The Colorado Department of Agriculture is warning livestock owners that vesicular stomatitis has returned in the state and to contact a veterinarian immediately if they suspect an infection.
“We are closing in on the fair and show season and we want to remind livestock owners to practice vigilant disease mitigation practices to protect their animals,” said state veterinarian Keith Roehr
Roehr’s office has quarantined animals at 53 locations in eight counties after finding horses, mules and cattle that tested positive for the virus. Another 14 locations formerly under quarantine have been released.
The virus, which is in the same family as the rabies virus, rarely kills its victims. But it causes mouth and nose sores that make it difficult for them to eat, contributing to weight loss and sometimes requiring artificial feeding. Horses, in severe cases, can shed skin and their hoofs.
The virus doesn’t spread so much via animal-to-animal contact, but rather via biting flies and gnats that are thought to come up from Mexico. Roehr urged livestock owners to reduce the population of flies if they can.
Last summer’s outbreak was concentrated primarily along the northern Front Range. And while it has returned in Larimer County, which has 11 active quarantines, it is most prevalent in Montrose County, with 14 quarantines, and Delta County, with 10.
Other counties with active quarantines include Archuleta, Chaffee, La Plata, Mesa and Montezuma.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture no longer considers vesicular stomatitis as a “foreign animal disease” among horses, which means local veterinarians rather than state or federal veterinarians can now perform initial investigations and collect samples.
The change also means quarantines can end as soon as 14 days after the last horse on a premise shows symptoms. This time around, the Colorado State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory is approved to test for the virus in horses, which should shorten the time it takes to confirm an infection.
Aldo Svaldi: 303-954-1410, asvaldi@denverpost.com or twitter.com/aldosvaldi
