Strangles Leads to ThistleDown Quarantine

Officials at JACK ThistleDown Racino have quarantined one barn because two horses recently tested positive for strangles.

In a notice on the track overnight sheet, officials said Barn 24 was quarantined and disinfected. Two horses in the barn were removed from the property at the northeast Ohio track, and all other horses in the barn are being monitored on a daily basis.

Strangles, a bacterial infection in the upper respiratory tract of horses, causes fever and swelling of the jaw. Officials said PCR tests performed on the two horses came back positive for the condition.

Any horses that were in contact with the two removed from the grounds have had negative PCR test results.

ThistleDown officials have adjusted training hours in light of the situation. Regular training is permitted from 5:30-8 a.m. EDT and 8:30-9:30 a.m. From 9:45-10:30 a.m., only horses stabled in Barn 24 are permitted on the racetrack.