Equine Herpes virus outbreak

[shelia]

California has now confirmed secondary infections. (meaning horses who were not at the show are now testing possitive).

 

[Minimor]

Thanks Lucy; I have all the old magazines here somewhere, but probably in a box at the very back of the garage--I haven't gone hunting for them yet!

 

[shelia]

epetrilli - your posts have been even and informative and you have said nothing wrong... but comments like this is response to someone who was apparently not as alarmed as she was supposed to be and merely expressing her thoughts and opinions ...

... are uncalled for IMO. And definitely come across as snippy. We can discuss this without resorting to that - or so one would hope.

I am sorry I made that remark. It was wrong.

I do want to be supportive to everyone. I guess I felt I was being put down because I am concerned about my horses and I felt everyone who was concerned was being belittled because they did not share someone elses views.

I do not want to be that kind of person. Please forgive me.

 

[shelia]

I have not seen people posting wild speculation, so I don't understand why that subject keeps coming up.

Sorry if that sounds snippy.

 

[sedeh]

California has now confirmed secondary infections. (meaning horses who were not at the show are now testing possitive).

Do you know if these horses actually have any symptoms or just had their titers checked? Many horses who aren't outwardly ill will have positive titers just because this virus has been around for so many years and they've been exposed before and have developed antibodies against it.

 

[shelia]

My info came from the Loomis basin vet update alert. there info is directly from U.C Davis. They work very closely together.

They also know this has occured in other states. It says horses have been infected.

The state maybe a little slower getting the info out because they are waiting for reports from all of the vets.

 

[Sandy B]

The positive horse in Gilroy California was not exposed to any cutters that had been at the Ogden show. It had been on a large trail ride in I want to say Santa Ynez, Ca., that had like 1,000 horses on it. The horse came back from trail ride and fell ill with neurological symptoms and has tested positive for EHV-1. She is being treated. Another horse in Carmel Valley is positive too and showing neurological symptoms. I do not know if that one was exposed to a cutter or ? As soon as I get info and the link on this I will post. The state seems to be way slower on getting the news out and getting accurate counts. I am wondering why?? Just like Arizona reports no affected horses. Yet Al Dunning from Arizona, first handedly told me he has had 4 horses test positive, 3 of those are showing neurological issues. He has several others coming down with fevers and he is waiting on test results on those. He has not had any losses! Thank God!

 

[rubyviewminis]

This is an article from the Wall Street Journal with updated information that addresses some of the issues discussed on this thread.

http://online.wsj.co...eTabs%3Darticle

 

[shelia]

California now has 15 confirmed cases in 10 counties.

 

[Sandy B]

Thanks for the updates! I wish people would just stay home for a couple weeks!! These numbers are climbing and spreading

 

[Eohippus]

Its hitting closer to home too. People I know personally have been quarantined/come in contact with it (our full size horse trainer/riding instructor). We've started to take our horses temps daily, only because its hitting so close to home now. Just want to be on the safe side of things. I'm hoping we're at the peak on things and everything will slowly start to die down and the number of cases stops climbing. By the end of summer I hope we can all breathe a sigh of relief

 

[Allure Ranch]

You can refer to this site for accurate and updated information....

 

http://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/nahss/equine/ehv/

 

 

[shelia]

http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/ahfss/animal_health/equine_herpes_virus.html here is a site for california that is a little more up to date. It also states which counties are involved.

 

[Sandy B]

http://www.cdfa.ca.g...rpes_virus.html here is a site for california that is a little more up to date. It also states which counties are involved.

It is so frustrating that although this is a bit more up to date that it is not exactly accurate. I know the gal in Lincoln (Placer County) that has three EHV-1 positive horses. The two horses in Glenn County were NOT at the cutting, but exposed to a horse that had been at the cutting. There is also the horse Gilroy that was not at any cutting but on the big 1,000 horse trail ride that is being tested for EVH-1 and the other in Carmel Valley. Those are two suspected cases (no test results back yet). At least it seems treatment with the new anti-viral drugs and supportive therapies seem to be saving the majority of horses lives!!

 

[shelia]

Yes Sandy, I do know about those and I see that some people in those areas have the same questions as you.

I guess it takes the state a little longer to get there reports out and it takes even longer on the federal level. Some people will not believe it unless the government tells them it is so. We can only hope that people in those areas will be cautious whether they believe it or not.

I am sure the owners who are suffering through this are heartbroken. They also have to worry they may exposed some else to the same heartbreak without knowing.

Some of those horses were very expensive too. canceling shows and events will be a big blow to the industry financialy. My heart goes out to them.

 

[shelia]

This is the latest statement from Loomis Basin Equine Medical Center:

Current Herpes Update: Here are some highlights from the recent USDA and California State Vet Reports, as well as some information that our clinic has received on our own cases (please remember that there is sometimes a lag in the reporting of this information to the regulatory sites). The USDA reports 7 horses total have either died or been euthanized due to EHM. California is the state with the highest number of horses potentially exposed at the show (54 of the 308 horses were from California). Other strains (particulary the non-neurotropic strain) of EHV-1 have turned up positive in the mass testing effort that is going on, including one horse from a ride in Santa Ynez and one horse here in Placer County. Seventeen horses are now confirmed with the neurotropic strain of EHV-1 in California including an additional Placer County horse that is being treated for significant neurologic disease. The other positive horses in Placer County are doing well and are expected to make a full recovery. Our hospital is still free of any diseased or suspect horses, and we are conducting business as usual, with explicit precautions being taken to keep it safe for all

 

[suen]

Well... I only have two mares and one very sweet baby, but would hate to lose any of them because I exposed them to this virus. I had hoped to do some local showing, but with the outbreak I think we'll just stay home and see how this plays out in the next month. Thank goodness they have had all their shots so I don't have to worry about taking them to a vet, and their feet are due to be trimmed soon, but that will wait too. From what I understand, this can be carried from person to horse, so any non emergency vet calls or farriers will have to wait. Thank you all for keeping us informed......

 

[Nathan Luszcz]

I did some research over the weekend, and this strain is NOT anything different from the previous few year's. The ENTIRE EHV-1 neuro strain is a single-point mutation from the normal respiratory version, which is what gives it the added symptoms and neuro effects. That's also why the current EHV-1 vaccines ARE useful, both in preventing and mitigating the diseases. There has been one (just one, never been able to be repeated) research case where the vaccine made the disease WORSE, but like I said, its never been repeated (well, its been attempted, just the results have never been repeated).

 

[rubyviewminis]

http://www.facebook.com/notes/team-ad-international-llc/from-kathy-bro-on-the-loss-of-stella/216860498333138

So sad.

 

[shelia]

I did some research over the weekend, and this strain is NOT anything different from the previous few year's. The ENTIRE EHV-1 neuro strain is a single-point mutation from the normal respiratory version, which is what gives it the added symptoms and neuro effects. That's also why the current EHV-1 vaccines ARE useful, both in preventing and mitigating the diseases. There has been one (just one, never been able to be repeated) research case where the vaccine made the disease WORSE, but like I said, its never been repeated (well, its been attempted, just the results have never been repeated).

Thanks Nathen for the info.

Do you think these horses may not have been vaccinated?

I do worry because I had to take my mare and foal To Loomis basin and they had to spend 2 days there. I have now brought them home. I trust the vets a great deal and they have said that no cases are there. It is in Placer county and I had haul them for about an hour. It is getting pretty warm out and flies are showing up. Do you know if this virus can be carried by flies?