Assiniboia Downs under precautionary quarantine due to EIA virus

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This article was published 20/06/2024 (793 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Assiniboia Downs has placed all horses under a 45-day precautionary quarantine after a rare virus was recently detected at the racetrack.

This comes after one animal was found to be carrying equine infectious anemia (EIA) and had to be humanely euthanized under guidance from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA). Although the horse was tested immediately upon arrival at ASD about three weeks ago, a delay in receiving the results meant it wasn’t confirmed by the CFIA until June 13.

Once that occurred, the entire stable of more than 400 horses underwent what is known as a Coggins test. All have tested negative for the virus, and the CFIA will be doing follow-up testing on Friday.

“Because the fact that all of the horses within that stable who would have been in closest contact, you know, says vector transmission is concerned, with this particular horse were all negative,” Norm Elder, doctor of veterinary medicine and chair of the Manitoba Jockey Club., told the Free Press on Thursday.

“This stable is several hundred metres away from any other stables. So the potential for finding another positive case is remote.”

Until the quarantine is lifted, all horses cannot travel or come in contact with animals outside the ASD environment.

What does this mean for racing? With no additional positive tests, horses can continue to train and compete.

Earlier this week, a number of horses from the Tom Gardipy Jr. and Wendy Anderson barns were scratched out of an abundance of caution, resulting in smaller-than-usual fields, including one race with just two horses. However, it is now “business as usual” said Elder. On Wednesday, a total of 11 horses were scratched from the seven-race card, but for undisclosed reasons other than virus, according to Darren Dunn, CEO of ASD.

“It’s an unfortunate incident,” said Dunn. “But it shows our protocols that we have in place work…We follow the direction of the federal regulatory body that was involved. It’s just a very defined process to follow, which hasn’t been difficult. With the timely response that we had, this was controlled very quickly.”

Equine infectious anemia is a virus that mainly impacts horses. It is transmitted through blood and has no vaccine or treatment.

“I would say it’s probably conservative to say we’ve had 31,000 different horses through our barn area in the last 31 years,” said Dunn. “And this is the first time we’ve experienced it.”

The affected horse showed no outward signs of being ill, according to Elder. Carrier horses remain in perfectly good condition and can perform all usual tasks but remain lifelong carriers and pose a risk of infection to other horses.

“The only alternative is that you have is that you can keep the horse as long as they live in a totally screened and isolated environment away from any other animals,” said Elder. “In this case, the owners of the horse opted for euthanasia.”

Live racing at ASD resumes on Monday at 7:30 p.m.

zoe.pierce@freepress.mb.ca