Horses test positive for dangerous illness in Shelby County

Staff file photo by John Rawlston / Ronnie Burgess, right, from Rocky Face, goes horseback riding Wednesday with his grandchildren Hank Burgess, center, and C. C. Burgess at the Chickamauga Battlefield.
Staff file photo by John Rawlston / Ronnie Burgess, right, from Rocky Face, goes horseback riding Wednesday with his grandchildren Hank Burgess, center, and C. C. Burgess at the Chickamauga Battlefield.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Tennessee's state veterinarian said two new cases of an illness that could kill horses have been found in Shelby County.

Two horses in Tennessee's most populous county recently tested positive for equine infectious anemia, and their stable is under quarantine while other horses get tested, state veterinarian Samantha Beaty said in a news release.

Equine infectious anemia does not sicken humans, but the blood-borne illness is dangerous to horses because there is no vaccine or treatment, according to Tennessee's agriculture department.

The sickness is transmitted through insects that bite or by using the same needle to inject horses. Owners are being asked to check for symptoms that may include fever, lethargy, loss of appetite or colic. Infected horses are permanently quarantined or euthanized.

State law requires a yearly test to check for the presence of the illness before any horse is moved from its home farm to a different location, the department said.

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