Until late summer 1999, few American horse owners had heard of West Nile virus. The story of how it was found, spread, monitored and prevented is worth reviewing. Stacey Oke, DVM, MSc, writes the 25-year story of WNV in the U.S. in the feature linked here.
Understanding the history informs our current situation as CDC data indicates 48 states and the District of Columbia have all reported cases of WNV in humans, horses, mosquitoes or other animals, Hawaii and Alaska being the exceptions. West Nile virus in horses is largely under-reported since a horse owner has to pay for testing and a veterinarian has to take a diagnostic sample, submit it to the laboratory and report findings to the state if the test comes back positive.
Source: The Horse, © 2024. Link.
Veterinarians agree that vaccination is the best way to protect horses from WNV, which is why it is included in the AAEP’s core vaccination schedule as a vaccine horses should receive at least once a year.
INSIGHTS: This is an excellent resource to share with horse owners and horse enthusiast groups. Mosquito activity spikes during the cooling days of fall increasing risks of mosquito-borne illness in horses, dogs and cats.