PONDER — A nationwide quarantine of a group of cutting horses and their home stables meant to contain a deadly equine virus has other horse owners as skittish as their charges.
The state veterinarian has not recommended closing the borders or canceling or postponing events, but “the smart horses are staying home,” said Mary Gwinner, executive director of Riding Unlimited.
The Ponder-based nonprofit decided not to send its horses to Bryan for the Texas Special Olympics about a week before Special Olympics officials themselves are scheduled to determine the fate of this year’s equine events.
The virus, which does not affect humans, is highly contagious. It begins with cold-like symptoms that can lead to encephalitis and, in pregnant mares, the neonatal death of foals. The outbreak began earlier this month at a cutting horse show in Ogden, Utah. As of Friday, the equine herpes virus-1, or the resulting encephalitis disease, had been detected in 75 horses, 58 of which were at the show, according to the most recent report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Equine photographer Terri Cage has seen a drop in business the past few weeks, as a number of Texas and Oklahoma events were canceled or postponed.
DRC/David Minton
Hava Barry practices showmanship skills with Rocky at Riding Unlimited in Ponder. Hava and Rocky planned on competing in the Special Olympics Summer Games in Bryan in June, but due to the national outbreak of a deadly equine virus, they and many others will be staying home.Cage is also a leader with the Silver Saddle 4-H Club, which held its spring horse show just before the outbreak.
“Since then, most of the kids I know are staying home,” Cage said.
While the disease has been traced to nine states and has led to the deaths of 11 animals, no horses in Texas have tested positive for either the virus or the disease. Those Texas horses that were at the Ogden event remain under quarantine, according to state animal health officials.
The virus can appear as soon as seven to 10 days after exposure, but incubation can take as long as four to six weeks, according to Dick Shepherd, an equine veterinarian in Lake Dallas.
Shepherd estimated he has vaccinated more horses against the disease in the past few weeks than he had all spring long. People can get complacent about vaccinations, he said, and outbreaks serve as a reminder to stay current.
He said he believed the original outbreak was likely the result of improper vaccinations, because 415 horses were exposed, but only about 5 percent came down with the disease.
State and federal officials did a good job isolating the virus, he said. While he agrees it isn’t necessary to cancel events, he understands the caution.
“Nobody wants to be in the position of getting the horses in there and have something happen where a horse has to be euthanized,” Shepherd said.
For Riding Unlimited, the caution comes not from a stable full of high-dollar horses, but of high-value ones.
“It’s not easy to find a good therapy horse,” Gwinner said. “And it’s not worth the risk for an animal that is not easily replaced.”
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