West Nile virus kills two horses

The West Nile virus is being blamed in the death of two horses in Cape Girardeau County, and several others have been diagnosed with the mosquito-borne disease, sending worried equestrian owners to veterinarians to get their animals treated.

"It's official: It's an epidemic," said horse vet Dr. Linus Huck. "It's reached epidemic proportions."

Huck treated the two horses that died and said he has confirmed eight to 10 other cases of the rapidly spreading virus that to date has killed 12 people nationwide. He also has sent blood samples of at least 15 others that may have been infected.

Several of the infected horses are being housed at Huck's Fruitland, Mo., clinic, where they show the symptoms associated with the disease: droopy lips, some stumbling or wobbliness, paralysis and muscle tremors.

They are easily agitated and often grind their teeth, a sign they are in pain from the disease that inflames the brain and spine, Huck said.

"They get a headache from hell," Huck said.

The horses undergo about three pain-killing shots a day.

Uninfected horses can get a vaccine that includes a dead form of the virus that will help them build up an immunity. The vaccine is followed a few weeks later by a booster shot.

Mosquitoes become infected when they feed on infected birds, which may circulate the virus in their blood for a few days. Infected mosquitoes can then transmit West Nile virus while feeding on humans and animals.

Cape Girardeau County horse breeder Jeff Heuer said his 12-year-old pregnant mare died Saturday from the West Nile virus.

"We've been watching them all close," said Heuer, who raises about 10 horses for trail riding and to take to horse shows. "She didn't show any of the symptoms, not until she started acting like she was paralyzed from the back end."

On Friday, he noticed the mare on the ground with her foot caught in a fence. That's not all that uncommon, so Heuer helped the horse to its feet, but noticed her lying down again a few hours later.

That's when he called Huck, who diagnosed the horse with West Nile. A day later, the horse had to be euthanized.

"I'd heard about it, but I wasn't really worried about it, you know?" Heuer said. "It sounded like a fluke deal. I've learned now, though, that it's here and it's pretty bad."

Now he's had all of his horses vaccinated. He also sprays them down with an insecticide.

The mare's death cost him about $2,000.

Tough September

Huck said he thinks the situation is going to get worse later this year, and he recommends all horses get the shots.

"September is going to be tough," Huck said. "With the upsurge in mosquitoes and the tremendous susceptibility and the huge viral load, it's going to be bad. These horses have zero immunity."

The news of the horse deaths may worry residents who have already been hearing about the increasing number of human deaths. A human death was reported in St. Louis on Monday.

But Charlotte Craig, director of the Cape Girardeau County Public Health Center, noted no human cases have been reported in this area and cautioned against undue panic.

"To me it just shows that our system is working," Craig said. "This has been here, but we're just now seeing it. It couldn't have just got here when we first found it. Should we be concerned? The answer is yes. But only as much as we are about any communicable disease."

Craig said she puts mosquito repellent on family members before they go outside. Make sure, she said, that any repellent includes an ingredient called DEET. Without that ingredient, she said the repellent might work on clothing, but it won't keep mosquitos off of the skin. Don't let free-standing water accumulate, she said, because it is a breeding grounds for mosquitoes.

Still collecting horse data

Dr. Bretaigne Jones, a staff vet with the state veterinarian's office in Jefferson City, said between 35 and 40 horses have been diagnosed with the West Nile virus, though she said they are still collecting data.

She noted that the disease is not spread from horse to horse -- or from human to human, for that matter -- and requires a mosquito host. She said that there is typically a 30 percent mortality rate in horses.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guess that the disease's peak this year may not come for several weeks, and predicted 1,000 people could be infected this year and 100 could die. So far, 251 human cases have been reported.

The virus has spread rapidly since it was first detected in 1999 in New York. The virus killed 18 people from 1999 through 2001, according to the CDC, and has been found in every state east of the Rocky Mountains.

smoyers@semissourian.com

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