[RC] BOAH Release: First IN horse test Positive for WNV - Buffy
-----Original Message----- From: Derrer, Denise
[mailto:dderrer@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] Sent: Wednesday, August 20, 2003 1:43
PM To: Derrer, Denise Subject: BOAH Release: First IN Horse Tests West
Nile-Positive
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Denise Derrer,
Public Information Director,
317/227-0308; dderrer@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
First West Nile-Positive
Hoosier Horse Reported; Mosquito-Related Illnesses on
Rise
INDIANAPOLIS (20 August 2003)-A mare in Montgomery County is the
first Indiana horse to test positive for the disease caused by the West Nile
virus this year. The 17-year-old quarter horse is currently recovering,
after supportive treatment and care. The horse was not vaccinated against
the mosquito-borne disease that sickened hundreds of Hoosier horses last
year. During 2002, 722 horses statewide tested positive
for the disease. An informal survey of veterinary practitioners indicated
that many more horses, which were not laboratory tested, were likely infected
with the disease last year. Mosquito-borne diseases
should be of particular concern to horse owners this year, according to
Sandra Norman, DVM, Director of the Equine Division of the Indiana State
Board of Animal Health. "This season's wet weather has
created an ideal environment for breeding mosquitoes that carry diseases
threatening to horses," she said. "Besides the West Nile virus, Eastern
equine encephalitis has been on the rise nationwide this
summer." Although Indiana has not had a recent
EEE-positive horse, owners should be aware of the disease, which is
considered much more deadly to horses than West Nile.
"As many as nine out of 10 horses with triple-E die, while the death rate for
Hoosier horses with West Nile was only about 25 percent last year," Norman
explained. "That's why horse owners need to be sure their animals
are vaccinated." The vaccine for EEE is typically given
simultaneously in combination with vaccines against Western equine
encephalitis and tetanus. Like the West Nile vaccine, the initial two-dose
combination regimen must be administered 3 weeks to 6 weeks apart, with
annual boosters thereafter. Vaccine protection against all of these diseases
should be made a normal part of a horse's regular veterinary care, Norman
said. Horse owners should contact a veterinarian
immediately if they see any unusual clinical signs in their animals,
including unsteadiness, inability to stand or loss of coordination. While no
cure exists for either disease, horses diagnosed and treated early are more
likely to survive infection by an arbovirus. Property
owners should also work to eliminate potential breeding sites for mosquitoes,
including sources of standing water, like puddles, buckets, old tires and
bird baths. Mosquitoes can reproduce in very small quantities of standing
water in less than a week. -30-
Denise Derrer Public
Information Director Indiana State Board of Animal Health 805 Beachway
Drive, Ste. 50 Indianapolis, IN 46224-7785 317/227-0308 fax:
317/227-0330 email: dderrer@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
