5-24 FB Horse Herpes

 Fatal horse virus reported in West, Canada

Horse owners and organizations nationwide are watching anxiously and some are shutting down shows and other events in an effort to keep a deadly horse virus outbreak that began in Utah from spreading beyond a handful of Western states and Canada. So far, at least 17 horses in Idaho, Utah, Colorado, California, Washington and Canada have been infected with the highly contagious Equine Herpes Virus-1, and at least three have died. The disease poses no threat to people but is easily spread among horses, alpacas and llamas because it can be airborne and transmitted by touch or by sharing feed, brushes, bits and other equipment I asked Idaho’s chief veterinarian, Dr. Bill Barton To comment.“Following a National Cutting Horse Association  event in Ogden, Utah  we had reports in several Western states that we had horses who had been in attendance at the event that were showing symptoms of neurological disease that may have been associated with equine herpes virus. We had a number of horses from Idaho in attendance at that event and following the return home, some horses in Idaho show symptoms consistent with the neurological form of equine herpes virus. We had two horses in the state die as a result of their symptoms. One of those was confirmed by the laboratory as having been infected by equine herpes type I.