Horse herpes confirmed near Saskatoon

A stable near Saskatoon is under voluntary quarantine after a case of equine herpes virus 1 was confirmed in a horse.

"If we can put it out there and be open and honest about it, it helps educatethe whole horse community and helps everybody to make good, appropriate decisions to stay home for a bit or to check their horses' temperatures and kindof be on top of it a bit more," said AlyssaGartner, the owner of the infected horse.

It's more common than people want to admit- Alyssa Gartner

"I kind of thought at first that she was a bit sore or tender," she said of herfive-year-old American Quarter Horse, Sunny."I was leading her around the arena and I really noticed her dragging her toes and being really wobbly ...and something in me just said it was something more than she was sore or had a long ride."

That's when Gartner immediately took Sunny to the vet.

The horse is now receiving supportive care andhas been put in isolation. Clinicians from the Western College of Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan are working closely with the stable to monitor the case, according to arelease from the college.

What isEHV-1?

EHV-1 cannot be transmitted to humans or most animal species, but the virus is highly contagious among horses. It's spread through direct contact or indirect contact such as contaminated equipment.

If a horse hasEHV-1,it canleadto fever, coughing, nasal discharge, and there may beabnormalities or death in foals that are infected before being born.

It can also lead to equine herpes myeloenephalopathy, which is a neurologic disease impacting the hind limbs and urinary tract.

"It's more common than people want to admit," said Gartner, adding that Sunnyis expected to make a full recovery.

"We're going to get it under wraps as quick as the virus will let us."