Sunland Park Could Lift Quarantine March 9

The New Mexico Livestock Board has tentatively set March 9 as the date Sunland Park will no longer be under quarantine for the presence of equine herpesvirus..



If final approval is granted, Sunland Park will open its barn area to outside horses and allow horses currently stabled on site to travel offsite. On Jan. 21, the property underwent a full barn-area quarantine that included nearly 1,600 horses.



"It has been a tough few weeks, and I want to thank everyone for their hard work and understanding," Sunland Park general manager Rick Baugh said. "This virus is very serious, and all our focus and resources have been dedicated to reducing its impact. I'd like to thank all parties involved for their help." 



As of March 3, five horses remained in the isolation barn for positive EHV-1 tests, and all are expected to be released in the coming days. More than 342 EHV-1 tests were run in an effort to identify horses with the virus and reduce its spread, and 68 horses tested positive. The virus was contained to 4.2% of the barn area.