Potentially fatal equine disease contained, state says

An outbreak of equine infectious anemia that was confirmed in northwestern Nebraska last week has been quarantined.

EIA is a blood born disease that only affects horses, mules and donkeys is most often passed on by insects that bite. It is usually fatal, according to state veterinarian Dr. Dennis Hughes.

The Nebraska Department of Agriculture found out about the outbreak in the end of May. It occurred in north west Cherry County, said Christin Kamm, public information officer with the NDA. As far as the department knows, the outbreak is confined to one herd.

"All of the animals are still under quarantine at this time," Kamm said.

So far, no horses have died from the outbreak.

The owner of the herd cooperated with the NDA to help contain the disease, Kamm said.

There have been cases of one or two animals at a time with EIA in Nebraska in the recent past, but nothing on this scale.

"This is the largest we've had in a number of years," Kamm said.

Gary Watt, one of the hosts of the Panhandle Ranch Horse Show, set to take place in Bridgeport at the end of the month, said that they recommend testing for anyone entering the show.

"We are asking that everyone has current Coggins tests and health papers for a safety factor," Watt said. "We can't enforce that, it's just common courtesy."

Because it's thought that the outbreak is currently contained, and all the infected horses are still in quarantine, Watt doesn't think ranchers should be afraied of taking their horses to shows.

"The show will take place as scheduled," Watt said. "I don't feel like this is gonna be a problem."

He said they're hosting the show because there aren't enough events for local horsemen in the area to attend unless they're willing to travel a couple hundred miles.

The NDA encourages all horse owners, not just ones who take their horses to shows, to implement control practices to prevent EIA. These include getting rid of standing water on the property and making sure any additions to the herd have a negative Coggins test before intermingling with the other horses.

All ranchers across the state should see their veterinarian immediately if they have a donkey, mule or horse exhibiting signs of fever, depression or weight loss, Kamm said.