I spent all day yesterday doing research on the virus that killed my two foals in utero. I called the pharmaceutical company that made the vaccine that is supposed to prevent Equine Herpes Virus 1 (EHV1). Their vet got right on the phone and opened a case file. She also called my vet for more information. It turned out they have offered to pay for both foal necropsies and have requested placenta tissue to study and use the results towards amending their vaccine to cover the mutant? strain that killed my foals.
I have figured out finally, what went wrong. There was cross contamination and exposure where the broodmares were boarded. This could have been prevented if proper precautions were taken. I haven't slept in 3 nights as this has both saddened and angered me. I just can't seem to get out of my own way. I don't deal with loss well and for some reason, this has put me over the edge.
How is this most recent mare doing?
There was that EHV 1 out break in Utah several years back where ground zero was a National cutting horse show. Here you have a virus that can be spread by aerosol, shared equipment, and horse to human back to horse contact. Then you have the "latent carriers" that have the virus and it only shows up during stress which makes show horses, horses moved from one facility to another, and pregnant horses at the top of the list.
How many people or boarding facilities actually quarantine horses for 14-21 days when they are first brought on or brought back to their places? And when you're dealing with live stallion stud service, how well is that breeding facility maintaining their "bio-security", for lack of a better word?
All it takes is that one idiot who's horse spikes a fever and shows mild symptoms, but blazes on to the next show, boarding facility, "fun ride", or breeding farm........and every horse is exposed, whether they show symptoms or not.
It's insane how complicated having an animal can get. I had to implement bio-security with my birds; chickens, peafowl, turkeys, geese, guinea fowl twice during a 15 year time span because of viruses that swept through 1 show (Colorado), and Exotic Newcastle that was brought into the US by a fighting *advertiser censored* in California, transmitted by several of the participants in the fighting to meat and egg facilities and a poultry breeder in Parker Arizona (where my hay deliveries where coming from).
Zuri, I'm really sorry about the loss of your 2 foals. I've got to believe someone "dropped the ball" somewhere along the line, and didn't take the proper precautions when they brought unknown horses onto their facilities. You'd at least expect them to want a 30 day health certificate and isolate them from the rest of the horses for 14 days.
Did your stud contract have GLF? Can you have your mares covered again or is it a done deal?