Yes, the title’s a bit misleading. Equine herpesvirus (EHV) is everywhere, since the virus circulates widely in the horse population internationally and lies dormant in the bodies of a large percentage of healthy horses. However, cases of EHV-1 neurological disease get attention because of the severity of disease and the potential for outbreaks (for reasons
More equine herpesvirus, this time in Minnesota
I haven’t written much about equine herpesvirus type 1 (EHV-1) outbreaks lately because I have a hard time getting excited about them (from a blog writing standpoint… if one occurs here, that will be a different story). Outbreaks of neurological disease caused by this very common equine virus (one that doesn’t spread to people or
Equine coronarvirus…a new problem?
Two presentations at the International Conference on Equine Infectious Diseases yesterday discussed equine coronavirus and whether it might be a new or previously unrecognized cause of disease in adult horses. This follows a presentation the day before that mentioned coronavirus diarrhea in racing draft horses in Japan – a rather unique group, pictured at right.
Ontario restrictions on Illinois race horses
In response to an equine herpesvirus type I (EHV-1) outbreak at Hawthorne Racecourse in Illinois, the Ontario Racing Commission (ORC) announced movement restrictions on horses from Hawthorne, and Illinois in general.
Effective immediately:
- Any horse that has been on the grounds at Hawthorne since Oct 4 is not allowed on any Ontario racetrack until
Banner year for West Nile virus
After being a relatively rare problem in most regions over the past few years, West Nile virus (WNV) case numbers have boomed lately, with large outbreaks in some US states.
Canada
Forty-nine (49) confirmed or probable human cases have been reported in Ontario, the largest number in a decade. Considering we’re just heading into
Transfusion-associated equine infectious anemia
A few years ago, I looked out my kitchen window one holiday morning and saw a newborn foal running outside of a fence line. The foal had been born to my neighbours’ mare, a maiden mare, and they were out of town. The mare had rejected the foal and wasn’t interested in any of my
Equine Infectious Anemia: Outbreak Out West
This week an article on TheHorse.com discussed the current situation in the western provinces of Canada with regard to equine infectious anemia (EIA). The prairies are seeing the highest number of EIA cases in years, with more than 70 horses affected on 22 different properties.
Also commonly called "swamp fever," EIA is caused by
Vesicular stomatitis and Canadian horse import restrictions
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has implemented import restrictions in response to diagnosis of vesicular stomatitis (VS) in a horse in Otero County, New Mexico.
Why the fuss?
VS is a viral infection that can affect a range of animals species. In addition to horses, it can infect cattle, pigs and sheep (and a few others).
Botulism outbreak kills 23 horses
Botulism has been in the news lately, with numerous outbreaks involving different species and some human food recalls. Botulism outbreaks are often pretty dramatic because of the number of individuals that can be involved, the severity of disease and the fact that it’s often difficult to do much beyond damage control once the problem is
Strangles outbreak at Saratoga
An outbreak of strangles (Streptococcus equi infection) has led to cancellation of the racing program at Saratoga Raceway in New York State. In a ripple effect, other racetracks in the region have taken measures to protect their horses, including banning horses from Saratoga, banning horses from surrounding tracks, not allowing horses that leave