Strangles Cases Lead to Quarantined Shedrow in Indiana

A shedrow of a barn at Horseshoe Indianapolis, formerly Indiana Grand, has been placed under quarantine after two horses stabled there tested positive for strangles, according to the track's general manager, Eric Halstrom. 

Strangles is a highly contagious bacterial infection of the equine upper respiratory tract that can be spread by horse-to-horse contact or by humans, tack, buckets, and other environmental factors.

Symptoms can include fever, nasal discharge, cough, and swollen lymph nodes. Some horses only show mild symptoms, but can still prove contagious.

Full recovery of uncomplicated cases of strangles is favorable but usually takes three to six weeks, according to the University of California, Davis.

Halstrom wrote in an email to BloodHorse that the horses of that shedrow have been quarantined and the track is following stringent biosecurity protocols. The quarantine period is 14 days from the date of initial positive tests, lasting into late June.

The quarantined horses are not currently allowed to train or race, Halstrom noted.

There are no Indiana Horse Racing Commission-issued restrictions on horses shipping in or out of Horseshoe Indianapolis, though horses coming to the track to race will need to go to the receiving barn, according to Halstrom.

Hawthorne Race Course has banned ship-ins from Horseshoe Indianapolis "until further notice," Daily Racing Form reported. It is not uncommon for tracks to impose shipping restrictions when contagious diseases such as strangles or equine herpesvirus (EHV-1) are discovered.