Verification of documentation plausibility in equine passports–drug documentation for geldings in comparison to self-reported veterinarian drug usage for equine castrations in Germany

The ‘positive list for equines’ (Regulation (EC) No 1950/2006) was implemented in the European Union in 2006. The drugs listed are approved for use in slaughter equines under certain conditions, although those drugs are not approved for use in livestock and are not listed in Table 1 of the annex to Regulation (EU) No 37/2010. The usage of such drugs has to be documented in the equine passport and a withdrawal period of six months must be adhered to before the equine can be slaughtered for human consumption. Since the withdrawal period is long, correct documentation is particularly important. This study compared the results of two sub-studies. In sub-study 1, 116 veterinarians and nine equine clinics in Germany were surveyed about the methods and drugs used for castration of equine stallions. In sub-study 2, the documentational findings of 195 equine passports, belonging to 194 horses and one donkey, were analyzed. Regarding sub-study 1, the most commonly used method for castration was reported as ‘laid down’. Drug combinations entailing at least one drug from the ‘positive list’ were used by 86.7% (91/105) of veterinarians castrating horse stallions ‘laid down’ and by 64.3% (36/56) of veterinarians utilizing this method on donkey stallions. Regarding sub-study 2, drug documentation was verified in the passports of 4.6% (9/195) of all equines and in just 12.0% (3/25) of those belonging to slaughter equine geldings. Anesthetics from the ‘positive list’ were documented in 4.0% (1/25) of equine passports belonging to slaughter geldings. Because of the high discrepancy of the drug combinations used by veterinarians and the documentation actually found in equine passports, we conclude that drug administration is very seldom documented in equine passports in Germany. This could result in drug residues in equine meat and poses a potential risk for consumers.