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Member:
vickiann

Posted on Friday, Oct 10, 2008 - 9:53 am:

Mystery illness kills about 100 horses in Marion

By FRED HIERS
Ocala Star-Banner

Published: Thursday, October 9, 2008 at 6:01 a.m.
Last Modified: Friday, October 10, 2008 at 1:43 a.m.

As many as 100 horses died at a farm in southern Marion County during the past 10 days after the animals became ill, littering the farm's pastures.

The death toll is unprecedented, say state veterinary officials, and the cause of the illness, so far, remains a mystery.

Owners of EquiTransfer, Jose Davila and his wife, Francis Ramirez, both veterinarians, had to euthanize the horses after the animals showed neurological problems and began collapsing. The couple say they think the cause of the illness was contaminated hay that wreaked havoc on the animals' nervous systems.

Davila and Ramirez would not say who they bought the hay from, but said that EquiTransfer is the supplier's only customer and that they have disposed of all of the suspect hay.

Davila said they did not want to name the supplier because of potential legal consequences that could result if the hay turns out not to have been the problem.

"I wouldn't wish this on anybody," Davila said Wednesday regarding the death of so many horses. "They (the horses) started trembling and fell on the ground. It was like they were having seizures."

Meanwhile, Davila and Ramirez, have sent samples from the dead horses, as well as from the hay, to toxicology labs in New York and Pennsylvania to determine what caused the illness on the 87-acre farm near Summerfield.

The farm also sent two dead horses to the University of Florida Veterinary Medical Center to conduct necropsies, but those reports failed to find an apparent cause of what sickened the horses.

The farm is an embryo transfer facility in which Davila takes fertilized eggs from donor horses and implants them in surrogate horses.

Davila said he doesn't know the financial loss due to the disease, but estimates it to be in excess of several hundred thousand dollars.

He said his horses are insured.

The couple said that the suspect hay arrived Sept. 26 and 27 and that by Sept. 28, the first few horses became sick.

"When we saw two or three, that wasn't common," Davila said.

Within hours, the couple said many more horses showed neurological problems, including twitching muscles, inability to stand and seizure-like symptoms.

Davila and Ramirez contacted other local veterinarians to help treat the horses and rid the animals of potential toxins in their stomachs.

By last Friday, antitoxins had also arrived from the University of Florida veterinary college, which the farm used to treat the sick horses, Davila said. EquiTransfer also gave the antitoxin to its healthy horses as a precaution.

There are at least 400 horses on the farm.

Davila said he is not sure whether the treatments worked, or whether horses got better on their own.

When the disease was at its worst on the farm, horses were "DrOpping like flies," he said. A few horses could still begin to show symptoms of the sickness, but most appear healthy now, Ramirez said.

Davila said soon after his horses started dying, he informed veterinarian Mike Short, with the state veterinarian's office, which is part of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

"If you look at what's occurred, there's no evidence it was contagious," Short said Thursday. "It looks like it's mostly associated with hay."
Member:
zarr

Posted on Friday, Oct 10, 2008 - 12:32 pm:

Blister beetles??? It never takes much of a beetle to bring down a horse! Let us know what when they find out! Please.
Member:
vickiann

Posted on Friday, Oct 10, 2008 - 1:00 pm:

I will, Cindy. Have since been told that this has definitely been determined to have been caused by some kind of toxin ("food poisoning"), from feed or hay. These folks apparently use a custom made grain mix (perhaps of their own making?) and the article states that their hay supplier only supplies to their farm. This farm is in the business of implanting Paso Fino embryos into mares of various breeds and one of the owners is a Veterinarian. It will be interesting to have an identification of the toxin and haven't studied what would cause neurological problems of such a great magnitude in so many. If the hay was local, it would not be Blister beetles. Moldy corn?
Member:
jojo15

Posted on Friday, Oct 10, 2008 - 1:51 pm:

didn't this happen not to long ago with another farm and they did have it down to the corn in the silo killing them all?

sad.. whered' the article come from? and what state? florida?
Member:
zarr

Posted on Friday, Oct 10, 2008 - 4:31 pm:

jojo, you are right.Last year the same type problem with a toxin that built up in storage silo.They lost a lot of horses also. Scarey stuff when you don't know right away.
Member:
vickiann

Posted on Friday, Oct 10, 2008 - 5:16 pm:

The newspaper is the Ocala Star-Banner, Ocala, FL. The farm is in Marion Co. (Summerfield). Most likely the final results of the chemical tests will be published since the horse industry is vital to their economy and UF and the Ag folks are involved.

