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West Nile Virus case confirmed
By Courtney Burleson, Managing Editor
Colorado County has had its first confirmed equine case of the West Nile Virus, according to Dr. Michael Ridlen of the Colorado Valley Veterinary Services.
On Monday, Oct. 8 Dr. Ridlen received the official diagnosis from the Texas Department of State Health Services laboratory in Austin.
The diagnosis came after Dr. Ridlen sent in brain samples from a local horse that had been euthanized on Sept. 27. The animal had presented neurological symptoms such as a stuporous attitude, lip quiver and had no desire to raise its head. Originally, Dr. Ridlen had suspected a possible rabies case and had samples tested. The results came back negative.
"I thought that was the end of it," said Dr. Ridlen. "I didn't require a West Nile test."
Letha Zuckero, Rabies ID team leader, from the TDSHS said that for a number of years the lab has been routinely testing all equine samples for a battery of viruses including WNV and equine encephalitis when rabies test results come back negative.
For Dr. Ridlen, what makes this case stand out is that it's the first local case confirmed by a lab.
"I've had other suspect horses but the owners did not elect to have their animals tested even though the suspect of West Nile was high," said Dr. Ridlen.
What this means for area horse owners, says Dr. Ridlen, is that the threat of WNV is still real.
"When WNV first came out a lot of horse owners got the vaccination because of all the news media attention but we didn't see a huge die out of horses like the east coast did since we got the vaccine before WNV was able to spread in Texas," explained Dr. Ridlen.
"That was several years ago and people haven't been paying as much attention to WNV anymore."
Now with a confirmed case in the county, Dr. Ridlen stressed that all horse owners need to become diligent about protecting their animals. At one time a veterinarian could only administer the vaccine, but now horse owners can obtain and administer the vaccine themselves.
Dr. Ridlen strongly urges horse owners to consider getting their WNV vaccines and/or booster shots up to date for several reasons.
"With the vaccine they are less likely to get WNV and more likely to recover if they do contract WNV."
While it can be, WNV is not always fatal in horses.
"It depends on their vaccine status," said Ridlen. "Vaccinated horses have a 30-60 percent mortality rate."
He estimated that in the last three years, there's been about a half dozen horses that could have possibly contracted the virus.
According to the TDSHS website, there have been 43 reported cases on WNV in horses in 29 Texas counties during 2007.
West Nile Virus is spread by the bite of an infected mosquito, which has bitten an infected bird. Dr. Ridlen stressed that WNV cannot be spread from animal to person.
"Horses get the WNV the same way we do."
Dr. Ridlen also urges the public to protect themselves. According to the TDSHS, there have been four WNV human fatalities reported in 2007 in 11 counties.
The TDSHS has several recommendations for reducing the chances of human infection from WNV. They are staying indoors at dawn, dusk and early evening; wearing long-sleeved shirts and long pants outdoors; applying insect repellent sparingly to exposed skin; spraying clothing with insect repellents containing permethrin or DEET; use of gloves or double plastic bags when handling infected birds and not having stagnate water around.
For more information call (888) 883-9997 or visit www.dshs.state.tx.us/idcu/disease/arboviral/westnile
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