s e

Abbeville mare
now recovenng
By Kelly Davis
[ndependent-:·.lali

Horse owners in the Upstate were

concerned but not surprised to learn
that the first cases of West Nile virus
have turned up in equines, including
a 4-year-old Abbeville Cou n ty mare
named Country_
Wlllle a Lexingwn County horse
died from colic as a possible result of
its West Nile virus infection,
Country is recovering nicely. said
owner Judy Smith of the Level Land
community near the Anderson Ken RUlfiard Independent·Mail

Coumy line.
Georgia - and most other states
where the virus has be e n detected -
Please see Horse. Page 4A
Patty King of Anderson scheduled West Nile virus vac­
cinations for horses she and her husband Dickie own.
Experts urge vaccinations for horses, although the vac­
cine is only conditionally C'.pproved and its positive
benefits have not been verEi8d completely.
from Page lA
has been dealing with equine cases for
some time. There were 23 counties with
cGuine infection in 2001. according to the
G20r!5ia Division of Public Health.
Eight Georgia counties. including
Franklin County, had at least one case as
of Aug. 30 this year.
Experts urge horse owners to get their
animals vaccinated. The West Nile vac­
cine, manufactured by Fort Dodge
Animal Health. is under conditional
approval by the U.S. Department of
Agriculture for use in horses. Because it
was approved under emergency condi­
tions, its effectiveness has not been estab­
lished with certainty.
Information about the vaccine is avail­
able at a Fort Dodge Web site,
www.equinewestnile.com.
There is no West Nile virus vaccine
approved for humans or any other ani­
mal.
Dr. Poag Reid in Pendleton said his
practice has vaccinated 572 horses in
August alone and Dr. Keith Stafford,
another Pendleton veterinarian who
treats horses exclusively, said West Nile
vaccinations have consumed his practice
in the last three weeks.
Nearly 40 percent of horses diagnosed
with \i 'est :'-file virus natiun'Nicie have
died. but that rate should go dOlovn as the
number of dia.!5noses rises, Dr. Stafford
said.
As with humans, "a lot more may just
end up having a fever, which could go
undetected," he said.
Gwen Frangias, owner of Omega
Farm Inc. in Anderson said she consid­
ers the risk to her 35 saddle bred horses
small. but as a precaution has vaccinated
them all.
"I don't think the horse vaccine is 100
percent effective, but that's all you can
do," she said.
So far, birds, horses and humans are
the only creatures significantly affected
by West Nile virus, said Dr. Tony Caver of
the Clemson University Veterinary
Diagnosis Center in Columbia, the lab
that did the initial diagnostic work on
the two positive horse cases.
The Lexington County horse was car­
rying West Nile virus but died from colic,
an intestinal disorder with many causes.
One of them is illness-induced stressthat
causes the horse to not drink enough,
leading to intestinal blockages, Dr. Reid
said.
West Nile virus was not suspected in
that case until a necropsy -performed on ,
tlle anim:.li dlscovel'ecl enccpllalijs. Tests
at the Depanmenr of Health and
Environmemal Control's Molecular
Epidemiology Laboratory discovered the
virus. Dr. Caver said.
Country the Level Land mare. was
diagnosed after Ms. Smith noticed dur­
ing a trail ride north of Walhalla that the
horse seemed lethargic, was staggering
and didn't have an appetite. Ms. Smith
brought her to Dr. Reid's clinic on Aug.
24, where blood samples were taken and
sent to Columbia.
Since the results would take nearly two
weeks, Dr. Reid began treating Country
with fluids and medication. care Ms.
Smith credits for saving her horse's life.
The West Nile results came in Friday
morning.
"That's the first horse I've tested for
West Nile virus," Dr. Reid said. "We
found it on the first one."
Ms. Smith also is concerned about her
own health, because based on the virus'
incubation period of five to 15 days,
Country had to have been ' infected at
home.
"I'm sure I have (been bitten by mos­
quitoes)," she said. "We're country-type
people. We're out at dusk every night tak­
ing care of animals. Yes, it scares me."