A year or so ago the corn in a silo in some other state (was it Texas?) had been treated with some kind of chemical that was customarily used, and there was some kind of dangerous build up that got into the corn.
Member:
vickiann

Posted on Friday, Oct 10, 2008 - 5:48 pm:

Now they are implicating haylage though I don't know that the determination is yet definite. Will advise. Here is the latest entire article:

Mystery illness kills 100 horses at farm
Tainted hay suspect at EquiTransfer in south Marion
By Fred Hiers
Star-Banner


Published: Friday, October 10, 2008 at 6:30 a.m.
Last Modified: Friday, October 10, 2008 at 6:20 a.m.
OCALA - As many as 100 horses died at a farm outside Summerfield during the past 10 days after the animals became ill, littering the farm's pastures. The death toll is unprecedented, say state veterinary officials.


Bruce Ackerman/Star-Banner Dr. Jose Davila stands in a stall with a customer's mare at Equi Transfer on County Road 475 in Summerfield on Wednesday.
More Photos:
Horse Tragedy A Mystery 10.09.08
The cause of the illness, so far, remains a mystery.

Owners of EquiTransfer, Jose Davila and his wife, Francis Ramirez, both veterinarians, had to euthanize the horses after the animals showed neurological problems and began collapsing. The couple say they think the cause of the illness was contaminated hay that wreaked havoc on the animals' nervous systems.

Davila and Ramirez would not say who they bought the hay from, but said that EquiTransfer is the supplier's only customer and that they have disposed of all of the suspect hay. Davila said they did not want to name the supplier because of potential legal consequences that could result if the hay turns out not to have been the problem.

"I wouldn't wish this on anybody," Davila said Wednesday regarding the death of so many horses. "[The horses] started trembling and fell on the ground. It was like they were having seizures."

Meanwhile, Davila and Ramirez, have sent samples from the dead horses, as well as from the hay, to toxicology labs in New York and Pennsylvania to determine what caused the illness on the 87-acre farm.

The farm also sent two dead horses to the University of Florida Veterinary Medical Center to conduct necropsies, but those reports failed to find an apparent cause of what sickened the horses.

The farm, on South County Road 475, is an embryo transfer facility in which Davila takes fertilized eggs from donor horses and implants them in surrogate horses.

Davila said he doesn't know the financial loss due to the disease, but estimates it to be in excess of several hundred thousand dollars. He said his horses are insured.

The couple said that the suspect hay arrived Sept. 26 and 27 and that by Sept. 28, the first few horses became sick.

"When we saw two or three, that wasn't common," Davila said.

Within hours, the couple said many more horses showed neurological problems, including twitching muscles, inability to stand and seizure-like symptoms.

Davila and Ramirez contacted other local veterinarians to help treat the horses and rid the animals of potential toxins in their stomachs.

By last Friday, antitoxins had also arrived from the University of Florida veterinary college, which the farm used to treat the sick horses, Davila said. EquiTransfer also gave the antitoxin to its healthy horses as a precaution.

There are at least 400 horses on the farm.

Davila said he is not sure whether the treatments worked, or whether horses got better on their own.

When the disease was at its worst on the farm, horses were "DrOpping like flies," he said. A few horses could still begin to show symptoms of the disease, but most appear healthy now, Ramirez said.

Davila said soon after his horses started dying he informed veterinarian Mike Short, with the state veterinarian's office, which is part of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

"If you look at what's occurred, there's no evidence it was contagious," Short said Thursday. "It looks like it's mostly associated with hay."

The death of so many horses on a single farm because of contaminated feed, however, is something most veterinarians have never heard of.

"It sounds fairly improbable to me, but stranger things have happened," said Diane Kitchen, another state veterinarian with the Florida Department of Agriculture. "We've never heard of anything like this on these numbers."

Carol Clark, a veterinarian with Peterson & Smith Equine Hospital in Ocala, said the most likely cause was something the horses ate, but only the toxicology tests would be able to show what made the horses die.

Clark said there were many ways hay can become contaminated.

Poor storage of hay can cause mold contamination, she said, but added that toxins in mold generally do not cause the kinds of problems EquiTransfer saw with its horses.

If dead animals are accidentally wrapped into the hay, that could also contaminate it, she said. But that would contaminate only the single bail, not all the other bails delivered to the farm, she said.

Another culprit could be botulism, Clark said.

In the case of botulism, the bacteria Clostridium botulinum produces spores which sticks to the hay when it is cut and baled. The spores become bacteria, which produce a deadly toxin.

The bacteria thrive in environments absent of oxygen.

