Two New Strangles Cases Identified in Central Kentucky

Two Thoroughbreds at Triple Diamonds Training Center near Lexington have tested positive for strangles, according to a Kentucky Department of Agriculture update issued April 22. According to state officials, Triple Diamonds Trainer Center, also known as Three Diamonds Training Center, is located on Russell Cave Road property that previously operated as Ashwood Training Center

The newly identified horses with strangles are conditioned by the same unidentified trainer as earlier positives announced that were found in horses stabled at the Thoroughbred Training Center and Keeneland.

All seven positive horses, including the two announced Saturday, have been moved to a private quarantine facility. 

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.

The report from the Equine Disease Communication Center is as follows: 

Premises 3: Results of the testing completed on the 27 horses at Triple Diamonds Training Center (Three Diamonds on Russell Cave Road) did identify two additional positive horses. These horses were under the care of the same trainer having positives on Premises 1 (The Thoroughbred Center) and Premises 2 (Keeneland). The two positive horses and the trainers' other six horses were all moved offsite to the private quarantine facility.

Nineteen horses under the care of a second trainer were all found negative. Horses in this affected barn will remain under quarantine, are being monitored daily for any signs of illness and will be resampled.

Additionally, two horses for the single trainer that had originally tested negative by polymerase chain reaction the day they were moved offsite from Keeneland, have subsequently been confirmed positive by culture on specimens collected from enlarged mandibular lymph nodes. The fact both of these horses were PCR negative on nasal pharyngeal washes collected at the time of departure from Keeneland, provides additional evidence and confidence the disease-causing organism, streptococcus equi, was not being shed at that time.

Assessment of the exposed horses remaining on the three identified premises this morning found all horses to be bright, alert, eating and afebrile.  We are continuing to review the health status of these horses daily and will be collecting additional diagnostic tests during the upcoming week.

In Summary: Our investigation to date has confirmed evidence of Streptococcus equi in seven individual horses for a single trainer on three separate facilities. As previously described, we have and continue to test multiple horses under the care of several trainers at each of the three premises and have found no evidence of the disease-causing organism beyond those horses under the care of the single trainer.