OAHN Equine Network Research Project: EHV-1 Abortion Outbreak: Case report and biosecurity awareness

A breeding farm in Ontario experienced a difficult abortion outbreak in 2019. Diagnostic testing and clinical assessment of the outbreak as part of this project revealed some surprising information. It was discovered that mares shed the virus from their nose for a much greater time than has been reported in literature (up to 74 days post-abortion). This is an important consideration for veterinarians when discussing timelines for disease spread in future.

Several biosecurity challenges were also identified as part of this outbreak, and these as well as the other findings were relayed to veterinarians in a case report format in an OAHN Equine report (Q2 2019 – must log in to view). An infographic produced on EHV-1 and biosecurity for horse owners is available on the OAHN site.