In some cases, grass that is cut and wrapped and allowed to ferment, which is conducive to the deadly bacteria's growth if not handled correctly, Clark said.

The processed hay is called haylage and is typically given to cattle because cattle are less susceptible to botulism, Clark said.

Horses are highly susceptible to the disease and many veterinarians, including Clark, due not recommend haylage be given to horses.

Davila said the hay he gave his sick horses was haylage, but that it was inoculated to make it safe for horses.

It is unlikely state animal officials will get involved to ensure the supplier's hay, if any is left, is not sold to another farm, though.

That's because Steve Dwinell, a Florida Department of Agricultural official, said the state only regulates animal feed, not hay. Feed includes supplements such as protein mixes, hay is essentially dried grass.

"There has to be evidence of some regulated commodity'' for the state to investigate, Dwindell said. "[Hay] is not considered a regulated feed."

There have been four complaints from citizens made with Marion County Animal Control against the farm since 2005, county records show. When Animal Control investigators visited the site, they found the complaints unfounded and the horses well-fed and healthy.

As for the farm's latest problems, the department's spokeswoman, Christy Jergens, said, "As of right now, there doesn't look to be any legal problems. If something else is found, that could be a different situation."
Member:
scooter

Posted on Friday, Oct 10, 2008 - 8:24 pm:

My friend had that happen with haylage (botulism) 3 of her horses were dead in 24 hrs. 1 survived with treatment.
Member:
vickiann

Posted on Friday, Oct 10, 2008 - 8:41 pm:

Personally, I would not feed haylage, but confess to being very particular about my horses' forage and feed. 400 mares is a lot of equines to feed, I guess, but if the haylage was made just for them that makes me think that it was local and I never even heard of haylage being made in Florida. We have a lot of heat, rain and humidity. And besides that, I wonder if the fact that they made haylage means that the quality was lacking in the first place. Otherwise, why would they not have just made hay? One must wonder if it wasn't loaded with weeds, possibly toxic plus the possibility of botulism. But perhaps they needed a more compact product with so many to feed. I am not qualified to judge. Some of the horses that are survivors were shown on the local news tonight, and they looked good. A reporter asked her why they chose to feed haylage, and the Vet said that they feed a variety of forages.
Member:
zarr

Posted on Friday, Oct 10, 2008 - 8:54 pm:

WoW 400 mares is an awful lot and an awful lot of babies!
Think the case in Texas?? was 60 to 70 horses! Thank you for update!
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Saturday, Oct 11, 2008 - 6:26 am:

The signs are consistent with botulism except for the seizures. However a horse struggling to stand or with muscle tremors can certainly look like a seizure, for more see Diseases of Horses » Nervous System » Incoordination, Weakness, Spasticity, Tremors » Botulism Poisoning, Shaker Foals.
DrO
Member:
jillianm

Posted on Monday, Oct 13, 2008 - 8:23 pm:

Its kind of odd how the farm in Texas also involved Paso Finos and Peruvian Pasos. They never did prosecute the stable owner for misuse of a controlled pesticide. Hopefully this case is bad hay and not sheer negligence.
Member:
vickiann

Posted on Tuesday, Nov 4, 2008 - 9:05 am:

Here is the latest news:

Botulism blamed in deaths of 100 horses

By Fred Hiers
Staff Writer

Published: Monday, November 3, 2008 at 10:52 a.m.
Last Modified: Monday, November 3, 2008 at 3:13 p.m.
OCALA - The cause of death for 100 horses that died last month at a breeding farm outside Summerfield appears to be botulism, according to some of the tests done on the dead animals and their feed.

Although more tests will be done and more samples were sent to labs last week, the preliminary test results indicate that the toxin produced by Clostridium botulinum was what caused the horses at EquiTransfer to suffer nervous system damage, said veterinarian Mike Short, with the state veterinarian's office, which is part of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

The horses were euthanized by farm owners Jose Davila and his wife, Frances Ramirez, both veterinarians.

Short said some of the test samples indicated botulism and some tested negative for the toxin but the toxin is difficult to detect. However, Short said, the positive tests for the poison, along with the symptoms the animals displayed, were sufficient to come to the conclusion that it was highly likely botulism was the cause.

The hay the farm fed the horses was the suspected source of the contamination, Short said.

The horses were fed haylege, which is grass that is cut and wrapped and allowed to ferment. Haylege is conducive to the deadly bacteria's growth if not handled correctly. Short said tests on the haylege indicated the pH was not as low as it should have been in order to deter the botulism-producing bacteria from growing.

