Rabies Alert: Did You Mingle with the Horses at the Missouri State Fair?

We always think that the odds are long that mingling with farm animals and show horses at a fair or at the races will have a health risk, but that is exactly the case in Missouri this week. A young Saddlebred exhibited at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia has tested positive for rabies, and while the likelihood is small that he would have bitten anyone or that any people came into contact with his salivia, a public health alert has been issued.

Here are the facts from the State Department of Health:

The horse originated from Missouri and was a 2-year-old gelding (neutered male horse), bay (dark red, with black mane, tail, and legs). The horse was described as “medium” in size, standing about 15 hands (or 60 inches) at the withers, which is the area near the base of the mane. The horse weighed about 900 pounds. During the fair, the horse was shown in the Saddlebred Show and was stabled in Barn C.

Illness was first noted in the horse on August 17. Over the next day and a half, the horse developed severe neurologic signs and died the morning of August 19. The horse subsequently tested positive for rabies. People directly involved in the care of the horse are being contacted and are being assessed for possible rabies exposure and the need for rabies post-exposure treatment.

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services is requesting that persons who attended the Missouri State Fair between August 7 and August 9 contact their physician if they possibly had contact with this horse and any of the following occurred during their visit to the fair:

If the individual:

* was bitten by a horse;
* had contamination of a fresh open wound with saliva from a horse; or
* had saliva from a horse come in contact with eyes, nose, mouth or other mucous membranes.

Questions pertaining to human health aspects of this situation may be directed to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services at 573-751-6114. Questions pertaining to animal health may be directed to the Missouri Department of Agriculture, Division of Animal Health at 573-751-3377.

Thoroughbred Filly Dies of Rabies Despite Vaccination

The rabies virus as seen through the microscope. (University of South Carolina photo)

From the Animal Health Lab at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada comes this sobering report:

Recently in Ontario, Canada, a 15-month-old Thoroughbred filly was suspected of suffering the muscle disorder commonly known as "tied up" just one hour after appearing normal and being brought into the barn. Over the next 42 hours the horse's condition worsened drastically until she was unable to stand.

The horse was euthanized and her remains were sent to the Animal Health Laboratory (AHL) at the University of Guelph for necropsy.

Testing of spinal cord samples showed that the horse was infected with rabies virus, and specifically the Arctic fox strain. This type of infection was very widespread in foxes in the second half of the 20th century, but is now seen mostly in skunks in restricted parts of Ontario.

It is important to note that this horse had been vaccinated with a killed 3-year vaccine product at 4 and 5 months of age. Newer DNA vaccines that are now used in horses for West Nile disease, and have been studied for use in equine rabies, may hold promise for better protection in the near future.

Efforts by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources have greatly reduced rabies in Ontario to the point where in 2007 there were only 106 confirmed cases of rabies in Ontario (with no horses affected). This case illustrates the need to consider rabies as a rule-out in any horse showing neurologic signs, regardless of vaccination status.