Second confirmed case of EEE

Many of you have been asking about the need for boostering your horses this fall for EEE due to the case to the east of us.  There has been another confirmed case in Oswego County.  If you are planning to travel east, towards Syracuse, horses vaccinated for EEE prior to April 2011 will be declining in their immunity and should be boostered for EEE prior to travel.  Horses vaccinated between April and May of 2011 will have a decline in their immunity between September and October.  If more cases of EEE are identified between now and then, these horses may also need to be boostered.  We will keep an eye on the situation.  The following release contains the details

The NYS Dept of Agriculture and Markets, Division of Animal Industry is reporting its second case of Eastern Equine Encephalomyelitis for 2011.  This will be the first case of EEE for Oswego County. Oswego County has had plenty of EEE-positive mosquito activity recorded already this summer through the NYSDOH mosquito surveillance pools.

The first 2011 Oswego County EEE case was a 4 year old grade stallion that lived at its current location (Township: Scriba) for the last 3 years. The owner admitted to never vaccinating this animal or the other 3 horses that reside on the premises. On 8/2, the owner reported the horse was acting normal. However, on 8/3, the owner noticed the stallion standing but appearing depressed. The veterinarian came out to examine the horse and found additional neurologic signs along with blindness. The owner elected to euthanize. The brain was submitted to the NYS Dept of Health’s Wadsworth Center on 8/4 for Rabies testing and arboviral testing. The brain sample was negative for Rabies virus and West Nile virus.  The other remaining horses on the property appear to be healthy and have since been vaccinated by the veterinarian.