Montana Equine Medical & Surgical Center

Montana State Vet Reports First Case of Equine Herpes Virus (June 11, 2011)
USDA Releases Fourth EHV-1 Situation Report (June 9, 2011)
USDA Releases Third EHV-1 Situation Report (June 2, 2011)

Montana State Vet Reports First Case of Equine Herpes Virus (June 11, 2011)

For Immediate Release

Contact: Steve Merritt
Public Information Officer
Montana Department of Livestock
406/202-4080

The Montana Department of Livestock today reported that a clinically healthy horse in Gallatin County has tested positive for Equine Herpes Virus (EHV-1).

“We have a non-clinical EHV-1 positive case associated with the National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) Western National Championships in Ogden, Utah, April 30-May 8, 2011,” said Dr. Marty Zaluski, state veterinarian. “Fortunately, this horse not only remains healthy, but has been separated from other horses since returning from Ogden.

The horse, a 13-year-old gelding located in Gallatin County, attended the NCHA event where the initial exposure occurred. A total of 88 confirmed EHV-1 or EHM cases have been reported in 10 western states (Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, Utah and Washington) since the event; 12 horses have either died or been euthanized following the most severe form of illness, which causes a variety of neurological symptoms.

The horse has been stabled in a stall and isolated from other horses on the premises since attending the Utah event, and has been routinely tested by its owners.

EHV-1 can cause a wide range of symptoms, from a complete lack of clinical signs to fever, nasal discharge or more serious neurological symptoms, at which point it is characterized as Equine Herpesvirus Myeloencephalopathy (EHM). Incoordination, hind-end weakness, lethargy, urine dribbling and diminished tail tone are frequent signs of EHM. Acute paralytic syndrome is another possible consequence, which results in high mortality.

The virus is easily spread by airborne transmission, horse-to-horse contact and by contact with nasal secretions on equipment, tack, feed and other surfaces. People can spread the virus to horses by means of contaminated hands, clothing, shoes and vehicles.

Zaluski said event coordinators and participants need to be aware of the disease and take extra precautions.

“Any public event always carries some degree of risk, and horse owners and event coordinators should be aware of common signs of disease,” Zaluski said. “Specific guidelines for event organizers and coordinators can be found on our web site (liv.mt.gov)."

Equine owners who are concerned about the safety of their animals should consider monitoring the temperature of their animals twice daily for 7-14 days. Horses with a rectal temperature greater than 101.5 should be considered febrile and a veterinarian should be consulted. Event organizers should consider requiring temperature records for participation in events.

For additional information, please see:

Guidelines for Event Organizers, http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/ceh/docs/EHV-1EqEvents-wdw2.pdf

USDA-APHIS EHV-1 Information, http://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/nahss/equine/ehv/

Please contact Montana Equine (406-285-0123) with any questions or concerns.

USDA Releases Fourth EHV-1 Situation Report (June 9, 2011)

The USDA released its fourth national EHV-1 situation report late yesterday, which can be found here.

Summary Information on Current Situation (as of 06/08/2011). Items in red represent updated numbers from the last situation report:

A total of 88 confirmed EHV-1 or EHM cases have been reported in 10 states (AZ, CA, CO, ID, NM, NV, OK, OR, UT, WA). Last week, the total confirmed number was 84.

Of the 88 confirmed EHV/EHM cases, 58 cases are horses that were at the Ogden, Utah event.

There are 12 horses associated with this incident that are dead or have been euthanized.

There are 0 newly identified premises with suspect or confirmed cases identified this reporting period.

The AAEP continues to monitor state and provincial animal health department websites for any individual updates. These updates, along with other EHM/EHV-1 resources for veterinarians can be found here. Similar resources, but in more layman terms, are available for horse owners here.

Courtesy American Association of Equine Practitioners.

USDA Releases Third EHV-1 Situation Report (June 2, 2011)

The USDA released its third national EHV-1 situation report late yesterday, which can be found here. They will continue to release EHV-1 Situation Reports on a weekly basis. These reports have been posted online typically each Thursday around 6 p.m. (EST). Once there are no new exposed premises with suspect or confirmed EHV/EHM cases, the USDA will continue to issue Situation Reports for several weeks after to ensure there is no further transmission from the current EHV-1 incident. A summary of the updated information is as follows:

Summary Information on Current Situation (as of 06/02/2011). Items in red represent changes from the last situation report:

A total of 84 confirmed EHV-1 or EHM cases have been reported in 10 states (AZ, CA, CO, ID, NM, NV, OK, OR, UT, WA)

Of the 84 confirmed EHV/EHM cases, 58 cases are horses that were at the Ogden, Utah event.

There are 12 horses associated with this incident that are dead or have been euthanized.

There are 2 newly identified premises with suspect or confirmed cases identified this reporting period.

Hopefully, the number of new exposed premises with suspect or confirmed EHV/EHM cases will begin to decline as response, control and disease mitigation strategies begin to take hold. But out of an abundance of caution, we continue to ask all veterinarians, horse owners and organizations to maintain a measured and informed response along with responsible ownership practices to further mitigate the economic and health implications of this current outbreak.