Contact Fred Hiers at fred.hiers@starbanner.com or 352-867-4157.
Member:
canter

Posted on Tuesday, Nov 4, 2008 - 10:07 am:

How very sad. Thanks for the update, Vicki
Member:
zarr

Posted on Tuesday, Nov 4, 2008 - 11:57 am:

Tis extremely sad! A herd of 100 crosses the bridge! With hope lesson learned!
Member:
vickiann

Posted on Tuesday, Nov 4, 2008 - 12:37 pm:

I agree, Fran and Cindy and cannot imagine how horrible it must have been on-site. What does one even DO with 100 deceased horses? There are probably regulations about this, I guess.
Member:
vickiann

Posted on Tuesday, Nov 4, 2008 - 6:50 pm:

The following is in "The Horse" magazine about botulism. I will want to review anything that Dr. O suggests regarding such a vaccination.

Consider Vaccinating Horses Against Botulism
by: Edited Press Release
November 02 2008, Article # 13009
Print Email Republish Link RSS ShareThis
The recent deaths of approximately 100 horses in Florida in an apparent outbreak of equine botulism have highlighted the need for a better understanding of the causes of the dreaded disease, and how it can be prevented.

Haylage contaminated with the botulinum toxin has been implicated as the culprit in the outbreak that spread quickly through a population of mares on a Florida embryo transfer farm (read more). Forage poisoning is the most common cause of the disease that, although well studied, fails to gain the attention of more publicized threats to horses.

"Historically, equine botulism has been considered a regional concern limited to areas of the country where Clostridium botulinum, the soilborne bacterium whose toxin causes the disease, is known to exist," said Dr. Jennifer Newman, Neogen's technical service veterinarian. "The traditional reach of C. botulinum type B has been in the temperate Mid-Atlantic soils of the United States, including Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and adjoining states. Types A and C are associated with the vicinities of Colorado, Utah, and the West Coast. Disease outbreaks occur so sporadically that people in non-endemic areas have let their guard down when it comes to the severity of botulism. However, as horses and feed are increasingly transported in and out of the endemic areas, this once regional concern is becoming more widespread.

"To address this increasing concern, the American Association of Equine Practitioners included botulism in the list of risk-based vaccines within its 2008 Vaccination Guidelines," she continued. "Horse owners routinely, and justifiably, have their animals vaccinated against tetanus, West Nile virus, Eastern and Western equine encephalomyelitis, rabies, and other diseases. Horse owners, with their veterinarians, should also be evaluating the risk posed to their animals by botulism and whether vaccination against botulism is beneficial."

Dr. Newman said Neogen, in cooperation with a number of veterinarians and veterinary hospitals, has launched educational programs to teach horse caregivers and owners how to preliminarily recognize and prevent the disease.

"Unfortunately, in Kentucky we have years of experience with equine botulism in the form of shaker foal synDrOme," she said. "The disease can be very difficult to diagnose, because its clinical signs of reduced tongue tone, difficulty swallowing, muscle tremors, weakness, and recumbency mirror other diseases. The 'grain test' and 'tongue test' are two simple tests that veterinarians and horse owners can use initially when botulism is suspected. We have a great deal of additional clinical information available to the equine community on our Web site or by contacting Neogen directly."

Neogen provides the only USDA-approved vaccine against the predominant cause of equine botulism, C. botulinum Type B. First approved in 1987 and sold exclusively to veterinarians, BotVax B has safely and successfully protected hundreds of thousands of horses and foals from equine botulism and shaker foal synDrOme.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Wednesday, Nov 5, 2008 - 9:32 am:

Hello Vicki,
You will find our recommendations on prevention and vaccination against Botulism at Diseases of Horses » Nervous System » Incoordination, Weakness, Spasticity, Tremors » Botulism Poisoning, Shaker Foals.
DrO
Member:
vickiann

Posted on Wednesday, Nov 5, 2008 - 3:58 pm:

Thanks, Dr. O -- I will review before my next semi-annual appointment for vaccinations.
Member:
vickiann

Posted on Wednesday, Mar 11, 2009 - 7:29 pm:

Thought you may like an update on this story.

130 horses died, give or take a half a dozen, as a result of this situation.

The horses had NOT been immunized against botulism though they were being fed "haylage."

I have heard that only 3 of the horses that died were pregnant.

The haylage was produced by a veterinarian who keeps lots of cattle and specializes in bovine care.

Now the Vet who made the haylage is being sued by the Vets who bought and fed it to the horses.

The Vet who is being sued states that he warned that the haylage was "not suitable for horses."

In my mind, he should not even have had to make that warning to equine Vets, and should not be sued. They should have known better and certainly should have vaccinated for botulism if feeding haylage.
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