The New Jersey Department of Agriculture announced today an initiative to ensure that horse owners and dealers are aware of and are following the regulations intended to protect the health of horses in the state.

This move was a response to reports of horses being imported and sold without undergoing the medical testing required to enter the state. The Department also hopes to protect horse buyers from unwittingly facilitating the spread of equine infectious diseases.

Except for the rare exception, all horses entering the state of New Jersey require a Coggins test and a valid interstate health certificate signed by a licensed veterinarian from the state of origin.

Dr. Nancy Halpern is the State Veterinarian and Director of the Division of Animal Health. “Any attempt to circumvent the proper health tests for horse importation puts every equine in our state in jeopardy.”

She stresses: “These requirements are not expensive to meet, and we cannot tolerate putting animals at risk just for the sake of marginally increasing the profits of horse dealers.”

Horse dealers who do not comply with the state regulations may face a revocation of their livestock dealer’s license, and may also be fined $200 for the first offence and $500 for each subsequent offence.

New Jersey is home to 42,500 horses, which live on 7,200 farms and other facilities.