A silent killer?
EQUINE herpes virus (EHV) is the cause of a contagious disease that circulates worldwide and can be responsible for severe outbreaks in horses. Most recently, an outbreak that involved the neurological version of the disease occurred in June this year in a racing premises in England, resulting in two fatalities. In early 2021, disease was confirmed across Europe, linked to horses that attended FEI showjumping events on the Iberian peninsula. Another large outbreak occurred in February 2022 in California, linked to events in the region. Both those outbreaks followed the mixing of a large number of horses, and had catastrophic effects on many horses, their owners and the industry.
Most horses will first encounter EHV as foals and, following recovery, the virus can remain in the body, in an inactive state known as viral latency. In later years, the latent virus can “reactivate” and spread to infect other horses (see diagram, overleaf).
