A horse in Barn A at Pimlico was euthanized Wednesday afternoon, the third
equine death at the track since an outbreak of Equine Herpesvirus (EHV-1) was
detected on January 2.
Trainer Joe Delozier instructed a private veterinarian to euthanize the
sophomore General Strike (Smart Strike) on Wednesday after the colt showed no
signs of improvement. General Strike started showing symptoms of EHV-1 on
January 19 and tested positive for the virus just two days ago.
Since the beginning of the year, 11 horses have tested positive for EHV-1 at
Pimlico. Maryland Jockey Club officials placed the track under quarantine on
Saturday until further notice.
With nearly 500 horses stabled at Pimlico, and restrictions placed upon
Thoroughbreds traveling in and out of Maryland, the EHV-1 situation is causing a
shortage of entrants at Laurel Park, which is currently conducting its
Winter/Spring Meet. Because of this, Laurel officials have canceled two live
racing days — January 29 and February 5 — but will continue to race on a
four-day, Wednesday through Sunday schedule
“We are working with a limited pool of horses and it has taken its toll on
our entries,” Chief Operating Officer Lou Raffetto said. “Cutting back to four
days a week the next two weeks will allow us to have the quality and quantity we
were accustomed to before the outbreak of the virus.”
Since restrictions on the movement of horses to and from Pimlico began on
January 6, the average field size at Laurel has been 7.3 per race, compared to
8.6 starters per race in December.
The problem seemed to spread on Thursday, as the Maryland State Veterinarian
placed an “Investigational Animal Hold Order” on a farm in Kent County,
Maryland, due to suspected cases of EHV-1. The farm is used as an off-track
training facility for a Pimlico-based trainer and received a horse from Pimlico
before officials stopped any movement to and from the track earlier this month.
“This new occurrence is extremely unfortunate and we are working closely with
everyone involved and using the best science available in the equine research
community to prevent any possible spread of illness,” Maryland State
Veterinarian Guy Hohenhaus said. “It is believed that this incident is not a
distinctly new case. We encourage horse owners with concerns to contact their
private veterinarians to determine if a vaccination or booster is recommended
for their horses at this time.”
Test results are expected next week on a horse euthanized at the farm
Thursday morning and another who is showing neurologic signs. The name and
location of the farm have not been released because it is a private farm.