Disease Alerts

Number Confirmed: 1;
Number Exposed: 5
Age: Newborn; Breed: Quarter Horse (QH); Onset of Clinical Signs: 7/15/2019;
Clinical Signs: Drooping Lip, Stumbling, Biting at legs, Circling; Horse Status: Euthanized;
Notes: A six-week-old quarter horse was euthanized in Clay County, Minnesota, on July 15, and post-mortem tests confirmed it was infected with the highly contagious disease Equine Herpesvirus Myeloencephalopathy (EHM). The Minnesota Board of Animal Health is responding to the case by activating its EHM control plan and placing the Clay County farm under quarantine to closely monitor the remaining horses for EHM. On July 15, the examining veterinarian observed the foal had worsening neurologic symptoms, including a loosely hanging lower lip, biting at his front legs, stumbling, circling, and an inability to rise on his own, leading to the decision to euthanize the animal. It was submitted to the North Dakota State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory for a necropsy, which confirmed infection with Equine Herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1). The clinical neurologic signs described and positive EHV-1 test results resulted in a diagnosis of EHM. For more information go to https://www.bah.state.mn.us/news_release/highly-contagious-horse-disease-confirmed-in-clay-county/;