COVID-19 has thrown a huge spanner in the works for the equestrian community, but work cannot stop completely as horses still need to be cared for.

Under the restrictions laid out by the government, the care of animals is deemed essential work and stud and stable staff are still allowed to travel for work.

It is extremely important yards and studs across the country play their part in slowing the spread of Covid-19 while they complete this essential work. GP Dr Gillian Mernagh spoke to The Irish Field to explain how yards can continue to work while staying safe.

“The holy grail of the whole thing is hand hygiene, everyone needs to be extremely careful about hand hygiene and wash their hands properly with soap and warm water or use alcohol hand gels,” Mernagh explained.

“Obviously in a yard set up you won’t have sinks on every corner so it is a good idea to install hand sanitizer dispensers around the yard, especially where people can’t get access to a sink easily. The more you have dotted around the yard the better.”

Social distancing

“Social distancing is the next most important element after hand hygiene. Yards are going to have to adhere to social distancing guidelines, whether that means riding out in smaller lots or staggering how many people are cleaning out stables throughout the day so everyone is not in the one area at the same time. Whatever their old routine was they’re going to have to come up with new strategies to keep up social distancing.”

Tea breaks are another main element that will need to change. These will need to be staggered so everyone is not in the tea room at the same time.

If possible staff members could bring their own mug to and from work or alternatively, make sure you are cleaning utensils properly with soap and warm after.

Touch points within the tea room – switches, kettle handle, press doors, etc. – should be cleaned on a daily basis. According to Mernagh, the social distancing guidelines are going to stay in place for the foreseeable future so it is a good idea for yards to get into a good routine now and start making this their new normal.

PPE

“Personal protective equipment (PPE) is really only appropriate if people are using it correctly. Touching the masks while you are wearing them and reusing them is completely useless and in fact probably more dangerous than not wearing one,” Gillian said.

The same goes for wearing gloves, they are only helpful if they are worn and used properly.

It is not a requirement for people to wear PPE when working on a yard once they are adhering to social distancing and hand hygiene guidelines, but if you do choose to wear PPE it is important to know how to put it on and off properly and dispose of equipment properly after each use. There is lots of useful information on hse.ie on using PPE properly.

“It would be recommended that you wash your clothes at 60 degrees after work every day and have a shower and wash your hair as soon as you get home from work.

“The more people that adhere to basic hygiene the better, people don’t need to get fancy with this, washing your hands throughout the day with soap and warm water is the most important thing you can do,” Mernagh stated.

When it comes to tack, Gillian recommends cleaning all tack after every use: “It sounds mad, but this is very important because if tack is going from horse to horse without being cleaned, particals could then be sitting on the horse’s hair and spread to different people who come into contact with that horse – we just don’t know, so it’s very important to clean all tack as you go.” Gillian stressed the importance of cleaning all surfaces that are touched on a daily basis.

Surfaces that are continuously touched and used throughout the day will need to be cleaned more often, this includes door handles, feed scoops, shovels, stable latches, light switches, bucket handles and so on.

With regards to doing a deep clean of your yard, Gillian recommends that now is a good time to do this for general up keep reasons while people have a bit more time on their hands. But the most important thing is to keep on top of cleaning all touch zones every day.

If any staff members have any underlying health issues, Gillian recommends calling their own GP to talk through any concerns they may have.