dentistry is conducted in the field, where students learn simple procedures to stop the spread of disease between properties. Now practising equine dental technicians are also bound by the biosecurity awareness written into the Equine Dental Association's Code of Conduct, which "puts into words what we do anyway", Mr Burnell says.

The Australian Racing Board's principal health advisor, Dr Patricia Ellis, says while the term "biosecurity" has associations for some with exotic diseases only, the equine dental technicians' attention to biosecurity is equally vital to prevent the spread of common diseases such as strangles.                                    

"We're lucky enough not to have the big nasties that other countries have, and we have tight quarantine laws that should prevent the introduction of those diseases," Dr. Ellis says.

"The biosecurity section of the dental code is basically a contract of good customer service, which is important in an industry where there are a lot of people peddling services without taking on any accountability."

Graduates of the Certificate in Equine Dentistry are also exporting Australia's rigorous approach to biosecurity to other parts of the world, including New Zealand, Japan, South Africa, England and Ireland.

Much of Australia's biosecurity strategies and disease preparedness stem from the work of Animal Health Australia, the umbrella body representing peak industry councils, together with the Australian, State and Territory governments, in biosecurity issues.

The Protect Australian Livestock Campaign is the most comprehensive livestock awareness program in this country.  It runs throughout the year and encourages livestock handlers who see any suspicious signs in the animals to Look. Check. Ask a Vet, or to telephone the Emergency Disease Watch Hotline on 1800 675 888.

For further details on Equine Dental Technicians contact the Equine Dental Association of Australia: president, Mark Burnell 0428 545 642.