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Horse owners can breath a sigh of relief. The quarantine of six horse farms to contain a rare neurological strain of equine herpesvirus was lifted Thursday, Feb.7, after nine horses watched by state officials showed no signs of the illness.
The Kent County farms were put under a 21-day quarantine after one horse was euthanized Jan. 17, as a result of the infection. On Jan. 23, the state veterinarian confirmed that the illness was a neurological disease-causing strain of equine herpesvirus, known as EHV-1.
Five horses on the farm where that horse died were given blood and nasal swab tests to look for the virus.
All five had negative blood tests, but two had nasal swabs positive for EHV-1. One of those swabs contained the neurological form of the virus.
Despite the positive nasal swab, that horse showed no clinical signs of being infected with the virus.
The virus has infected horses in Virginia, Maryland and New Jersey, said Abbey Carroll, a licensed veterinary technician with Delmarva Equine Clinic in Dover. As with animals infected with other neurological diseases such as West Nile virus, the prognosis for horses with neurological EHV is generally poor, Carroll said.
Of the several strains of EHV are seen in horses, the most common are EHV-1 and EHV-4, said Abbey Carroll.
EHV-1 normally causes respiratory illness with a fever, called rhinopneumonitis or simply rhino. The virus can also cause pregnant mares to abort their foals, and as has been recently seen in the state, it can cause neurological disease.
Symptoms of neurological EHV-1 include a fever of 102 degrees, hind-limb weakness, gait abnormality, and difficulty rising and standing.
Neurological EHV has been seen around the country in recent years and seems to be a new mutation, Busch said. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says this strain of the virus is emerging worldwide, with increasingly frequent outbreaks.
No vaccine protects against the neurological strain of EHV-1 and it remains unclear if and to what degree existing vaccines will provide protection, said state veterinarian Dr. Sara Busch.
There are 35 vaccines licensed by the federal government to protect horses against EHV. According to the manufacturer, the vaccines are intended to help prevent respiratory illness, abortion or the shedding of the virus, but not to prevent neurological disease.
EHV is considered to be highly contagious and is transmitted through the air, through nose-to-nose contact, and on clothing, shared equipment and hands. The disease does not affect humans but attacks horses indiscriminately, regardless of breed, age or vaccination status. Because there is no effective vaccination for this strain, stringent measures such as quarantining farms and isolating horses suspected of being ill, are essential to curbing the spread of the illness.
The Department of Agriculture is advising horse owners that the neurological strain of EHV-1 has now been confirmed to be in the state. The first sign that a horse may be infected is a spike in temperature to 102 degrees or more.
Contact Leah Hoenen at leah@capegazette.com
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